DA ICE KING

OZONE WEST PREMIERE:
REAL, RAW, & UNCENSORED WEST COAST RAP SHIT
TRAXAMILLION
MISTAH FAB
DJ JUICE
J-DIGGS
& MORE
I
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A
KAICFE KING
DA
IES
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S MAL UPRISING
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UTH
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* TOO $H* OAKLAND’S YWOEST SIDE STORRYE
*
& MO
// OZONE WEST
OZONE WEST // THE WEST IS BACK... SIDE!!!
DJ Backside
(right) gives
Traxamillion
(left) some
studio tips
The Bay Area’s DJ BackSide links up with the Best of
the West to see what’s really goin’ on in their heads!
TRAXAMILLION
W
hen I hooked up with super-hyphy producer Traxamillion to see
what he thought of deep issues such as Kramer’s recent outburst and
Britney and K-Fed’s breakup, he told me to meet him at his spot “The
Bedroom” where the real hits are made. *wink, wink* So I did. Here’s what
was produced.
BackSide: So what’s your secret to being one of the top producers in the Bay
Area?
Traxamillion: I don’t know, I just want to make good music, hits. Especially
music for the kids. If you stick with the kids, then you can make hits. Music is
supposed to be fun, and that’s what we do out here in the Bay Area.
BS: The Bay is on fire right now. One artist that’s definitely doin’ it who I ran
into recently is Ya Boy.
T: Ya Boy the rapper, yeah?
PHOTO: AMAKA NWIGWE
BS: Yep! He’s doing it big in Los Angeles right now.
T: I heard he was doing his thing out there with Britney and K-Fed.
BS: Ya Boy supposedly helped ghostwrite some of K-Fed’s raps. [laughs] Hey,
would you make a beat for K-Fed?
T: Sure! Of course, why not? We can make music together. Look, I’m not mad.
If he asked I would do it. Just give me that good Britney money!
BS: True.
T: Shit, man, let’s just do it.
BS: Ha! So, speaking of K-Fed, is hip-hop dead like Nas is saying?
T: [laughs] Nah, hip-hop isn’t dead. I don’t believe that. I think it’s still here,
just in different forms than guys like the ones Nas and Jay-Z grew up with
and looked up to. It’s a different era; things just evolve. It’s a new day.
BS: A new day. I like that.
T: Dudes like Jay-Z are just from a different generation of hip-hop, but we
can all work together.
BS: Speaking of Jay, his girl Beyonce is in that new movie Dreamgirls.
T: Yeaaaaaahhh!!!!
BS: Who’s your dream girl?
T: [blushes] I don’t know. You’re gonna have to get back to me on that one.
BS: Come on. For real?
T: [laughing] I’m serious, that’s a hard one. I just don’t know.
BS: Anyways, this year you produced a lot of Bay Area tracks like “Grown
Man” by Dem Hoodstarz, “Super Hyphy” by Keak da Sneak, and more, but
you also got to do the remix for Brooke Hogan’s “About Us” featuring E-40!
T: Yup!
BS: That’s crazy! Did you get to wrestle Hulk too?
T: [laughing] Nah, but when I met him, he bear-hugged me!
BS: Oh shit! Could you breathe?
T: Not at all. I was out for a good ten seconds. That was a great experience,
though, shouts to Brooke for letting me get on that record. Even Hulk said
to me, “Hey, man, I love that beat you did for the remix!” She’s a developing
artist on Scott Storch’s label, so I was juiced to be a part of that.
BS: Yup, that was big for you I bet.
T: Real big.
BS: So Trax, you know how the Chinese have the year of the rooster and the
monkey and all that? What’s the year of 2007 for you?
T: The year of the MONEY!
BS: I heard that.
T: Yeah, I mean, this year I did well for myself and I made some bread. The
year before that I was really just gettin’ on and gettin’ my feet wet, so 2007
should show me the money! I’ve been workin’ hard for a minute now, so it’s
my time, man.
PHOTO: D-RAY
BS: Kudos to that! 2007 people: Get money!
