Ryan Stewart, better known by the stage name Fluent Form or, more recently, Flu, is an Australian

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

and hip hop musician.

Career

Solo career

Although Stewart participated in

rap battle Battle rap (also known as rap battling)Edwards, Paul, 2009, p. 25. is a type of rapping performed between two or more performers that incorporates boasts, insults and wordplay. Battle rap is often performed or freestyled spontaneously in live ...

s in his early days, using the experience to gain exposure and get his name out, he has said that he was never really part of the "battle scene" and his dedication is to recording songs. His independent debut production, ''Chapters of Substance'', was released in 2008 under the name Fluent Form. This was quickly followed the next year by ''The Furnace'', released under the newly formed Crate Cartel label and distributed through

Obese Records Obese Records was a record label that released music from the Australian hip hop genre. It was the largest Australian independent hip hop label, including performers Pegz, Thundamentals and Dialectrix. Obese Records also operated two retail ...

. Described by an interviewer as "a dark manifesto, serving as an outlet for rage and dissatisfaction", he said that ''The Furnace'' reflects his "burning desires, rage,... life, lessons, greed, envy, growth, anger, obstacles, reward, death, life... everything." He was praised for his "complex rhyming structure, deep concepts, and overall flow" and as having "the composure of a veteran long in the game." In an interview, he said that telling personal stories through the tracks on the album was "very important". His third album, ''Word Merchant'', released in 2011, was produced by Crate Cartel co-founder

Geko Geko were a gothic rock duo based in Los Angeles. Formed in 1983, the band's nucleus comprised vocalist/bassist Sarah Folkman and guitarist Carrie McNinch. They released one full-length album, titled '' Join My Pretty World'', in 1992 before d ...

and featured guest verses from various artists including

Dialectrix Ryan Leaf, better known by the stage name Dialectrix, is an Australian hip hop artist from Sydney. He was a member of Down Under Beats Crew (DUB Crew) and, since 2008, has been a member of Gully Platoon. In addition to his musical career, Diale ...

and numerous veterans in the local hip hop scene. Throughout 2012, he released the tracks "FLU32" and "Ricochet Rabbit" via

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online audio distribution platform founded in 2007 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with headquarters in Oakland, California, US. On March 2, 2022, Bandcamp ...

and appeared on the Obese Records ''Obesecity 2'' compilation with the track "The Code" featuring Has-Lo. His fourth solo album, ''Flu Season'', was released in 2013 and debuted at number 39 on the Aria Hip Hop Charts. It again featured a host of guest artists including American rappers

One Be Lo Nahshid Sulaiman (born Ralond Scruggs; November 7, 1976), better known by his stage name One Be Lo, is an alternative hip hop artist from Pontiac, Michigan. He is well respected for being one half of the rap duo Binary Star, and has released a n ...

and Has-Lo. This marked his first release to be issued in vinyl and on cassette tape in addition to CD. He stated that he hope the style of ''Flu Season'' "gives the listener an opportunity to digest everything I’m saying." It won awards in the 2013 at the Oz Hip Hop Awards for best album and best wax release, as well as best beat for the track "Arrows" featuring Geko, which was produced by Must Volkoff. The Australian edition of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' magazine reviewed ''Flu Season'', awarding it stars. A review on US website RapReviews.com complimented Flu's "ear popping lines" and production that "lifts him up high", rating the album 8 out of 10. In 2017, he released his fifth album ''Flu Dust'', which was his first self-produced album as well as being his first album since officially moving on from the name Fluent Form to simply Flu, which was considered his secondary stage name for many years prior. Fluent Form has toured Australia, supporting international artists including

Ghostface Killah Dennis Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of ''Enter the Wu-Tang (36 C ...

Ill Bill William Braunstein (born July 14, 1972), known by his stage name Ill Bill, is an American rapper and record producer from Brooklyn, New York City. Having gained fame in the underground hip hop group Non Phixion, Ill Bill is known for his diver ...

Chino XL Derek Keith Barbosa (born April 8, 1974), better known by his stage name Chino XL, is an American rapper, and actor. He has released four solo studio albums, in which his most recent – '' Ricanstruction: The Black Rosary'' – won the 2012 HH ...

, Masta Ace and

DJ Premier Christopher Edward Martin (born March 21, 1966), known professionally as DJ Premier (also known as Preemo), is an American record producer and DJ. He is considered one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time. He was half of the hip hop du ...

. He has also provided guest verses for local artists including

Bias B Adam Stevens, better known by the stage name Bias B, is an Australian hip hop artist. He started writing lyrics in 1989 and began performing in 1991 and released his first album, ''Beezwax'', in 1998. The album took two years to sell its first 50 ...

, Ciecmate and Bigfoot. He also produced the track "Half Full" by J.Mac, appearing on the compilation album ''Rawthentic The Roster''.

4 Aces

Having worked with fellow Melbourne-based rappers Mata, Must and 1/6 on the tracks "4 Aces" (released on ''The Furnace'') and "Poison" (on ''Flu Season''), they appeared on stage around Australia in 2013 as part of the Alliance Tour and produced an EP titled ''Four Aces'', a collaboration between the Crate Cartel and Pang Productions labels, released exclusively on vinyl to coincide with World Record Store Day on 19 April 2014. They also performed a live gig that night outside Wax Museum Records in the Campbell Arcade subway under

Flinders Street railway station Flinders Street railway station is a train station located on the corner of Flinders Street, Melbourne, Flinders and Swanston Street, Swanston streets in the Melbourne city centre, central business district (CBD) of Melbourne, Victoria (Austral ...

Discography

Albums and EPs

Individual tracks

* "FLU32" (2012) * "Ricochet Rabbit" (2012)

Guest verses

Personal life

Flu was raised and continues to reside in the south eastern suburbs of Melbourne. He is a father of two children. He also played for the Eastside Kings in the

Robert Hunter Cup Robert Alan Hunter (1 October 1975 – 20 October 2011), better known as Hunter or Huntz, was an Australian rapper and hip hop artist. He was a founder of Perth's hip hop scene in the 1990s and a member of the MC collective Syllabolix (SBX) ...

in 2013, an Australian rules football match honouring the memory of Perth MC Hunter.

References

External links

* * *
Fluent Form
on

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fluent Form Australian male rappers Living people Rappers from Melbourne Australian musicians Year of birth missing (living people) Australian hip hop musicians