Austin Antoine is…

A performance artist that blends music and poetry. All of his passions effortlessly mix with abilities that span from singing soulful solos to conquering an opposing rapper in a contest of improvised wit.

After graduating California Institute of the Arts in the Bachelor of Fine Arts program for theater, Austin has sustained artistic success through touring performances, musical collaborations, and hosting creative workshops. His work can be seen with NBA 2k, Viacom CBS, Sofar Sounds, Guinness Book of World Records, and in the 2021 film Summertime, directed by Carlos López Estrada.

Austin is currently the Head of the Music Department at the Los Angeles-based non-profit, Get Lit. Get Lit ignites student engagement, literacy, and young voices around the globe using the power of Spoken Word, technology, and community.

His latest EP, The Rest is History, is available on all streaming platforms.

Recent Works & News

  • Created a music program called “Mixtape Masterclass”. A curriculum that teaches youth how to song-write, produce, dj, and perform live. We also have had several self produced projects released. (https://www.getlit.org/programs/mixtape-masterclass)

  • An interactive, multimedia exploration featuring sonic improvisation around the Common Ground exhibition, featuring Austin Antoine of Get Lit, Common Ground artist Adam Silverman, and performative artist Shalandrea Renee Houchen, with Def Sound as MC.

    For more info, head to: https://www.skirball.org/programs/sounds-common-ground

  • Album released through the record label Position Music under the group name “Beat The Streetlights” -https://www.positionmusic.com/album/NTY2MjU2NC1kN2UwN2Q

  • For Antoine, freestyle was just a pastime in his adolescence and even at CalArts, where the environment wasn’t conducive to growing his voice. It wasn’t until he was offered to partake in Get Lit that his own perception about the meaning of his work shifted.

    “I wasn’t sure I was equipped because I don’t particularly do poetry. I rap. I write lyrics. I write words that convey my thoughts and emotions and things that I go through. Come to find out at Get Lit that I am a poet,” Antoine says. “And thank goodness that I’m able to claim that because that opened so many more doors.”

    Read the rest of the article here: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2021-07-09/summertime-carlos-lopez-estrada-kelly-marie-tran

“Beat The Streetlights” Press Photos

Summertime (2021)

  • Official Movie Poster

  • Rah in the Studio

  • Anewbyss & Rah in Smiley's

  • Summertime Cast at Sundance

Watch Now

Upfront Summit at the Rose Bowl

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Through RGLive Events, Free Association (founded by Austin Antoine) performs at the 2020 Upfront Summit at the Rose Bowl Stadium. The annual Upfront Summit hosts more than 1,000 top investors, entrepreneurs, and leaders for an invitation-only event in Los Angeles.

TRDMRK EP (2019)

“Nineties hip-hop legends, Jurassic 5 turntablist DJ Nu-Mark (Mark Potsic) and former Pharcyde member Slimkid3 (Tre Hardson) have taken emcee Austin Antoine into their fold for TRDMRK, a new musical project from the trio, which also features a handful of other guest vocalists such as Detroit rapper Guilty Simpson. The result is the best of old skool rap with a bristling new edge, often in the form of Antoine’s direct, politically-charge rhymes, the perfect foil to Slimkid3’s earthier flow.”

- Variance Magazine

Awards & Recognitions

  • 1 of 15 featured in the annual variety comedy show spotlighting up-and-coming performers. Read more here!

  • Participated and won BuzzFeed’s “Aspiring Rappers Try Battle Rapping” competition. Watch here!

  • Inducted into the cypher community, Teambackpack, and nominated for verse of the year. Watch here!

  • Guinness World Record title holder for Longest Freestyle Rap, freestyling for an unprecedented 16 hours, 31 minutes, and 21 seconds. More here!