// OZONE WEST
Check for Traxamillion’s Album “The Slapp Addict” in stores now and more
info online at: www.myspace.com/traxxamillion
Traxamillion (center) with Brooke and Hulk
Hogan at 94.9’s Boo Bomb concert in San Jose
See you all every month here in the West Coast section of Ozone Magazine
hounding the best West Coast DJs, producers, and more! Holla at your girl:
www.djbackside.com or [email protected]
CALIFORNIA LOVE
OZONE invades the
W
est Coast
01 // K-Loc, Tone Bone, & Krazy @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 02 // Kilo, Lil Bruce, and Big Dante @ Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA) 03 // Scoot,
Shug, and BandAid of Da HoodStarz @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 04 // DJ Kilo & Jody Breeze @ Edge (Fresno, CA) 05 // Jon Nash
& Olis @ Youth UpRising’s Thanksgiving Turkey giveaway (Oakland, CA) 06 // Too $hort & DJ Juice @ Remy Martin cognac autograph signing (Oakland, CA) 07
// Young L of The Pack reppin’ Hyphy Juice on the set of “Skateboarders 2 Scrapers” (Oakland, CA) 08 // Tuff, Yukmouth, & Mistah F.A.B. @ Everett & Jones
BBQ (Oakland, CA) 09 // Willie Joe, guest, and DJ BackSide @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 10 // Traxamillion, Flex, Miami, Rayshawn, & Bavgate @ Youth
UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 11 // San Quinn and crew @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 12 // Mohawk Marlon & Lil Wayne @ Club Abyss
for DJ Quest’s birthday party (Sunnyvale, CA) 13 // Homeboy Miguel and Sean T on the set of Mistah F.A.B.’s “Ghostride” video (San Francisco, CA) 14 // Clyde
Carson, The Jacka, and Miami @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 15 // The Jacka, Yogi, and Young City @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo,
CA) 16 // Uno of The Pack and his brother @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 17 // D-Ray & Jacky @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA)
18 // The Pack @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 19 // Yung Joc & J-Diggs @ Boo Bomb concert (San Jose, CA) 20 // TJ Chapman, Julia Beverly, John Costen,
& Tuma Basa @ Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA)
Photo Credits: D-Ray (01,02,03,04,05,10,11,12,13,14,15,17,18,19); Julia Beverly (06,07,08,09,16,20)
OZONE WEST // releasetherapy
thingsthatpissmeoff
MALE GROUPIES
by Too $hort
I
’ve been wanting to say this shit for a long time. I remember showin’ up
[at a club] with my crew. For me personally, fifty deep was a small crew.
On average, maybe about 100. We’d show up with 200-300 guys, just on
behalf of Too $hort. “We here with $hort.” We all came together, like a mob. I
could show up at the club with 300 niggas, and not one of them would want
to stand on stage with me. There was a time when it wasn’t in anybody’s
mind to think, man, maybe I should go grab this corner spot on the stage
during my homie’s show. Even when you did have homies who were very
important to the clique, they’d stand by the DJ booth or as far back on the
stage as you can possibly stand. And if you’re up there with stage props and
you’ve got a routine and you’re actually doing a show, nobody is on stage
with you. Nobody. If you have security, he might work the edge of the stage
and make sure nothing happens like security’s supposed to do.
“IF YOU’RE A MALE
GROUPIE, YOU
KNOW EXACTLY
WHO YOU ARE. YOU
JOCK RAPPERS.
YOU WANNA BE
ON STAGE WHEN
RAPPERS COME TO
TOWN. YOU’D DO
ANYTHING TO GET
IN VIP TO STAND
NEXT TO RAPPERS.
YOU’RE GAY.”
But somewhere down the line it changed. It would be interesting if somebody could find that moment when the first rapper stepped on stage with
twenty or thirty guys standing next to ‘em. I don’t know where it started or
who did it first.
First I’d like to say this to the rappers: I know you showed up with fifty niggas, and y’all are the toughest niggas at the party. The rapper probably has
a lot of say-so, so what if you just told your homies, the homies that love
you: “Let me do my show. Do you know that if I get on stage and all fifty of
y’all stand up there with me, my show is going to look real whack? So let
me do my show.” That’s what you’ve got to ask your homies. If your homies
think about it and say, “Fuck you,” and have made up their minds that they
want to go on stage with you, then I’ll say this to the homeboys: This is your
big homie, your cousin, your friend, the one you believe in. You’re gonna eat
off him if he makes it. You might get a job just to have some fun with him. So
you want to see him make it. Did you know that all fifty of y’all standing on
stage with him makes him look whack?
If it’s a group, it looks even whacker, cause you can’t pinpoint who’s sayin’
what out of which microphone. C’mon, you’ve got four guys with microphones. One or two of them might be the main rapper, but everybody else
with the microphone is supposed to be doing ad libs. But they’re not just doing the ad libs, they’re actually singing the whole song word for word with
the rapper. So in the audience, we hear four voices doing one verse. And it
sounds like shit. God forbid it’s actually a group that you like. When you first
see a group perform, you want to see each emcee’s swagger and how they
work the stage. The spotlight is supposed to shine on the one who is shining
at the moment. This is your moment. Shine. If you’re sitting way back in the
audience, the spotlight is supposed to help you find the main person.
Lastly, I’d like to say this to the rap fans, because I don’t know how this got
out of control. There’s fans - tough guys - going through everything he can
go through to get backstage. He finally makes it backstage and all he wants
to do is stand on the stage with a rapper he don’t even know. If you like his
music, did you know that you’re makin’ him look bad in your city? Nobody
understands that you’re making the rapper that you like – your homeboy or
your favorite artist – you’re making him look bad.
Busta Rhymes made a really good statement about rap performances at the
BET Hip-Hop Awards. To me, this is the whackest thing in hip-hop. I don’t
think niggas should be bashin’ the South. I’ve been in the South since day
one and every beat, every syllable, every personality, I’m feelin’ it. I’m not
slandering any region, and I’m not speaking on any particular artist. This
is every rap show I’ve seen. I’m doing shows all the time, and I don’t know
none of these people on stage with me. And if you push three people off,
three more walk up. You can’t hire enough security to keep people off stage.
