Bladee

Benjamin Reichwald[1][2] (born 9 April 1994[3]), known professionally as Bladee (pronounced "blade"),[4] is a Swedish rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, designer and member of the artistic collective Drain Gang.[5]

Bladee
Bladee performing in 2016
Background information
Birth nameBenjamin Reichwald
Also known asKen Burns (Smög Boys)
Born (1994-04-09) 9 April 1994
Stockholm, Sweden
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Rapper
  • singer
  • songwriter
  • record producer
  • fashion designer
  • graphic designer
Instruments
Years active2008; 2011; 2012–present
Labels
Associated acts

He released his debut album Eversince in 2016, and his second album Red Light in 2018—both through Stockholm record label YEAR0001.[6][5][7] In addition to his music, Reichwald creates visual art, which frequently appears as cover art for his releases.[8][9] Reichwald also serves as the creative director for Yung Lean's clothing line Sadboys Gear.[10][11]

Early life

Benjamin Reichwald was born 9 April 1994 in Stockholm, Sweden[12] and was raised mainly in the Skanstull area.[13] It was here where, in 2004, he met fellow Gravity Boys member Zak Arogundade, also known as Ecco2k. The two were classmates and formed a band titled "Krossad" when Reichwald was 13, which led to Reichwald's interest in music.[13]

After leaving school, Reichwald began to get into making music whilst working at a daycare centre.[14]

Career

Reichwald released a few tracks in 2011 under the name Ken Burns,[15][16][17] but properly began releasing music in 2012. He eventually became friends with Swedish rapper Yung Lean, who was a friend of Reichwald's brother. Reichwald eventually sent a message to Sad Boys member Yung Sherman on SoundCloud, asking to collaborate, which resulted in a working relationship between his own Gravity Boys collective and Lean's Sad Boys Entertainment. Reichwald and Lean then made "Heal You // Bladerunner" from Lean's Unknown Death 2002 mixtape, which gave him attention from Lean's fanbase.[18]

Reichwald released his debut-mixtape, GLUEE in 2014 on the YEAR0001 label[19] which was described as the "summertime anthem for a suburban generation stuck scrolling through Twitter".[14] The mixtape was successful on the audio distribution platform SoundCloud, racking up over 2 million plays.[20] This mixtape, coupled with several singles going viral and features on Yung Leans debut mixtape Unknown Death 2002 was able to rocket Bladee into underground hip hop fame.[21]

Reichwald released his debut album, Eversince on May 25, 2016.[22] The album received mixed reviews from mainstream outlets, but was well received by underground and experimental critics.[23][24]

In 2017, Reichwald teamed up with production group Working on Dying to release his second mixtape, named after the group.

2018 saw the release of Reichwald's second album, Red Light.[25]

In July 2018, Reichwald and fellow Drain Gang member Ecco2K walked Alyx Studio's S/S 2019 menswear show in Paris, on invitation from Matthew Williams.[26]

Reichwald's third mixtape, Icedancer, was released December 28, 2018. This album was executively produced by Australian collective Ripsquad featuring production from Whitearmor and PJ Beats.[27]

In April 2020, Reichwald released EXETER, a nine-song mixtape he recorded whilst in Gotland with Gud. It is the first Bladee project produced by Gud on the YEAR0001 label.[28]

In July 2020, Reichwald released his third album and second project of 2020, 333 via YEAR0001. The album was produced primarily by Whitearmor, with additional production coming from close collaborators Gud, Mechatok, and Lusi, as well as Joakim Benon of the Swedish band JJ. Notable is the absence of any vocal features, especially of longtime collaborator and fellow Drain Gang member Ecco2K, who contributed to the previous 2 Bladee albums.[29]

In December 2020, Reichwald released his third project of 2020, Good Luck via YEAR0001. The album was entirely produced by Mechatok. Both Reichwald and Mechatok performed all of the tracks on the album as well as a set from Mechatok in a livestreamed performance on the 10th December, the same day the album was released.[30]

Musical style

Reichwald has described his style as "pain" though saying, as of 2018, he had "evolved into some sort of auto-tuned dark angel".[11]

In a 2019 interview, Reichwald acknowledged that he frequently experiments with his music, and does not like to confine what he does to a single genre.[31] In the same interview, he stated that his music is therapeutic for him, and that he often uses it to vent.

