Spit Syndicate

Biography

The group was founded in Sydney’s Inner West by rappers Nick Lupi and Jimmy Nice, Nick Lupi attended Fort Street High School whilst Jimmy Nice attended Leichhardt High School. In 2006, Spit Syndicate's debut release was a mixtape CD called The Future's Bright, which was followed by an appearance on MTV Australia’s The Lair in July 2007, alongside other musical acts such as Sparta and The Hot Lies.

In February 2008 the duo signed with Obese Records, when Nice was 21 years of age and Lupi 19, to release their debut album Towards the Light:

We actually signed on the dotted line in February of this year, but we started talking to them in about November of last year. We were both overseas during the summer and we had this album ready and we were gonna put it out when we got back, it was just a matter of who we did it with.

Towards the Light was released in October 2008 and features vocal contributions from Rowan Dix, Sarah Corry, Ron-E, Fame, Miriam Waks and Solo (Horrorshow). In 2013, Nice reflected on their experience of releasing a debut album: "We were so young when we started, we were just little sponges ... We just wanted to know what it was all about, we wanted to be around it, we wanted to be at every gig, we wanted to record at every chance that we got". The album was nominated for "Best Urban Release" at the 2008 ARIA Music Awards.

In May 2010, they released their second studio album, Exile, which featured production contributions from Adit (Horrorshow), M-Phazes, JSquared and Cam Bluff, and guest vocals from Solo, Joyride (Spit Syndicate’s DJ) and Corry. In the official Exile press release, the album was "inspired by the clarity of mind borne out of travel, the feeling of suffocation by one's everyday surroundings and the displacement sometimes required to get right". Exile's lead single was called "Starry-Eyed" and received prominent airplay on Australia's triple j radio station. Also in 2010, the duo appeared on the song "Long Winding Road" for M-Phazes' debut album, Good Gracious.

The management company Phat Planet signed the group in 2011. During the same year, Spit Syndicate released Best Intentions: Part One, the first of a free online mixtape series, and attracted over 10,000 downloads.

In October 2012, the duo released "Beauty in the Bricks", the first single from the third studio album Sunday Gentlemen. The second single, "Folly", was released in 2013, followed by the release of the album on 22 February 2013. Contributing artists included Drapht, Illy and Solo, and production is accredited to Adit, M-Phazes, J-Skub and Styalz Fuego. In March 2013, Nice explained the duo's different approach for the recording of the album:

The first album that we put out, I don't think it was ever really intended for an audience, a wide audience ... We made that album when we were just out of school and it was just something that we could play at parties ... this time we had a greater sense and an understanding of what we wanted out of the record, so we paid a lot more attention to detail, and had a greater creative control and a bigger say in how the product ended up.

Written over two years, the band called the album their "strongest work to date" in 2013. Nice also explained that the duo's creative process had matured over time, while Adit's production work was more experimental. Spit Syndicate completed a national Australian tour in support of the album, from March until May 2013, with support from Sydney artists Jackie Onassis.

Touring

The duo opened for international acts such as Cypress Hill, Xzibit, Ice Cube, Lupe Fiasco, Atmosphere, Brother Ali, People Under The Stairs, Diverse and Savage + Mareko—they were also billed to support Fabolous before his tour was cancelled.

Spit Syndicate have supported local groups such as Funkoars, Urthboy, Ozi Batla, The Lullabyes, Phrase, Lyrical Commission and Hyjak N Torcha, and they toured New South Wales with Bliss N Eso twice. In February 2010, Spit Syndicate were one of the local artists who performed at the 2010 Sydney Good Vibrations Festival, held at Centennial Park.

One Day

The One Day collective consists of Spit Syndicate, Horrorshow, Joyride and Jackie Onassis, all of whom are from the Inner West area of Sydney. Nice explained in February 2013:

... that’s [One Day] been our little banner we’ve been riding under and it includes Spit Syndicate, Horrorshow, Joyride and Jackie Onassis. We all grew up together, went to school together and make music together. We really want to strengthen that connection, and have it more as a collective as opposed to four different acts. These guys are family and people we see on the reg[ular], it’s not just different acts coming together, we all share a strong bond.

Following the release of the single "Love Me Less" in early June 2014, the collective released their debut album, Mainline, on 1 August 2014 through the Elefant Traks Australian hip hop label. The release date will be followed by a national Australian tour in September 2014 that will present all seven members of One Day on stage for the first time.

The One Day crew started 'One Day Sundays' on the last Sunday of every month at The Vic on the Park in Marrickville. The day is all about live music by the group, good vibes and Street Art. The success of the day has gone national. They now put on a One Day Sunday event in cities all around Australia.

Albums

Mixtapes

Singles

Awards and nominations