They jump up from the back of the curtain, come up from under the stage,
climb on the front, any kind of way. And I’ve analyzed why it’s all guys up
there on stage – because security can only bully girls. I go off on security all
the time, like, “Look how big you are! And the only person you can tell to get
off the stage is a girl?” I watch them. They sit there and yell at the girls and
push four girls off stage, while six guys walk past. Security will be like, “I’m
telling everybody to get off stage, but they ain’t listening.” No, you’re not.
You’re telling females to get off the stage. The security guards are scared.
// OZONE WEST
Anybody that wants to stand on stage with a rapper – if you’re not part
of his show, you’re not the DJ, you’re not the dancer, you’re not the hype
man – anybody that wants to stand on stage with a rapper is a bitch. You
are hella fake, you are so fuckin’ phony to wanna stand behind somebody
and shine in the background. That’s some bitch shit. I know there’s some
real niggas that have stood on stage, but you just did it cause it was the
thing to do. But think about it as you watch the show from the back. That’s
whack. It’s one thing if the rapper called you up there, but if you’re fightin’
to get up on stage with a rapper you don’t even know, you’re whack. If
you’re arguing, “Fuck that, I’m VIP, I’m with such-and-such, my cousin is
the promoter!” so fuckin’ what? Are you getting paid to be on stage?
It’s sabotage. It’s some fucked up shit, and it has a domino effect. Some of
the younger rappers have seen rappers that they admired doing this, so to
them, it looks good and feels good. You look stupid, man. And people that’s
doing it at my shows, you’re making me look stupid. I know I came with ten
niggas, so when I look behind me and see 85 niggas, who are they?
If a bunch of female groupies get on stage, it helps the show. The crowd
seems to like to look at ladies spread out around the stage and humping on
the rapper and bending over and doing the wild things they do. That’s only
if you don’t have any dancers and you’re doing a nightclub. But if you’re
doing a real show on tour, it ain’t no room for none of that shit. It’s just
the mentality. The next time you go to a rap show where four acts perform,
watch. It’s going to be a group of people on stage, and you’re going to see
the same muthafucker on stage during all four artists’ shows. He’s a bitch.
He thinks he’s important. “Yeah, man, I was on stage last night with Trick
Daddy.” You’re a bitch. That’s some gay ass shit. That’s seriously homosexual, to be like, “I gotta get up there next to Young Jeezy.” That’s what groupies did for fuckin’ forty years, tryin’ to get on stage with the rock bands.
If you’re a male groupie, you know exactly who you are. You jock rappers.
You wanna be on stage when rappers come to town. You’d do anything to
get in VIP to stand next to rappers. You’re gay. Think about it. I don’t give a
fuck if you are the promoter’s cousin. You’re a bitch. //
- as told to Julia Beverly
CALIFORNIA LOVE
OZONE invades the
W
est Coast
01 // E-40, Brandon Peters, Ray Luv, & Mac Mall @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway 02 // Keak da Sneak & Treal Real @ Super Hyphy 13 (Santa Rosa,
CA) 03 // DJ Juice, G Arcer, & Flo Masters Inc @ Rydah’s birthday party (Oakland, CA) 04 // B-Luv & the Nvus Twins @ Mistah FAB’s “Ghostride” video shoot (San
Francisco, CA) 05 // Uno of The Pack, Too $hort, Mistah FAB, & friend (Oakland, CA) 06 // Mistah FAB & Mike Caren @ 94.9’s Boo Bomb concert (San Jose, CA) 07
// Derrick & Uno of The Pack @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 08 // MC Hammer, Mistah FAB, & Too $hort @ FAB’s “Ghostride” video
shoot (Oakland, CA) 09 // Crest Creepaz @ the Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA) 10 // Uno of The Pack & Eddie Projects @ Super Hyphy 13 (Santa Rosa, CA)
11 // PSD Tha Drivah, D-Ray, & Zar @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 12 // The Pack reading OZONE on the set of “Skateboarders 2 Scrapers” (Oakland, CA)
13 // Conscious Daughter @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 14 // Too $hort @ the Boo Bomb concert (San Jose, CA) 15 // Stackman Custom Clothing @ Thizz
party (Oakland, CA) 16 // DJ BackSide & TJ Chapman @ Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA) 17 // Julia Beverly, Wendy Day, & guest @ Bay Area Rap Summit
(Oakland, CA) 18 // Clyde Carson, Derrick, & Tuff @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 19 // DJ Juice, Mistah FAB, & Mama Dez @ the BARS
Awards (San Mateo, CA) 20 // The Pack @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA)
Photo Credits: D-Ray (01,02,03,04,06,07,08,09,10,11,13,14,15,17,18,19,20,21); Julia Beverly (05,12,16)
OZONE WEST // westsidestory
howthewestwaswon
STEPS IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
by Toby “Regi Mentle” Francis
T
he West Coast never fell off. When the West and East were at each other’s
throats, neither paid attention to what was brewing in the South. By the
time we snapped out of the drama, the South had taken over. Rather
than work together, the East and the West both figured they’d just hate on
the artists from the dirty dirty as they stacked bundles bigger than 50 Cent’s
ego. But as long as running heavyweights like Bad Boy and Def Jam started
signing Southern rappers and creating imprints that specifically catered to
those below the Mason-Dixon line, the West Coast went unnoticed for years.
