If hip-hop had a northwest compass, Yonny would point true north: magnetic, offbeat, and just enough Seattle drizzle to keep it poetic. At 24, the Ethiopian-American artist is the kind of rapper who makes you wonder what you’ve been doing with your own time. He’s been quietly gutting verses and bending genres from a corner of the map most skip, despite its rich legacy of beats, rhymes, and scratched vinyl.
Seattle may have been playing understudy in hip-hop’s Broadway cast for decades, but Yonny’s stepping into the limelight, unapologetically local and loud about it. His rhyme book is part war story, part diary entry, blended with a touch of Wes Anderson quirk and Pharrell’s cool confidence. Recently, the Seattle Sounders FC and local lifestyle lab HOMETEAM handed him the aux cord and said, “Here, narrate the city.” The result: “City in Motion,” a track that bangs like sneakers on hardwood but with enough emotional calories to stick with you. The anthem backs a whole campaign ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025™, where Seattle’s throwing on its dress jersey and inviting the world over for coffee and maybe a humble brag or two.
And there’s merch, naturally. Not your average slap-a-logo-and-go deal, think street-level history woven into the literal fabric of hoodies, t-shirts, and a cap that even your dad would tilt just right. One standout: a hoodie crafted from repurposed Sounders FC kits. Designed by Ben Kirschner (whose sneaker credentials are better than most résumés), the HOMETEAM x Sounders drop is part love letter, part locker room hype, stitched together with pure Emerald City pride.
For “City In Motion,” Yonny’s sound is like if Kendrick took a joyride through Jersey club beats with GoldLink riding shotgun and Tyler, The Creator DJing from the trunk. He’s got that elastic flow, bouncing syllables like dodgeballs, and a voice that flips from laid-back to animated without warning. The beat’s got that jittery, caffeinated pulse, but Yonny rides it like he’s narrating a daydream. It’s playful, sharp, and just weird enough to be memorable.
This campaign, with “City in Motion” in the center of it, fittingly reads like a civic mixtape: legends like Ken Griffey Jr., Jamal Crawford, Ben Gibbard, and Detlef Schrempf chiming in, plus OG fans, players past and present, and yes, Yonny, in full storyteller mode, showing what it looks like when culture gets a stadium-sized soundcheck.
Dive into the sound of Yonny: Instagram | YouTube | TikTok | Spotify | Apple Music