In an interview with Reichwald, Jack Angell, a music writer for The Fader, described Reichwald's sound as "frostbitten futurism" and remarked that Reichwald's music evokes "a wide spectrum of emotion".[31]

He has received widespread attention for his collaborations and live performances with Yung Lean.[32]

Discography

Studio albums

Mixtapes
  • Gluee (2014)
  • Working on Dying (2017)
  • Icedancer (2018)
  • Exeter (2020)

Extended plays
  • Rip Bladee (2016)
  • Sunset in Silver City (2018)
  • Exile (2018)

Collaborative mixtapes
  • GTBSG Compilation (2013) (with Thaiboy Digital, Ecco2k, Yung Lean, Whitearmor, Yung Sherman)
  • AvP (2016) (with Thaiboy Digital)
  • D&G (2017) (with Ecco2k, Thaiboy Digital)
  • Working on Dying (2017) (with Working on Dying)
  • Trash Island (2019) (with Ecco2k, Thaiboy Digital)

References
  1. "Bladee". Genius.
  2. Borelli-Persson, Laird. "Is There Anything He Can't Do? Meet Stockholm's Stylish Multi-Hyphenate Zak Arogundade". Vogue. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  3. @BladeeCity (9 Apr 2016). "Thanks everyone that wished me happy birthday" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  4. "Nardwuar vs. Yung Lean", Youtube video, 12:36, posted by "NardwuarServiette", July 23, 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=723ywF5faV4.
  5. Darville, Jordan. "Listen to Bladee's new album Red Light". The Fader. Andy Cohn. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  6. Jenkins, Craig. "Stream Yung Lean Associate Bladee's Chilly, Gorgeous Debut Album 'Eversince'". Noisey. Vice Media. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  7. YEAR0001. Accessed July 19, 2018. http://www.year0001.com/.
  8. Sami Baha. "Bladee - Cover Up (Prod. Sami Baha)". Soundcloud audio, 2:38, June 27, 2018. https://soundcloud.com/samibaha/bladee-cover-up-prod-sami-baha.
  9. Bala Club. "Woesum - Sapphire". Soundcloud audio, 5:05, December 23, 2017. https://soundcloud.com/balaclub/woesum-sapphire.
  10. Tesema, Feleg. "5 of Our Favorite New Collections & Where to Buy Them". Highsnobiety. Titel Media. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  11. Dunn, Frankie. "10 things you need to know about bladee". i-D. Vice. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
  12. BLADƎE (2016-04-09). "Thanks everyone that wish me happy birthday". @BladeeCity. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  13. "Being Bladee". The Fader. 17 September 2019.
  14. "Bladee, old swedish hardcore punk mix". atractivoquenobello. 2014-07-09. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  15. "Tony Hawk". Genius.
  16. "Tony Hawk". YouTube.
  17. "Always High". YouTube.
  18. ""Taking Arizona Iced Tea and Making It Cry": An Interview with Yung Lean and the Sad Boys". The FADER. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  19. "Bladee - Gluee | YEAR0001". year0001.com. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  20. "BLADEE (GLUEE)". SoundCloud.
  21. Osman, Jibril (2017-12-20). "Chronicling How Sad Boys and Shield Gang Became Sweden's Top Rap Groups". Medium. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  22. Cooper, Duncan (May 25, 2016). "Hear Swedish Sing-Rapper Bladee's Debut Album Eversince". The Fader. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  23. Eklund, Jonathan (June 5, 2016). "Kliver ur Yung Leans skugga med briljant debut". Gaffa (in Swedish). Retrieved September 14, 2018.
  24. Jenkins, Craig (May 25, 2016). "Stream Yung Lean Associate Bladee's Chilly, Gorgeous Debut Album 'Eversince'". Noisey. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  25. Darville, Jordan (May 11, 2018). "Listen to Bladee's new album Red Light". The Fader. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  26. "Alyx S/S 19 Menswear", Vogue, Retrieved 6 February 2020
  27. "Icedancer", Genius. Retrieved on 6 February 2020.
  28. "EXETER", YEAR0001. Retrieved on 8 April 2020.
  29. "333". YEAR0001. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  30. "Luck". YEAR0001. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  31. Angell, Jack, "Being Bladee", The Fader, Retrieved on 6 February 2020.
  32. Wang, Steffanee. "Bladee debuts "Decay," our first taste of new album Red Light". The Fader. Andy Cohn. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
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