Now that hyphy is the West Coast’s answer to crunk, the spotlight is back
on the left coast, at least temporarily. Sadly, besides The Game, Southern
Killafornia isn’t making the noise it used to, and it’s by no means due to lack
of talent. The main problem is the fact that – with a few exceptions – there
hasn’t been an L.A. artist to hit the mainstream without coming out from
under one of the dudes that pioneered that gangsta shit. Ask around; a lot
of people can’t name five albums of certified music to gangbang to that’s
been released since Tupac died. As the streets down here heat up like before
the truce in the early 90s, the music is getting back to that legendary status
we haven’t seen since Doggystyle and The Chronic made people temporarily
believe that jheri-curls, khaki suits and g-flags were the way to go no matter whever you lived.
A lot of us remember Snoop Dogg’s attempt at bringing the West Coast back
together. While a lot was accomplished at those meetings, labels still aren’t
giving out deals to artists in Los Angeles, so there’s a lot of jealousy and
animosity. Combine that with the fact that a lot of these rappers represent rival neighborhoods, and you don’t exactly have a recipe for coming
together and getting this money like we need to be.
When people think of the West Coast, the bottom line is that hyphy rules
the streets from the Bay to L..A. In fact, you’ll be more likely to hear young
dudes in the hood pumpin’ E-40, Lil Wayne, or Dip Set before the same ol’
Warren G or N.W.A. No area is devoid of the influence of trends. In L.A., it’s just
as many fresh white tees and Bathing Apes as there are khakis and chucks. It
just depends on the generation. L.A. is similar to New York City in the sense
that both are stubborn when it comes to accepting the influences of other
areas. New York created that boom-bap, and L.A. brought in gunplay to the
rhyme game. But part of preserving the legacy is evolution and growth.
No disrespect to the legends, but there’s a lot more to L.A. right now than
when Detox is gonna drop or the politics of Ice Cube’s new grill. Starting
from the birthplace of it all – Compton a.k.a. The Hub a.k.a. Bompton – artists are tearing the streets up with that same anger that made you wonder
what the fuck had Eazy E and Cube so pissed off in the first place. Lil’ Eazy E
is about to drop, following in his dad’s footsteps and doing his best to right
the wrongs; he felt that Game misrepresented what Compton rap is all about.
On a more underground tip, BG Knocc Out just got released after almost a
decade behind bars, rejoining his partner in crime Dre’sta the Gangsta, who’s
been fuckin’ with Industry Phunk Entertainment for a minute now. Along with
them is one of the most talented groups bangin’ lately, the Young Hoggs.
Most of them are from Dre’sta and BG’s old neighborhood. After plenty of
ups and downs, including a stint on Mack 10’s Hoo-Bang imprint, the Young
Hoggs are dropping their first LP called Album Fulla Singles. They’re the truest representation of L.A. rap right now with tight hooks and potent g-funk
that remind me of the old days when DJ Quik was blowin’ up the mixtape
scene. They even teamed up with Young Jeezy a while back to produce some
dope results.
Every hood from the blue and red sides has their own dudes tryin’ to make a
mark and some money off this rap shit. Larceny Entertainment’s Young Hootie has been hot for a while now. His Prince of the Bity mixtape was bangin’
to new levels, seeing him pair up with legends like Big Wy from the Relativez
and branching out to new artists from all over like Harlem’s El Dorado Red.
While Game’s “One Blood” is tearing up the streets, it was Hootie’s “On
Bloodz” that originally had the block goin’ crazy last summer.
You gotta be living under a rock if you haven’t heard about Hollywatts’ very
// OZONE WEST
San Diego’s Mitchy Slick
own Glasses Malone. The self-proclaimed “1.7 Million Dollar Man,” named
after the deal he signed with Sony Urban for his Blu Division imprint, was
discovered by the same man that found Game – Mike Lynn obviously sees
the same dedication and ambition in this Watts native that he did in the
Doctor’s Advocate. Glasses has big plans. Not only is he trying to bring the
West back to new heights, but he’s paving the way for his artists such as
Mykestro, the Blocc Boys, Creezy and even the Young Hoggs. And Dynamic
Certified, from Snoop’s old stomping grounds the LBC, have been building up
some serious hype in the streets. Their joint single with Young Hoggs, “Get
Loose,” is beyond crazy. Featuring one-time Game cohort Eastwood, D.C. is a
prime example of L.A. youth laying down legit gangsta flows.
Across town in Inglewood, the hottest dude out this second is Damani. His
anthem “Inglewood” had dudes all the way to the Inland Empire and back
paying allegiance to the I. Inglewood is mostly known for Mack 10, but it’s
got a rich history of rap that was most famously featured on the ol’ Bangin’
on Wax discs from way back. Sadly, a lot of those dudes from those days are
locked up or not with us anymore. B Brazy from South Central was gunned
down a few years back; a shame because he was just starting to hit a stride
that would have made him legendary on a level beyond the L.A. gangbang
scene. Speaking of B Brazy, his closest dudes in the game the Relativez are
still at it. Big Wy has been heavy in the mixtape scene lately and anyone
who saw their take on 50’s “I’m So Hood,” aptly titled “I’m So Wood,” knows
they’ve got plenty up their sleeves in the future.
