Over the years, we've seen the Leicester and Copenhagen-based artists dip in and out of collaborations, exploring the Hip-Hop sound with a left-field approach. They make clever use of real-time music-making, vinyl scratching, and an esoteric approach to foley sound design—much of which they tie into creative performances.

Jon1st & Shield are no secret to us here at Rendah Mag, so when we hear about their latest project—we had to dive deep into this. Their latest project titled Focus is an immersive multi-genre EP which continues the exploration of their collaborative efforts over the pandemic.

Featuring 6 unique tracks, the EP outlines a serious mixture of styles and tempos, taking the listener through a creative journey of hop-hop & 140—and even an additional feature with Strategy.

Today, we're excited to premiere a favourite from the release. The track titled Strangers presents an almost footwork-like sound, outlining some euphoric melodies and crunchy drum work— a little different from their normal sound, but definitely a notation of what they are capable of.

Due to the pandemic, the release was created remotely in their individual studio, so it's great to see this project happening—and both artists pushing their creative boundaries more than ever despite physical obstructions. The entire EP drops on May 19th, and is available to pre-order on Bandcamp here.