By Chris Richburg
Hip-Hop fans will serve as the motivation behind an upcoming 45-city tour celebrating the 10 year anniversary of independent group Hieroglpyhics and their label, Hiero Imperium.
The outing, known as the Freshly Dipped Tour, will make stops in the US and play select dates in Canada after its official start on June14 at the Paid Dues Hip-Hop festival in San Francisco, CA.
Among those featured on the tour are the Hieroglyphics, as well as Seattle rap collective Blue Scholars, Prince Ali, Musab and Knobody.
The tour will also serve as the springboard to launch two new projects from the group: the Hiero Jeans clothing line and Souls of Mischief member Opio’s upcoming album, Vulture's Wisdom, Volume One.
"We are putting this tour together to thank our fans for their years of loyal support, expose them to our new projects including our brand-new lifestyle line, Hiero Jeans and to celebrate the ways that Hip-Hop style has influenced the fashion world," said Hiero Imperium CEO Tajai Massey.
Since its inception, Hiero Imperium has played an important role in Hip-Hop by releasing albums from the Hieroglyphics crew and members Souls of Mischief (Tajai, A Plus, Phesto, Opio), Casual, Pep Love, Domino and Del The Funky Homosapien.
Individually, the Hieroglyphics members have sold more than 1,000,000 units independently.
The following are the first 30 dates of the Freshly Dipped Tour.
The remaining 15 dates will be announced in the coming weeks.
June 14 San Francisco, CA Berkeley Community Theatre (Paid Dues Hip-Hop Festival)
July 11 Pomona, CA Glasshous
July 12 Los Angeles, CA El Rey
July 13 San Diego, CA Belly Up
July 15 Tempe, AZ Clubhouse
July 16 Flagstaff, AZ Orpheum
July 17 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine
July 18 Dallas, TX Granada
July 19 Austin, TX Emo's
July 20 New Orleans, LA Parrish
July 22 Orlando, FL Social-Late Show
July 23 Atlanta, GA Masq
July 24 Carrboro, NC Cat's Cradle
July 25 Charleston, SC The Music Farm
July 26 Wilmington, NC Soapbox
July 27 Virginia Beach, VA Steppin Out
July 29 Baltimore, MD Bedrock
July 30 West Chester, PA The Note
July 31 New York City, NY Highline
Aug. 1 Providence, RI Jerky's Live
Aug. 2 Boston, MA Middle East
Aug. 3 Burlington, VT Higher Ground
Aug. 5 Ottawa, ON Babylon
Aug. 6 Toronto, ON Mod Club
Aug. 7 London, ON The Salt Lounge
Aug. 8 Ann Arbor, MI Blind Pig
Aug. 9 Columbus, OH Skullys
Aug. 10 Chicago, IL Abbey Pub
Aug. 12 Madison, WI High Noon
Aug. 13 Minneapolis First Ave-Early Show
Aug. 14 Omaha Waiting Room
Aug. 15 Boulder Fox
Aug. 16 Salt Lake City Urban Lounge