Lastly, another really dope project in the L.A. scene is one that Reputable
Records and the Drama Family put together this year. Rep Yo Set is a double
disc of street shit from some of the most active hoods in this gang scene.
They came together to give dudes from the block another outlet to make
money, and the outcome was real dope. It features a lot of new faces and a
few old ones that are destined for big things as long as they keep out the
penitentiaries and cemeteries.
Last but not least is the Salty D a.k.a. San Diego, a strong contender in
this gangsta music scene for ages now, but sadly overlooked. The hottest
thing from Dago right now is without a doubt Mitchy Slick. He’s been making noise with a whole slew of underground releases and is down with
Xzibit’s Strong Arm Steady Gang. Angeles Records recently dropped his
long-awaited Urban Survival Syndrome LP, and it’s bangin’! Mitchy is a real
dude and you can’t knock his grind because he speaks some of the grimiest
stuff out there. His street cred is untouchable, which adds a real edge to
his rhymes and stories. His Wrongkind imprint has albums from other Dago
upstarts such as Tiny Doo and Damu on the way, both of whom teamed up
with Mitchy for this year’s Strong Arm Robbery II mixtape. On the blue side,
Jayo Felony is still at it, but is collaborating with a lot of Bay Area artists as
opposed to ones in South East San Diego, the D’s home to gangbanging and
drug-slanging.
Now it’s time for you to do your homework, snatch up a bunch of this gangsta shit and get reeducated on what’s poppin’ off in Southern California.
You’ve got no excuse! Next month I’ll get another chance to name more
names because I barely scratched the surface. Baby steps, homies, baby
steps. //
CALIFORNIA LOVE
OZONE invades the
W
est Coast
01 // Mistah FAB & Talib Kweli @ Moses Music (Oakland, CA) 02 // Too $hort & Yukmouth @ BARS Awards afterparty (Oakland, CA) 03 // Clyde Carson & B-Legit
@ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 04 // The Pack & Pretty Black @ Club Abyss for Mistah FAB’s signing party (Sunnyvale, CA) 05 // PSD
& Jagged Edge @ The Grill (Oakland, CA) 06 // Uno of The Pack optimistically prepares for their “Skateboarders 2 Scrapers” video shoot (Oakland, CA) 07 //
DJ MOE1 & DJ Juice @ the Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA) 08 // DJ BackSide, D-Ray, & Hasi @ Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA) 09 // Yukmouth, Pretty
Black, & Stunna of The Pack @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 10 // Numskull & family @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 11 // Jagged Edge & Jody Breeze
(Fresno, CA) 12 // The Pack & Skrapi @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 13 // DJ Dow Jones, Mitchy Slick, & Bandaid of Dem Hoodstarz
on the set of Mistah FAB’s “Ghostride” video shoot (San Francisco, CA) 14 // Yukmouth & T from Exclusive Game @ Everett & Jones BBQ (Oakland, CA) 15 // DJ
K-Tone & guest @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 16 // Traxamillion & his girl @ Everett & Jones BBQ (Oakland, CA) 17 // J-Diggs, Kilo, & Bavgate @ Mistah
FAB’s “Ghostride” video shoot (Oakland, CA) 18 // Killa Squad & Traxamillion reppin’ OZONE @ Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA) 19 // Richie Rich & MH @ the
BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 20 // Too $hort, Echo Hattix, & Mistah FAB on the set of FAB’s “Ghostride” video shoot (Oakland, CA) 21 // Big Rich, Mistah FAB, &
J-Nash @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA)
Photo Credits: D-Ray (01,03,04,05,07,10,11,12,13,17,19,20); Julia Beverly (02,06,08,09,14,15,16,18,21)
OZONE WEST // djprofile
DJ JUICE
RICHMOND, CA
T
his Bay Area CORE DJ has been ushering in the West coast sound since
the first time the West was won. Now, over a decade later, DJ Juice is
ready to do his part to keep to Bay on the map, this time for good.
Tell me about yourself. Where are you from and how did you get started?
I was born in San Francisco, now I live in Richmond but I pretty much rep the
whole Bay Area. I represent the Core DJ’s, DJ Juice.
Why do you think the Bay scene is starting to get so much national attention?
The Bay has been doing there thing for a minute. We’re the originators of
the independent game. All the people you see doin’ the independent game
got that from the Bay. It’s kind of like New York is now; just because New
York isn’t makin’ no music that’s accepted on a major scale doesn’t mean it’s
dead. The Bay was accepted in the mid-90’s but after 2Pac died in ‘96 the
Bay kind of got slept on until last year. It’s kind of like everything comes
in a circle so you just got to wait your turn. Just like right now the South is
on top, it’s gonna come back to New York and it’s gonna come back to the
West, it’s just a cycle. It’s a lot of people out here that have been working the
whole time just waiting for their time. Now the spotlight is coming back to
the Bay and they’re trying to take advantage of that.
