PORTAGE PARK — As the Portage Theater closes out an eventful 2016, the venue is getting ready to bring a diverse lineup of hip-hop and heavy metal acts to Six Corners in January and February.
Spanning myriad musical styles and multiple languages, the performers include Chicago natives and transcontinental stars, many exploding onto the music scene just in the past year.
The theater, 4050 N. Milwaukee Ave., will host eight shows in the first two months of 2017, including:
Jan. 7: Felly
At 20 years old, rapper Felly has already racked up more than 55,000 YouTube subscribers and 12 million listens on SoundCloud with his exuberant rapping and ethereal R&B grooves like "Chicago Nights."
Born in Connecticut as Chris Fellner, the rapper moved to Los Angeles after graduating high school so he could study music at the University of Southern California. During his freshman year he joined other students to found 2273 Records, and within two years the group was selling out local venues.
Felly's stop at the Portage Theater is part of his Mermaid Gang Tour, which includes artists like GYYPS, Healy, Ra'Shaun, Rittle Work, Drew Martz and Mose Wood.
Tickets online range from $17-$50. The show is open to all ages.
Feb. 4: Riff Raff
The Houston-based rapper Riff Raff built a devoted online following after appearing on the MTV reality show "From G's to Gents" in 2009, eventually signing onto a record label with "Crank That" performer Soulja Boy.
Riff Raff's most recent album, "Peach Panther," reached No. 5 on Billboard's Top R&B and Hip-Hop list after its June 2016 release.
The Feb. 4 set will feature DJ Afterthought and include rappers Dolla Bill Gates, Owey and Peter Jackson.
Tickets online range from $20-$25. The show is restricted to audiences 17 and over.
Feb. 11: Chingo Bling
Starting in the early 2000s, Texas hip-hop artist Chingo Bling gained a formidable underground following for laying Houston's iconic "chopped-and-screwed" style over Mexican-American hip-hop. He developed his persona into a brand that sold bobble-head dolls, coloring books and hot sauce.
His music is often farcical, like his parody remix of Drake's "Hotline Bling," and sometimes political, with his 2006 album "They Can't Deport Us All" earning him racist threats from White Nationalist groups.
Chingo Bling's "Migo Jam" and the Portage Theater will also include California-based "smooth rappers" Baby Bash and Kap G.
Tickets online range from $20-$125. The show is open to all ages.
Feb. 23: Max & Iggor Cavalera
Brazilian brothers Max and Igor Cavalera have been icons of Latin heavy metal for more than three decades, pumping out screamo anthems like "Roots Bloody Roots" that mixed indigenous Brazilian sounds with raw death metal energy.
After continuing to evolve their sound into the 2010s, the duo is digging back into its '0s-era hits with its "Return to Roots" tour, stopping by the Portage Theater on Feb. 23.
Tickets online range from $25-$75. The show is restricted to audiences 17 and over.
Feb. 25: Kinto Sol
Since forming in Milawaukee in 1999, the Latin hip-hop trio Kinto Sol has put out a dozen albums with five different record labels, blending traditional Mexican music with new and explosive styles of hip-hop.
Kinto Sol's "Latinos Unidos" tour includes Gavlyn, DJ Payback Garcia and the Chicago-based Co-Still.
Tickets online sell for $35. The show is restricted to audiences 17 and over.
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here.
