March 21st, 2009
SXSW: This Asher Roth Thing Shows No Signs Of Slowing
There are a few things you notice about Bucks County rapper and soon to be mega-star Asher Roth when you meet him. 1) He’s tiny. Like Hobbit small. And when he shakes your hand, says “Hi, I’m Asher,” you feel you could break every tiny bone in his little tiny hand with just a modest amount of pressure. 2) He doesn’t dress like a rapper. This is part of his charm, of course. He’s Everyman. Everyman with an uncanny ability to rhyme. Last night he arrived to the Biz 3 Publicity showcase at Club DeVille wearing a tattered sweatshirt with the word “Portland” shabbily appliqued on it. It’s no accident that the kid behind the hit “I Love College” dresses like someone who threw on whatever was on the floor because he was late for class. 3) You’re not the only person meeting Asher Roth. He got to the showcase around 9ish, went on around 11ish, and in the time in between he took pictures with fans (tons of girls, mind you) and was ushered away for a quick interview with former XXL music editor Elliott Wilson, who I took this picture of early in the night:
Wilson was pretty excited that someone recognized him, and wanted to talk about his new web venture, Rap Radar, which I’d link to, but it doesn’t seem to want to open. “It’s in Beta,” he told me last night.
Anyway, video of Asher performing “I Love College” to a crowd that REALLY REALLY loves college after this colon:
Asher Roth, “I Love College” from Make Major Moves on Vimeo.