As a DJ, are you offended by the statement that “Hip Hop is dead”?
A lot of people take that statement personal. There are five elements of
hip-hop and the people who are saying “Hip Hop is Dead” are products of
the early ‘90s, New York style of rap. The backpack rappers like the KRS-One.
They consider Hip Hop with the breakdancing and the DJ, so when they say
Hip Hop is Dead they mean [Hip Hop] as a culture, the whole element of it.
Now it’s a business, people aren’t doing it for fun no more. People aren’t
going in the studio to make a good album, but to make a single that people
are going to dance to in the club. Before, they went in and said, “Let’s make
music and let’s have fun with it.” Now they’re just in it to get rich.
What do you think is the biggest problem in the Hip Hop game is right now?
I think it’s the digital era. The digital era has made it so easy for the average
cat to rap. A lot of these guys are garbage. Anybody can go to the Guitar
Center or the electronic store and buy Pro-Tools, get something to record
on, get a beat and then I’m a rapper. So it’s not mixed or mastered and they
bring it to DJ at the club like, “This is the hottest shit ever, play this.” And
it’s the same way with DJs. That’s part of what they mean when they say Hip
Hop is dead. These cats that want to DJ, they don’t know about carrying four
crates [of vinyl] to shows. They don’t know about the struggle. You got to
pay your dues and show that you love this shit. And while you’re paying your
dues you’re learning and then when you get your time, you’re ready.
Do you prefer vinyl, CDs or Serato?
I started collecting records when I was 8 years old. I don’t know how, but
when I was a little kid, before I really knew what a DJ was, I knew I wanted
to DJ. And then when I saw a DJ actually do it, I was like, “That’s what I
want to do.” So I got a garage full of records and I did it. I still use records
today but not as much as I used to. I stopped using records 100% of the time
probably two years ago. You couldn’t always get a single on a record, so I
would have two turntables and a CD player for those 5 or 10 songs that were
hot but weren’t on vinyl. In the Bay Area there are so many independent
artists and some of these cats don’t cut vinyl. Their song might be getting
airplay or it might be blowing up in the streets but if you only DJ on vinyl
then you can’t play. It’s to the point where like only one out of ten Bay area
rappers cut their songs on vinyl, so you got to have CDs. I started as a mixtape DJ, then I went to clubs. Now I do mixtapes too. I’ve done guest spots
on commercial radio and now I spin on Sirius Satellite radio.
fornia DJ for Remy Martin cognac. I DJ for a lot of local cats like Too $hort,
and I’ve done mixtapes with some big name artists like Chamillionaire. I
DJed at the Grammys, the Billboard Awards, Radio Music Awards, American
Music Awards, any [Award Show] that has Hip Hop in it, I’ll do the pre-party
or the afterparty. I did the NBA All-Star game in Denver and Atlanta .I pretty
much go all over the map.
What’s the main difference between satellite radio and regular radio from a
DJing perspective? Do you play mostly Bay Area music?
Satellite radio is pretty much a green light on everything; they let you play
whatever you want on there. Being from the Bay Area, of course I support my
region, but I also gotta play what’s hot.
In your opinion, what is the best part about being a DJ?
When I first started as a kid buying records, I never looked at DJing as a
career. My whole intent from the beginning wasn’t to make money off this
shit. I made mixtapes and I would give away most of them because I just
wanted muthafuckas to hear what I loved to do. I just love DJing, I love
music. Now people get into it to make money whereas before it was all
about the love of DJing, but I feel that it has to come from the heart. It
can’t be all about money. How many people can actually say they’re working at their dream job doing what they love to do? Every day I wake up and
I’m living a dream. //
Do you still DJ parties?
