K.Flay, Air Dubai and Itch at the Hawthorne Theatre

Vortex Music Magazine

This hip-hop misfit may be a Stanford grad but she's also brimming with brutally honest, self-deprecating rhymes and ready to show them off at the Hawthorne Theatre on March 25.

K.Flay doesn't like to sugarcoat reality. But when you have as much charisma and skill as this multi-talented rapper/singer/producer, you don't have to.

As the 28 year old from Illinois bounces around the stage at the Hawthorne Theatre on Tuesday night—hammering away at a drum machine and rattling off self-deprecating lines like, "If you wanna be my baby, get ready for some bullshit, because I'm, like, fuckin' crazy"—there's a good chance you'll be charmed rather than offended.

Having graduated from Stanford with two degrees and favoring a style that leans more electo-pop than gangster rap, K.Flay's hip-hop street credibility is next to nothing, but her brutally honest lyricism and undeniable technical skill have won over plenty of skeptical fans. On paper she's a hip-hop misfit, but in a genre that has always put such a large focus on being genuine and real, what's not to like about a rapper who embraces her personal quirks and releases songs like the hilariously blunt 2012 track "We Hate Everyone"?

If you're unfamiliar with her impressive genre-crossing live show, let the 26-minute concert film below be your introduction. She'll hit the Hawthorne Theatre on Tuesday, March 25 with Air Dubai and Itch.

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