Australian hip hop trio, Bliss n Eso to perform in Airlie Beach, Mackay
Aussie hip hop pioneers say their music career was born in regional communities. Read what keeps them passionate and where you can see them this weekend.
Mackay
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With a career spanning more than two decades, Bliss n Eso’s legacy in Australian music is solidified.
But the trio’s Max ‘Eso’ MacKinnon said their career was born in regional communities like Mackay.
“We started this without social media, Facebook and all of that,” Eso said.
“We were doing the hard yards, getting on the train, sleeping on buses, sleeping on mates’ floors, just to get to these regional towns, smaller towns that are thirsty and hungry for live music to come through.”
They have played everywhere, from packed pubs to sold out major venues, and this Friday Mackay fans can watch the group perform at Harrup Park before they head to Airlie Beach for another show at Magnums on Saturday.
Eso said as a collective it remained “in love with hip hop”, which kept the trio motivated.
As a pioneer of the genre in Australia, there was pride in being one of the first able to age gracefully.
“I’ve watched the blossoming of it here in this country and this is kind of new territory for us to be in the game this long,” Eso said.
“But hip hop is a form of expression and I’m always going to have something to express.”
The growth of the hip hop scene in this country was something the trio took great pride in, especially considering the hurdles the group had to overcome when they started, he said.
“Let’s say you were looking at a festival poster in the early 2000s, it is rock and roll every year, and then finally we got on the bill and it was the big act and big names, and then the names get smaller and then right there at the end was ‘and more’,” Eso said.
“That was us, we got the f--king ‘and more’ spot and then as the years passed, it proved to be such a powerful culture in this country and to be part of a handful of pioneers is amazing.”
The focus of their tour is to reconnect with their fanbase after a more than a four-year break between albums.
“Some people are so connected to our music that our songs have been soundtracks to their lives,” Eso said.
“Our fans don’t just throw up a poster and say ‘I like Bliss n Eso’, they tattoo the lyrics on their body and drive 1000km to get to a show.”
Eso said the group was excited to get to Mackay and he had a simple answer when asked why people should buy tickets.
“Because Bliss n Eso is playing,” he said.
“If you are on your couch or if you are watching Netflix, I don’t know what you are doing with your life.”
Buy tickets on the Frontier Touring website.
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