Keith Ape
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2022}}
{{short description|South Korean rapper (born 1993)}}
{{Family name hatnote|Lee|lang=Korean}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Keith Ape
| image = Keith Ape.png
| caption = Keith Ape performing in 2015
| image_size =
| birth_name = Lee Dong-heon
| native_name = 키스 에이프
| alias = Kid Ash
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1993|12|25}}
| birth_place = Seoul, South Korea
| origin =
| instrument =
| genre = {{hlist|Hip hop|trap|cloud rap|scream rap|drill}}
| current_member_of = The Cohort
| occupation =
- Rapper
- songwriter
| years_active = 2011–present
| label = {{hlist|88rising{{cite web |url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/08/02/asia/88-rising-asian-rap/index.html |title=Straight outa... China? The young Asian artists bucking hip-hop trends |first=Marian |last=Liu |website=CNN |date=August 2, 2017 |access-date=January 30, 2018}} {{small|(formerly known as CXSHXNLY)}}{{cite news|last1=Leonard|first1=Devin|title=The Man Who Sold the World on Asian Hip-Hop|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-12-05/the-man-who-sold-the-world-on-asian-hip-hop|access-date=January 29, 2018|work=Bloomberg|date=December 5, 2017}}|Hi-Lite {{small|(former)}}}}
| associated_acts = {{hlist|The Cohort|Okasian|Reddy|JayAllDay|Bryan Cha$e|Lil Darkie|Afourteen| Christ Dillinger|Sung-jin Park|KOHH|Slug Christ|Loota|G2|Rich Brian|XXXTentacion|Denzel Curry|Ski Mask the Slump God|Dumbfoundead|Higher Brothers|MOLLYMOON333|Terrance Escobar|rxlvnd|Soulj4luc|KillTJ}}
| website =
}}
Lee Dong-heon ({{Langx|ko|이동헌}}; born December 25, 1993), known professionally as Keith Ape ({{Korean|키스 에이프|labels=no}}) and previously known as Kid Ash, is a South Korean rapper from Seoul.{{cite web|last=Kwak|first=Donnie|title=Keith Ape Is Ready to Be the World's Next Trap Star |url=http://www.complex.com/music/2015/07/keith-ape-trap-star-interview|date=July 29, 2015|work=Complex|access-date=January 2, 2015}} He is a member of a crew called 'The Cohort'. Ape's breakout single "잊지마" ("It G Ma") was released on January 1, 2015,{{Cite web|title = KEITH APE'15 ⊕|url = https://soundcloud.com/keithape|website = SoundCloud|access-date = December 14, 2015}}{{Citation|url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPC9erC5WqU|access-date = December 14, 2015|title = 잊지마 (It G Ma)}}{{cite web |last=Kameir |first=Rawiya |title=This Guy In South Korea Is Taking His Obsession With American Rap To The Next Level |url= http://www.thefader.com/2015/01/23/keith-ape-is-the-south-korean-king-of-rap-covers |date=January 23, 2015 |work=The Fader |access-date=January 2, 2015}} and was ranked by Billboard K-Town at number five on their list of the Best K-Pop Songs of 2015.{{cite magazine |author1=Jeff Benjamin |author2=Jessica Oak |title=The 20 Best K-Pop Songs of 2015 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/k-town/6828140/best-k-pop-songs-2015 |date=December 30, 2015 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=January 3, 2016}}
Musical style and reception
Keith Ape has been called the "Korean OG Maco" and noted for an exciting concert performance at 2015's South by Southwest rap showcase, among other performances which included Young Thug, Desiigner, Waka Flocka Flame, XXXTentacion, and more.{{cite web |last=Kramer |first=Kyle |title=The Craziest Rap Show at SXSW Was a Korean Import |url= https://www.vice.com/en/article/sxsw-2015-keith-ape-review-recap/ |date=March 22, 2015 |work=Noisey |access-date=January 2, 2016}} His concert at SOB's in 2015 was listed as one of The New York Times top 40 picks, "unrestrained mayhem", and "a clear inheritor of Southern rap rowdiness".{{cite web |author1=Jon Pareles |author2=Ben Ratliff |author3=Jon Caramanica |author4=Nate Chinendec |title=All the Best Concerts, of What the Critics Have Seen |website=The New York Times |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/30/arts/music/all-the-best-shows-of-what-the-critics-have-seen.html?_r=1 |date=December 29, 2015 |access-date=January 2, 2016}}
Controversy
On February 4, 2015, he was accused by American rapper OG Maco of cultural appropriation.{{cite web|title=American rapper OG Maco accuses Korean rapper Keith Ape of cultural appropriation by copying 'U Guessed It'|url=http://www.allkpop.com/buzz/2015/02/american-rapper-og-maco-accuses-korean-rapper-keith-ape-of-cultural-appropriation-by-copying-u-guessed-it|date=February 7, 2015|work=Allkpop|access-date=February 23, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160301192243/http://www.allkpop.com/buzz/2015/02/american-rapper-og-maco-accuses-korean-rapper-keith-ape-of-cultural-appropriation-by-copying-u-guessed-it|archive-date=March 1, 2016|url-status=dead}} OG Maco claimed Keith Ape and friends had mocked him by using black stereotypes to sell music in their video of "It G Ma". He also claimed that they had plagiarized the basis for their track from his debut single "U Guessed It". As of August 13, 2015, OG Maco collects royalties from "It G Ma", and has since deleted his tweets regarding his accusations of cultural appropriation.{{cite web |last=Caramanica, Jon |title=Getting Rowdy: Keith Ape and Real Rap in Korea|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/arts/music/getting-rowdy-keith-ape-and-real-rap-in-korea.html?_r=1|date=August 13, 2015|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 23, 2016}} Nonetheless, he declined an invitation by Keith Ape to be part of a later remix rendition of "It G Ma".
Discography
= Extended plays =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
! scope="col" style="width:12em;" | Title ! scope="col" style="width:17em;" | Album details |
| scope="row" | Born Again
|
|
|---|
| scope="row" | Ape Into Space
|
|
| On! the Run
|
|
= Studio albums =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
! scope="col" style="width:12em;" | Title ! scope="col" style="width:17em;" | Album details |
| scope="row" | MOD: Ape's Basics in Time and Play
|
|
|---|
| scope="row" | A.A.T (Aquatic Ape Theory) The Lost Tapes
|
|
| The X-Mas Is Mine
|
|
= Collaborative albums =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
! scope="col" style="width:12em;" | Title ! scope="col" style="width:17em;" | Album details |
| scope="row" | Project: Brainwash (as Kid Ash with G2) |
|
|---|
| scope="row" | $moke Under the Water (with City Morgue) |
|
References
{{Reflist}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ape, Keith}}
Category:South Korean male rappers