Chill Divine, born Gary Van Liew, is a 1990s underground hip-hop artist known for a 12-inch EP originally released on Square Records in 1990.
In the Record§
Square Records was founded by Stan Krause — the Jersey City record-store owner behind Stan's Square Records and Catamount Records — placing Chill Divine's debut within the Krause label lineage that runs from 1960s acappella and soul into the city's early hip-hop.
The record pairs “Puttin’ It Wildly” and “Long Live the Lyrical”; the remastered four-track release adds “Puttin’ It Wildly (Dub)” and “Long Live the Lyrical (Instrumental)”
The music features boom-bap production and a classic lyrical style.
A great-grandson of Sheldon Van Liew through Kenneth and Ardelle Van Liew, and the uncle of DJ DX (Robert Van Liew), Chill Divine embedded the Van Liew name in Jersey City's foundational hip-hop — one of four cornerstone figures in the family's six-decade musical legacy.
Sources§
- Discogs — Chill Divine, Puttin’ It Wildly / Long Live The Lyrical (12″, 1990, Square Records) — link
- “Puttin’ It Wildly” — 1990 Square Records (YouTube) — link
- Van Liew family history, contributed by Robert Van Liew (DJ DX), The Jersey City Sound, 2026
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