One of the hardest working artists in Canadian hip-hop is back with a new video in advance of his forthcoming album, MDCXVII.
West end Toronto-native Fortunato teamed up with director Joe Cash to visualize his Scopic-powered single, “Out For Blood.”
The album will be distributed via URBNET as of Friday, Nov. 9, and will be available on CD, vinyl, and digital streaming. Pre-order is available now via Bandcamp.
MDCXVII is the Roman numeral equivalent of 1617, part of the address where Fortunato was born in Toronto. It’s a deeply personal album that focuses on Fortunato’s depth of experience in the hip-hop game, and specifically how it has affected his life.
Inspired by his travels to Western Canada during his coast-to-coast tour, MDCXVII showcases beats, guest appearances, and engineering from solely West Coast artists, including Kryple of the Edmonton based group Doom Squad, Mugg Shot and Madchild.
“I met so many talented artists out there that I decided to work with them exclusively on this project,” says Fortunato on his to decision to show the West some love.
Along with “Out For Blood,” MDCXVII is primarily produced by Scopic, who is best known for his hard-hitting record Against All Authorities by the legendary hip-hop group, Onyx.
The project was mixed and mastered by the engineering guru Nato, and features cover art by the multi-disciplinary artist, Mad Dog Jones.
In other MDCXVII-related news, Fortunato won best International Hip Hop video at the Golden Sneakers Film Festival in Hamburg, Germany for his song “Dead in The Streets,” off the upcoming project.
You can catch him live this month touring with JuJu and Psycho Les of The Beatnuts, starting November 15th in Montréal with stops in Québec City, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria, Nelson and Vernon.
Check out the video for “Out For Blood” below.
Catch Fortunato live at Fortune Sound Club in Vancouver with The Beatnuts
You can follow @iAmFortunato on Instagram.
