Eh Vee talks “Clash of the Titans” single featuring Adam Bomb & Eternia

Guelph-based artist Eh Vee returns with the first single and title track of his forthcoming EP, Clash of the Titans.

The new song sees Eh Vee enlisting Canadian hip-hop mainstays Adam Bomb (Naturally Born Strangers) and Eternia for an onslaught of rhymes meant strictly for fans of lyricism and cut-throat rapping. Delivering both the first verse and hook, Eternia leads the charge on the “Clash of the Titans,” followed by Eh Vee on the second verse. Adam Bomb concludes the onslaught with a punchline-driven finale. Production comes by way of frequent collaborator, JSG, and he delivers accordingly with pounding drums laid over a near-haunting piano line.

“‘Clash of the Titans’ is Guelph meets Toronto and one for the ages.”

The Clash of the Titans EP will contain 6 songs, all featuring some of the best underground hip-hop has to offer. Filled with lyricism over neck-breaking production, the EP will be strictly for fans of boom-bap hip-hop.

Along with the work he’s put in as an artist, Eh Vee has been contributing to the Canadian hip-hop scene in various other ways over the last few years. Along with his Up Top HipHop podcast, his Up Top HipHop website has promoted a ton of Canadian talent and became a key outlet for Canadian hip-hop. Unfortunately, Eh Vee recently announced that the website would be closing, but we think UTHH fans will understand the reasoning behind the decision.

We asked him about it along with the new single and some other things in a brief interview conducted yesterday. Check it out below.

“Clash of the Titans” is available on various digital streaming platforms including Apple Music, SoundCloud, and Spotify.

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Q&A: Eh Vee

HipHopCanada: Eh Vee, thanks for taking the time to speak wit us. Let’s talk “Clash of the Titans.” What inspired the new single?

Eh Vee: Listeners that are familiar with my music will know I love features. I absolutely love the thrill of getting a great feature verse in my email! It’s a high for me. After putting together few collaborative songs, I started to think about who I can reach out to beyond rappers I knew personally. I wanted to go big!

The song start off with just a beat from JSG and from verse from me. I pitched the song to a few people on my features wish list. After a few rounds of emails with no success, I tucked the song away. I happened to see a post from Eternia on IG, informing artists that she was doing features and left an inquiry email. In my time digging into Canadian hip-hop, O became a fan of E. So, I thought to myself “Hell, the worst she can say is no.” So, I fired off an email to her manager (shout out to DJ Sav for helping put the collab together!) and waited. I got an email back and I nearly died! Eternia was willing to do the collab. Yes, it’s a paid collab but she also could’ve said no. I was jumping for joy! In my excitement, I accidentally sent just the beat… without my verse! She recorded anyway and, to my surprise, included more than your run-of-the-mill 16 bars. She absolutely crushed the verse and even added extra! I quickly emailed Sav and both sides agreed that Eternia’s extra bars would be used as the hook.

Most people would’ve been happy with that, added a third verse, and been done. I was on a high! I couldn’t be happier with having an Eternia feature! But I wanted to make this the biggest song I’ve put together. I sat again on the song and I started brainstorming other artists I was a fan of. I sent off a few more rounds of emails before landing on Adam Bomb. He’s a huge part of why I love Toronto rappers so much. That rough-neck, in-your-face style is something I will never stop looking for in hip-hop. I was re-listening to his Larstones project from Big Sproxx and the thought popped up again. The worst that can happen is he says no. I dug up an inquiry email and off the reference file went. I got email back and we were in business!

I now had Eternia and Adam Bomb on the same song! I needed a fitting title! I was playing God of War one day and in the game, you’re introduced to the Titans. I thought “Clash of the Titans” was perfect!

HipHopCanada: What went into producing the track?

Eh Vee: The production on “Clash of the Titans” was handled by JSG, a producer and engineer from Guelph. JSG and I have been collaborating since about 2013 with him handling not only beats, but mixing my music. I honestly couldn’t thank the man enough for all he does! When I approached him about an EP, he was all for it! He sent over batches of beats and I got to work.

HipHopCanada: Is the song part of a larger project?

Eh Vee: “Clash of the Titans” is the title track of an EP I put together during my blogging hiatus (more on that later). I’ve always loved posse tracks. I also love what Tech N9ne (NOT to be mistaken for recently deceased battle rapper, Tech 9) does with his Collabo series of albums. I wanted to do something like that but more on my terms! And the idea for Clash of the Titans was born! I wanted a title that would best describe what I was trying to do. I had just came up with the title for the Eternia and Adam Bomb collaboration and it just fit.

The EP contains features from Canadian rappers such as Zaze, Young Stitch, Riyality, select members of the Reel Wolf crew, Canadian members of the Dead Rabbits crew, Guelph rappers Robbie G, Woodlawn Warriors, and CDiss, as well as American underground wordsmiths Reef the Lost Cauze and Kid Vishis. Production is handled exclusively by JSG, along with mixing and mastering.

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HipHopCanada: Can you tell me more about the Guelph scene?

Eh Vee: The Guelph scene is a great scene to be apart of. We’ve got artists like Woodlawn Warriors, Robbie G, Optikz, Noah23, and many others that keep the scene thriving with new music and shows. On the production side, we’ve got JSG, Young K, Monsoon, and others.

The scene, like many others, has politics and sides but if you’re careful not to get swept up in them, Guelph is great to get place to start out! We’re in driving distance to Toronto, and right next to the Tri-Cities, with it’s own thriving hip-hop scene.

HipHopCanada: You recently revealed that Up Top HipHop would be closing down in the near future. Can you speak on that?

Eh Vee: The choice to close down shop on Up Top HipHop was one I’ve been sitting on for a while. I started with a strong start, posting multiple times a day. That ramped up and went on for the better part of 2 years. Then I hit a dry spell. I was worn out listening so much music. It all became a chore, and not fun anymore. My music was taking a back seat to my blogging. I wanted to record again. So, I decided to take a break from blogging and focus on music.

After finishing the recording process of my EP, the blogging bug bit me again. Except I didn’t to go back to using my site. The site was a pride and joy of mine, it truly was. But during my time operating the site, I got to meet a lot of artists that truly deserved a bigger platform than I can provide. I had the opportunity to premiere releases from some AMAZING artists. So, getting the urge to blog again, I wanted to seek out a bigger platform to display some of the music I love. During my blogging hiatus, HipHopCanada was always supportive of all of my releases. I also noticed some of the people I listen to, make very few appearances. I wanted to change this. I reached out and Jesse was very open to the idea! He was gracious enough to give me an opportunity and I can’t thank him more! I’m more than happy to be joining the staff at the godfather of Canadian hip-hop sites!

You can follow @EhVeeHipHop on Instagram.