Yeah, I DJ for parties, I throw my own parties; I’m the official Northern Cali-
Words by Eric Perrin
Photo by Kawai Matthews
10 // OZONE WEST
CALIFORNIA LOVE
OZONE invades the
W
est Coast
01 // Too $hort & Traxamillion @ BARS Awards afterparty (Oakland, CA) 02 // Mistah FAB & Wendy Day @ Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA) 03 // Kilo, Derrick,
Mac Mall, & Ray Luv @ Youth UpRising (Oakland, CA) 04 // Playa Rae & friends reppin’ OZONE @ Bay Area Rap Summit (Oakland, CA) 05 // Tajuan, Olis Simmons,
& Mistah FAB @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 06 // Keak da Sneak & Cellski @ BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 07 // The Jacka & Portia
Kirkland @ Seventeen for BARS Awards afterparty (Oakland, CA) 08 // The Pack reppin’ OZONE on the set of “Skateboarders 2 Scrapers” (Oakland, CA) 09 //
Pretty Black & The Regime @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 10 // E-40 & J-Diggs @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 11 // Too $hort
& friends @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 12 // Mitchy Slick & Mistah FAB on the set of “Ghostride” (San Francisco, CA) 13 // Yukmouth & DOT @ the BARS
Awards (San Mateo, CA) 14 // Big Rich, Mistah FAB, Rupe, & Kuzzo on the set of “Ghostride” (Oakland, CA) 15 // Gangsta Brown & Too $hort (Oakland, CA) 16 //
Killa Squad @ Bay Area rap summit (Oakland, CA) 17 // Keak da Sneak & Idola @ Keak’s birthday party 18 // Guce & Mistah FAB @ the BARS Awards (San Mateo, CA) 19 // Auntie J-Diggs & Olis Simmons @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 20 // DJ Tito Bell & DJ Rick Lee @ Club Abyss for Tito’s
birthday bash (Sunnyvale, CA) 21 // Cupcake, Too $hort, Olis Simmons, Boo, & guest @ Youth UpRising’s Christmas gift giveaway (Oakland, CA) 22 // Bailey, T
Freeman, & J Valentine (Fresno, CA) 23 // ZionI, Chuck, Casual, & AmpLive @ Youth UpRising (Oakland, CA)
Photo Credits: D-Ray (02,03,05,09,10,11,12,13,14,16,17,19,20,21,22,23); Julia Beverly (01,04,06,07,08,15,18)
OZONE WEST // 11
hustlin’self-mademoguls
CREATING MOVEMENTS:
STRETCH OF THIZZ ENTERTAINMENT
I
t was February 2006, and Thizz Nation had flown me out to the Bay Area
so I could see the hyphy movement up close and personal. I was standing
on the balcony watching a rapper saunter into the hotel for our meeting.
He was obviously a rapper judging from his extremely high level of charisma,
and he was flanked by a tall dark skinned man and an outgoing white boy.
They were on time for our meeting, but because everyone else was late, it
made them seem early. As I met them in the lobby, we chatted about all
things industry related. I was immediately impressed with how much these
guys knew about the industry and putting our records. Unlike most people
I meet everyday, these guys truly studied the industry and the players
involved. That rapper was Mistah FAB, and he was with his manager, Stretch,
and his business partner, Gary Archer, who is in charge of all of Fab’s radio
play. At the time, Fab and Keak da Sneak were the two Bay Area artists being
courted the heaviest by the major labels. Stretch was leading that charge.
At 30, Stretch, who insists his government name will always remain a mystery, is very wise for his age. Born in an area of California called Seaside, he
tells me not to get it twisted because although the name is very pretty and
sweet sounding, he assures me that he’s from the “only rough part of the
nice part.” Aside from managing Mistah FAB, Stretch is also a partner in the
most successful indie label in the Bay Area (and the country, if you consider
the fact that they have independent distribution from a company not affiliated with any major label), aptly named Thizz Nation, once owned by local
icon and rapper Mac Dre. Stretch is tall and dark skinned, with a wonderful
sense of humor and a very humble demeanor. He and Fab constantly are
entertaining me with their back and forth quips that make them seem more
like brothers than business associates.
Thizz Nation has remained independent and turned adversity into success
even when the largest star on the label was gunned down in Kansas City on
Halloween night in 2004. They’ve managed to keep Mac Dre’s image alive
(Stretch was wearing a pair of Air Force Ones with Mac Dre’s face and name
silk screened all over them, and a platinum chain with Mac Dre’s face embedded with diamonds) while Mac Dre competes with Tupac for number of post
mortem releases from a rapper. Isn’t it ironic that they are both from the
Bay?
Stretch got started in the music industry in 1997 by putting out records with
a transplanted artist from Memphis called Big Time. Although they sold
over 10,000 CDs out of the trunk of their cars, Stretch thought this was a
failure. He decided to attend industry conventions such as BRE (along with
Messy Marv, Too $hort, Mac Mall, and other local success stories) to learn as
much as he could about the music industry so he could step his game up.
After a chance meeting on a flight home from Las Vegas, Mac Dre offered to
help Stretch put out records. This led to a relationship with Mac Dre’s other
partner in Thizz Nation, Kilo. Kilo brought Stretch on board to help Thizz Nation. They started by putting out mixed tapes, and when Mac Dre heard what
they were working on, he had to be a part of it. “Two days after he gave us 8
songs for Thizz Nation Vol 1 and 2, Mac Dre was gunned down in Kansas City,”
Stretch somberly informs me.
It’s obvious in speaking with Stretch that his success is based in his knowledge and understanding of the music business. “I have learned as much
as I can about digital rights management and new technologies because I
understand its importance to the new music business,” Stretch informs me.
“I have studied touring and merchandising from those who came before
and succeeded at these income revenue streams. In fact, for the next 8
months, I plan to research rock shows and country shows to see how they
have successfully built their touring and merchandising components. I want
to revolutionize touring in urban music. Hell, Dave Matthews Band goes out
on 33 city tours and makes about $900,000 a show performing in front of
30,000+ fans at a time. Why can’t we do that in urban music?”
He goes on to discuss touring. “With Mistah FAB, we do shows constantly,
and now FAB is getting $5,000 a show, a couple times a week,” he says. “He
started out by doing free shows, but he really rocks his performances. Folks
began asking him back for $500, then $1,000. Now he has no current record
out but gets $5,000 a show.” He continues to stress the importance of show12 // OZONE WEST
manship since a live show
can’t be bootlegged, and
can’t be duplicated. It’s the
one aspect of income for an
artist that remains strong if
he has a good show.
