Hip-hop outfit and Rhymesayers label heads Atmosphere(consisting of producer Ant and rapper Slug) represent the Twin Cities with introspective rhymes, inventive storytelling, and classic production, building a devoted grassroots following with prolific output, collaborations, and consistent touring. Over their 20-year career, Atmosphere has managed to continually tweak and strive to perfect their formula, while neither straying too far off their path, nor resorting to playing it safe. Starting at 1997’s Overcast, the group’s first official album, and traveling through 20 years of new albums, side projects, and various collaborations, Atmosphere’s music has evolved in a way that differs from many of their peers and predecessors.

Musically, Ant has continued to define Atmosphere’s sound, ranging from a healthy mixture of upbeat and fun, to the oft more iconic, moody and personal. Throughout the 1990s, Ant spent countless hours in his basement with a wealth of records, a keyboard sampler, a turntable and a 4-track, working with a who’s who of the Twin Cities’ Rap talent of that time. Those experiences tuned his ear, molded his work ethic, and shaped his vision. In turn, those lessons have continually become more prominent in the Atmosphere aesthetic, blending live musicians and sampled production with his keen sense of how to compose a well-arranged song.

As for the lyrics, Slug started his passion for rhyming with an obsessive-like penchant for the way words intersect, as well as how those words can be manipulated for unexpected and clever meanings. But, at the same time, early on Slug expressed an interest in doing more than simply proving he could be witty, but also writing about subjects that speak to people personally, as well as emotionally. These practices also naturally helped the Atmosphere fan base to expand beyond the usual independent Hip Hop audience, extending their reach to an alternative audience who also related to the personable appeal and emotional range of both Slug’s songwriting and Ant’s musical backdrops.

As Atmosphere steps into their 22nd year of making music, Slug & Ant show no signs of slowing, compromising or losing sight of their vision. As 2016 swung into gear, Atmosphere had already ended the previous year and led into another with a string of singles, and still have an abundance of music on the way, including their latest single “Make It All Better Again.” “Make It All Better Again” showcases the inimitable and irresistible interplay between rapper Slug and producer Ant. While Ant painted the broad strokes, producing a track that’s equally solemn and optimistic, Slug delivered the fine details of vulnerability, weaving stories of heartache and loss mixed with the confident hope for a brighter tomorrow.