The best way to describe the sound of Unite the North is the vengeful soul of Hip-Hop, awakened by the gross prostitution of its art form; determined to bring back quality, originality, and respect to the music of the streets. UTN has been opening doors and shattering misconceptions about the Alaskan music scene for over 5 years. This multi-talented group is responsible for all the aspects crucial to their own success including rap, sing, produce, engineer, record, book shows and promotions. On the main street of UTN’s hometown (Palmer, Alaska) they own a recording studio where they record and engineer their own music and sell recording time. Plans to begin a state wide tour are in process for May through July of 2010. Since late 2009 the group has been constructing their latest release: “Get Wit it or Get Lost.” In addition to this album release, there are two mixtapes in development. First, the Reyol Mixtape will feature artists from all over Alaska, hosted by UTN. The other will be a free-to-download mixtape releasing at the same time as the album. Their previous release “Answer to the Drought” was distributed as a promotion to establish UTN’s name and open doors to connecting with artists in Alaska by featuring their music. The response was incredible and many offered to pay for the music. On stage, UTN has proven to be a charismatic and exhilarating group. Show after show the heavy metal fans become rap fans and leave with a surprised smile on their face. In the summer of 2008 UTN finally had the opportunity to perform for an audience more suited to their sound. They opened for Sean Kinston at the largest event in Alaska, The Alaska State Fair. After winning the Battle of the Bands, UTN earned the right to perform. UTN opened the show in electrifying splendor leaving the crowd chanting the familiar three-part harmony, “U-T-N! U-T-N! U-T-N!” Unite The North is a hip-hop group from the town of Palmer, Alaska. The origins of the group stem from “D the Lyricist.” At fifteen years old Devon Shaw was granted access to a room in the music department of his high school. The only distinguishing feature to separate the room from a closet was a roughly stenciled letter “E”, painted in yellow above a small window in the door. The studio became a bustling and exciting place to be, crammed full of people with barely enough room to open the door. There were up to nine people at a time sitting on the floor, standing in corners, sharing broken chairs, all in a room roughly six by eight feet. Everyone was in miserable discomfort, but drawn so heavily to the music that the room felt like a concert hall. Through word of mouth D the Lyricist eventually came to find “Mr. C”, Chad Billups, who lived less than a block away. The pair started to freestyle in Mr. C basement almost every day, for hours on end, honing their skills and being amazed at having found a musical counterpart. “Citizen-K” (Kieoki Tafaoialii) is direct cousin to D the Lyricist and was always a natural fit in the group with a flair for the over the top macabre humor that is his world. JJ the Chosen-1 (JJ Odom) was a fellow schoolmate of D the Lyricist and found music to be a new and exciting outlet. Under D’s tutelage, JJ was soon discovered to be an incredible talent, both as a producer and as a rapper. Since the early days at Palmer High, UTN has gained incredible support from music lovers in the community and Unite the North is well respected for their consistency and professionalism. Even though the local market for Hip-Hop is limited, the average listener has shown that they are thrilled to listen to UTN, even if they are not familiar to the genre. Whether it is D the Lyricist reciting an opening rhyme, leaving the crowd mesmerized or Mr. C free-styling at the close of a show, front to back, the audience is aware that they are watching something special. <a href="https://www.last.fm/music/UTN">Read more on Last.fm</a>. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.