Abdominal

Toronto rapper Abdominal (aka Abs) is the very definition of old-skool & the antithesis of gangsta rap. With his smooth, easy-going, humorous flow, mad freestyle skills, & unique, loveable persona, he charms listeners with his offbeat tales of everyday life. Born Andy Bernstein on Feb 7, 1974 to middle-class Jewish parents with a lifelong love of words (his mother was an English teacher & librarian) who encouraged him to do what he loved, he grew up in the Greektown neighbourhood of Toronto & attended Northern Secondary School, where he gained a reputation as a talented cartoonist. After he left school, he was part of the hip-hop crew Rusholmes, before teaming up with DJ Fase, with whom he released his first album, "Flowtation Device", in 2001. Their single "Vinyl Frontier" caught the attention of Brit DJ Format, who featured Abs on his 2003 debut album, "Music for the Mature B-Boy", & its 2005 follow-up, "If You Can't Join 'Em… Beat 'Em". Abdominal's debut solo album, "Escape from the Pigeon Hole", dropped in 2007. The 2012 follow-up, "Sitting Music", sidestepped traditional hip-hop entirely: a collaboration with acoustic duo The Obliques, it saw him rapping (& singing) over a sparse backing of guitar & percussion & featured a song, "Courage," featuring his then-61-year-old mother. In 2015, they gave a TED talk about the experience entitled "Courage: Why I Wrote a Rap Song with My Mom." Abdominal returned to 'proper' hip-hop in his 2017 album with DJ Format, "Still Hungry".