Check Here Daily To See Performance Line-Up For The Show
Each finalist was voted in from Chicago, Midwest and around the country and it was exciting to see fans checking the site to see the voting numbers skyrocket. To buy tickets to the show click on the ticket to the right.

The Tour starts at Chicago’s RednoFive Nightclub and continues to Milwaukee and Indianapolis.
Performances will include the Hip Hop artist SEVERE with special guest DJ Phantom from WGCI 107.5 and the following winners:

Youngsta
A new Chicago Phenom trying to make craters with his explosive delivery. With a strong following in Chicago we expect Youngsta to rock the crowd and bring down the house.

Keith Gamble
Representing Ways & Means Entertainment. A class act with a big following in the East and throughout the country.

Trulyz
With a sizable vote count in Illinois and the Midwest, Trulyz has proven he can run with the big dogs.
Trulyz is influenced by T.I., Young Jeezy and Lupe Fiasco. We expect his sound to blow up Chicago.

Cavalier
Cavalier proved he can rock the show. His votes and performances in Chicago makes him one of the perfect choices for The Best Of The Midwest. See him perform with Capitol hill in the kick off show.

YP “The Lottery Pick”
YP has a very strong following in Illinois, which we happen to like a lot since we know his fans our close to where the tour kicks off. His multitude of fans range from California to New Jersey.

Letter E
A strong following in the Southeast area of Chicago and Northwest Indiana. Let’s see if he can bring down the house at Rednofive.

Cameron Grey
To get these many votes in such a short amount of time is phenomenal. Like his webpage says, he’s looking to wake people up. Well at least you got our attention. Cameron will be headlining the Dayton, Ohio show with SEVERE. Coming soon in September.

The founders of Novalima, Ramon Perez-Prieto, Grimaldo Del Solar, Rafael Morales, and Carlos Li Carrillo, became friends while in high school in Lima. The children of artists and intellectuals, Ramon, Grimaldo, Rafael and Carlos were well-educated and well traveled, and while they grew up listening to the popular and folk music of Latin America, they also shared a fascination for rock, pop, reggae, salsa, dance and electronic music.

Indeed, without modern technology, Novalima might not have developed, as the group came together at a time when the four founders were each living in different parts of the world. From their homes in London, Barcelona, Hong Kong and Lima, they started emailing song ideas to each other. These long-distance experiments resulted in their 2002 debut album, the self-titled Novalima.

The reception to the album exceeded their wildest expectations, eventually reaching platinum sales status in Peru, and for their next album they invited more Afro-Peruvian musicians to join their recording sessions. The outcome was Afro, an album that was released worldwide in 2006 to tremendous acclaim and put Novalima on the international music map. The London Metro Evening Standard raved, “Novalima has more than succeeded in bringing the spirit and soul of Peruvian blues into the 21st century.” Afro held the 1 spot on the US College Music Journal Latin Alternative and New World radio charts for ten weeks combined.

The founders of Novalima have since returned to Lima and invited some of their favorite Afro-Peruvian musicians to become permanent members of their band: Juan Medrano Cotito, Mangüe Vasquez, Milagros Guerrero and Marcos Mosquera, as well as Constantino Alvarez, a renowned local drummer & percussionist. The partnership between the original cosmopolitan quartet and members of the Afro-Peruvian community has generated a great deal of attention at home, mostly because the divide between black and white in Peru has made these types of collaborations unfortunately rare.

On their new album, Coba Coba, Novalima expands on the critically-acclaimed formula they developed with their two previous recordings, while taking their inspiring fusion in new and exciting directions. The album’s title is derived from an Afro-Peruvian expression used to incite musicians, much like shouting “Go for it!” or “Take it!” to a musician in the midst of a great solo. Special guests include New Zealand nu-jazz keyboardist Mark de Clive Lowe, the popular Cuban hip-hop group Obsesión and Spanish alternative rocker Gecko Turner. British producer Toni Economides, a regular collaborator of Nitin Sawhney, Da Lata, and Bugz in the Attic among others, adds his special touch on the album’s mixes.

The success of Novalima’s approach was never more evident than during a recent monumental concert in the main public square of Lima. Performing in front of a pulsating crowd of more than 30,000 people, Novalima presented their new vision of Afro-Peruvian music to an astounded an appreciative audience who knew they were witnessing history in the making.

Coba Coba promises to bring even wider recognition to this innovative group, while furthering their mission to inspire new generations to appreciate and respect the Afro-Peruvian contribution to the world of music. With a fresh and innovative sound that stands on a centuries-old foundation of soul and heritage, Novalima promises to keep Afro-Peruvian expression thriving long into the future.

The Chicago kick off features the hottest Hip Hop artists in Chicago and the Midwest. All artists in the show will be voted in by their fans. The ones with the highest votes hit the stage at REDNOFIVE NightClub.
This is the last round and it includes every artist that participated in the previous rounds. Three artist will be eliminated with the least amount of votes. The remaining will receive contracts to be in the first kick off show on July 30th and may be invited to tour the Midwest with Severe after their performances. See who Chicago and the Midwest votes into The “Best Of The Midwest” Show @ Rednofive with Special Guest DJ Phatom from WGCI. Vote below in round three for your next favorite artist to appear.

Sponsored by American Nuwire & Hustlefilms.com

Here are the Chicago finalist!

Youngsta
A new Chicago Phenom trying to make craters with his explosive delivery. He has a lot of competition from more established talent in the last round. See if he can muster enough support to stick around.

Tamara Harris
The R&B swoon with melody is on the scene with a few votes to keep her in the running but we don’t know if she has establish enough local power to stay in the running in the final poll.

2Sevin
They got the most votes in round 3. Hopefully they can last the last round that determines who perform in the “Best Of The Midwest” kick off show.

Keith Gamble
Representing Ways & Means Entertainment. A class act with a big following in the East and throughout the country. Keith had the most votes nationally but had the lowest votes in Illinois and the Midwest. Hopefully Keith will rally the votes he need in the Midwest to stay within the chosen eight.

Trulyz
With a sizable vote count in Illinois and the Midwest, Trulyz has proven he can run with the big dogs when it comes to mustering up the votes. Let’s see if he can hold up in the last round

Letter E
He had the biggest following in Chicago and Indiana. He should be able to handle the final round and get the votes he need to see him through in the finals. Hopefully his fans will pull him through.

Cameron Grey
With over 780 votes, this hip hop artist from the Dayton area of Ohio has got his click well established. To get these many votes in such a short amount of time is phenomenal. Like his webpage says, he’s looking to wake people up. Well at least you got our attention.

YP “The Lottery Pick”
YP has a very strong following in Illinois, which we happen to like a lot since we know his fans our close to where the tour kicks off. His multitude of fans range from California to New Jersey and we believe he might hold up well in the final round.

SevereMusik.com – Rising Stars