Previous Industries Drop Double Single “Showbiz” & “Braids”

Previous Industries is three Chicagoans of a certain age—Open Mike Eagle, Video Dave, and STILL RIFT—currently residing in LA. In a city where transplants often say they find it hard to connect with new people, these guys found a way around that by delving into the past to rekindle old connections. When that connection was made, they seemed to stay in the past, rapping about anything and everything but always bolstered by nostalgia and shared memories.

The innate chemistry between them as rappers could only be achieved because of their long-standing friendships, which is evident in their multiple previous collaborations. Only now have they officially formed a group around this commonality. Previous Industries marks their official debut as a group by sharing a preview of what 2024 has in store with their double single “Showbiz” and “Braids” (stream here), which will be available on a limited-edition light gray marble 7-inch this Friday!

“Showbiz” (produced by Child Actor) is an intentional song designed to be an introduction, a handshake, and an offer to buy you a drink. It’s a declaration of who Previous Industries is and what they are all about: “Gather round / We’re the new fools in town / And our sounds lay down by the underground.”

“Braids” (produced by Quelle Chris) harkens back to the era of freestyle ciphers, where a group of people make a circle and make up rhymes on the spot that usually follow the rhyme of the last person. It’s the three-man weave in basketball. It’s braided-rope Double Dutch in a church courtyard.

Previous Industries “Showbiz” & “Braids” single artwork