Watch Mike Floss and Jace Ask for a 'Background Check' [Fresh Vid]

Last fall, Mike Floss spoke with the Scene about what it will take to move Nashville's hip-hop scene forward, and one of the key components seemed to be making connections in areas where there's already a strong rap infrastructure. “I go to Atlanta for a week and I do more than I can do in Nashville in two months,” said Floss. “I think the formula now is for us to go other places, get the recognition, and then once we get the recognition, be like, ‘Oh, I’m from Nashville.’ ”

Floss has been putting in work to that end, and some new fruits of those labors are ready for your eyes and ears. Above, check out Floss dancing around with Atlanta rapper Jace in the video for "Background Check." That's a track from 3 Piece, a new collaborative EP they've made with top-shelf producer and Music City expat Ducko McFli. Jace is part of the Two-9 collective, signees to Mike Will Made-It's Interscope imprint Ear Drummers, for whom McFli has also done some well-received work. That's exciting stuff, but as you'd expect if you know any of these folks' previous efforts, the tracks stand on their own merit. The two MCs' styles complement each other pretty perfectly, and they discuss the challenges of personal and professional relationships over beats that warp and flex to their flow.

Stream 3 Piece below, as well as two other Floss tracks that dropped earlier this year. "Local Satisfaction" feels like an extension of last year's excellent Tennessee Daydreams LP. "Firepower" is a response to the April 22 shooting at a Waffle House in Antioch that left four people dead. Your next opportunity to catch Floss in person in town is during the inaugural Nashville run of the Breakaway Festival, set for Oct. 5-6 at the Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park.