In the organizer's words:

Apollow Brown
Talented artists can make the seemingly impossible look easy. Detroit's Apollo Brown plays in this exclusive league, constantly innovating from a tried and tested formula. Over the past decade, the artist has uniquely redefined and expanded the foundations of what boom-bap productions can sound like in the 21st century,
redefined and expanded in a unique way. Originally from Grand Rapids, West Michigan, Apollo Brown is a Detroit-based hip-hop producer.

In the tradition of beatmakers like the great J Dilla and Madlib, Brown is a man of many influences whose sound owes as much to the yacht rock of Seals & Crofts as it does to classic R&B. He draws from all corners of the music world to create beats that are as musically interesting as they are rhythmically. His extensive discography includes projects with numerous guest musicians, instrumental albums and full collaborations with MCs such as Big Pooh, Che' Noir, Guilty Simpson, Joell Ortiz, Locksmith, O.C., Philmore Greene, Planet Asia, Raheem DeVaughn, Ras Kass, Stalley, Skyzoo and many others. Brown was also a member of the hip-hop groups The Left and Ugly Heroes.

Brown began producing beats in 1996 as a bedroom producer, but it wasn't until he moved to Detroit and became part of the city's hip-hop scene that he made a name for himself with his production skills on his first beat albums. In 2009, Brown won the Detroit Red Bull Big Tune Championships and later that year, the producer signed with Mello Music Group. Under this label, Apollo released a body of work that lives up to the legacy of head nodders, screwface inducers and soul fillers like Primo and Pete Rock, J Dilla and Large Professor, Mobb Deep and DJ Muggs. This is the tradition Apollo Brown triumphantly upholds, conceiving beat by beat an East Coast sound with a Midwestern mentality, hard and nasty drums combining sadness, depression and tenderness. It's fall music, gritty, relatable music, gray-sky music that offers the unvarnished truth.

These are not beats sent impersonally by email across the continent from producer to MC. On each album bearing the Apollo Brown moniker, the artists create songs in the same room, exchanging ideas and concepts until the final product is a masterpiece. From Danny Brown to Chance The Rapper, from Freddie Gibbs to Masta Ace, from Black Milk to Oddisee and Westside Gun - everyone has rapped to his beats. The explanation for this is quite simple. If you still have any doubts, all you have to do is press play.

Guilty Simpson
Guilty Simpson was born in Detroit, the son and grandson of musicians who were already in the family - his father and grandfather. At the age of four, Simpson and his mother began traveling with an aunt who was in the military, living in California and Birmingham, Alabama, before settling back in the Motor City at age 15. Big Daddy Kane, N.W.A and Scarface were all major influences, but it was Queens-born street bard Kool G Rap who made the biggest impression. "That's my crème de la crème rapper," says Simpson, himself one of the youngest members of a rich tradition of MCs with a strong presence.

For years, Guilty Simpson has been a fixture on Detroit's hip-hop scene alongside the likes of J Dilla, Slum Village, Eminem (who Guilty still calls "Marshall") & D12, Obie Trice, Proof, Phat Kat and Black Milk. As a member of the crew Almighty Dreadnaughtz, Guilty became a force to be reckoned with in 2001 through his collaboration with producer Dilla.

While recording an entire album with the MC - including the recently released duet "Take Notice" from Dilla's acclaimed album "Ruff Draft" - Dilla gave Simpson his first appearance on record with "Strapped" (from the 2003 Jaylib album). In 2006, at Dilla's behest, he joined Stones Throw Records, where he released Ode to the Ghetto, OJ Simpson and Detroit's Son. Guilty's testosterone-laden themes from the inner city possess a humor that is sometimes so hilarious that it only proves how serious he really is. This rapper grew up on the battlefield and has more to say than just how cool he is and how uncool "the others" are. In fact, he's realized that he's here to make the hip-hop world -
currently mesmerized by this artificial coolness - that life in the ghetto is real. The evidence shows overuse of double entendres, too much seasoning in public, mic attacks and verbal harassment of a police officer.

In terms of freshness AND authenticity: the hip-hop court finds Mr. Simpson guilty. Dice Game, released on November 6, 2012, is a collaborative studio album by Detroit-based producer Apollo Brown and rapper Guilty Simpson. The album was produced and arranged entirely by Apollo Brown and features guest appearances from Torae and Planet Asia. The album has been highly praised by music critics. Patrick Taylor of RapReviews gave the album eight out of ten points and said: "Kendrick Lamar tried to reinvent gangsta rap on his excellent album good kid, m.A.A.d. city. This is not that kind of album. Instead, Apollo Brown and Guilty Simpson refine and perfect gangsta rap on [Dice Game]. There's a self-awareness and awareness of consequences that an artist like Chief Keef lacks, and the beats display a craftsmanship not found on your average street rap mixtape. This is gangsta music for grown men, beautifully realized."

Jorunalist 103
Journalist 103 was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. After developing an interest in music, one of his first role models was his cousin X Gov, who inspired him to rap and introduced him to artists like DJ Premier and Gang Starr. Later he also listened to artists such as Proof, Royce and Phat Kat. Other artists who influenced him in his youth were Ice Cube, The Wu Tang Clan and Eminem. He began rapping at the age of eleven, initially under the name J Clip, before changing his stage name to Journalist 103. Around 1997, he began performing professionally as an MC, appearing at open mic events in Detroit.

After starting his career in 1997 as part of the hip-hop crew Mountain Climbaz, Journalist 103 later joined the hip-hop group The Left. He was the main lyricist on the group's 2010 album Gas Mask, which was named one of the best underground hip-hop albums of 2010 by Sputnik Music.

"Gas Mask revives old-school hip-hop with powerful beats, politically charged lyrics and raw cuts, reflecting the harsh reality and resilience of Detroit." - Hip Hop DX

"Gas Mask is as hard-hitting and consistent as you could ask for, and while guests are fairly frequent, they never distract from Journalist's angry, meticulous lyrics and Apollo's powerful, full-bodied production. Apollo and Journalist are such an uncanny natural fit that they always seem to be on the same wavelength. Gritty beats like on Binoculars are the perfect template for 103's inspiring rhymes about struggle and oppression, and Apollo's penchant for drama on tracks like Chokehold proves just as effective. Journalist is an MC with the perfect name because his raps have no gimmicks, no triple speed raps, no lyrical contortions, no pop culture punchlines, but they keep the listener coming back for more because they're skillfully arranged, convincingly delivered, and full of substance." - Rapreviews.com