Regardless, Stretch knows
that his success has come
from studying what others
are doing and applying it to his artists, and “merchandising is an area
where we leave money on the table consistently,” he says, continuing, “I
studied Tech N9ne’s merchandising because he makes more money in merch
sales than he sometimes gets to do a show. I also studied Insane Clown
Posse. They did a 3 day festival and sold half a million dollars in merch.
They have Jugaloos (a loyal following of fans that even garner a specific
name to consider themselves). Look at Dipset. They have a huge following
of a loyal fan base, especially in Harlem. They can have ‘rapaloos’ if they
understand the value, ya know? That’s just because of the subculture itself
in Hip Hop. Fans wanna be accepted but they wanna be different. We need
to offer merchandise that will be seen as exclusive, but not too exclusive,
and not corny. Right now, the best gear is too exclusive. Only the gangstas
can afford it. Regular fans can’t afford the best gear.”
In 2003, Mac Dre officially hired Stretch to organize Thizz Nation. Stretch
helped them build a studio in West Oakland. When I asked how they signed
all of the artists, Stretch explains that Thizz was never meant to be a label,
but a “distribution co-op, of sorts. Each artist at Thizz is his or her own
boss. They all own their own labels. Thizz is just the unifying umbrella
that brings everyone together so the distributor only has to deal with one
or two people instead of each individual artist and label. We get things
cheaper because of the volume, and Kilo and I offer advice and help in
putting out records since we’ve been doing it for so long successfully.”
Thizz has put out close to seventy CDs over the years. “In the Bay, we all
work well with each other. It’s not fake, it’s real,” Stretch adds. “We all work
together. We appear on each others’ releases, and we all help each other
with our projects. It just made sense to bring everyone together under Thizz
Nation, plus Mac Dre was loved like that by everyone.”
In fact, the Bay artists are known for working well with others, even outside
of the Bay Area. “If one of us does 5 songs with a local artist from, say,
Kansas City, they will, first of all, let everyone know that they know us,” he
says. “Then, they will work hard to blow up our release because they want
that verse that they got to have the most value possible. Thizz artists spend
a lot of time in the Pacific Northwest and in Kansas City.” The fact that
Kansas City is the second largest market for Bay Area rappers is surprising
to me, but Stretch breaks it down simply for me. “We started networking
and supporting that area. We did shows and spent time in that market. We
put time into KC so they embraced us fully. New York has other priorities
besides Kansas City, and the South is busy working records in the South, and
the Midwest isn’t focusing on Kansas City because the Midwest is Gangsta
Disciples and Vice Lords, and KC is Crips and Bloods. Any gang-banging
community supports the Bay, even though we aren’t a gang culture in the
Bay. They’d support any West coast artists, we’re just the ones putting in the
time and doing the shows.”
Two years after the murder of Mac Dre, the Bay Area is regaining much
attention from the industry. The hyphy movement is bringing the fun back
into hip hop, and driving the adults and justice system nuts. And Thizz Nation has been supplying the soundtrack to that movement for years. With a
man like Stretch as a partner in this company, it’s not difficult to see why
they’ve been so successful over the years. Too $hort has made his move
back to the Bay to help make this attention fruitful with his new label, so
there is nowhere for the Bay to go but up. After all, they started this independence in rap movement back in the early 90s. Now it’s time for them to
finally profit big from it. //
- Wendy Day (Photo: D-Ray)
OZONE WEST // 13
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14 // OZONE WEST
D-Ray
W
e’ve been hearing about this Bay Area movement for a minute now. Do you think it’s on the
upswing or has it stalled out?
I’m from Atlanta, dawg. I don’t really know nothing about anything else.
A-Town, shawty. [laughs] Naw, the Bay Area movement right now is definitely
on the upswing. You’ll see a lot of artists getting deals. Clyde Carson just
recently signed with Capital. You’ve got The Pack over at Jive, E-40 and The
Federation at Warner Bros., The A’s over at TVT, and me at Atlantic. That’s a
beautiful thing for a region where a couple years ago we had no major label
exposure. Hopefully 2007 can translate to some nice sales and a big buzz.
Why did you decide to sign with Atlantic?
The way my deal is set up with Atlantic is damn near like a distribution deal.
I’ve got an Asylum deal but with Atlantic. I have things set up to where I’m
still able to do my independent movements and the things that already
established me as a Bay Area artist. My deal is still structured in that form
[as an independent] but they’re able to upstream me if possible and have
the first choice [of signing me to a major]. So I got a nice deal. At the end of
the day, the main thing is selling records. Even if you’re just pushing a single
and living off your ringtones and digital [sales], that’s your main thing. You
have to generate sales, both for you and your label, cause that way you keep
both parties happy. Nowadays you see a lot of people with big promotion
and big buzz, but they’re not selling records. Nobody is really selling records
in the industry no more. You have to take advantage of every opportunity
that presents itself.
The Bay Area has high expectations of artists like Keak da Sneak and yourself
as the ones that are supposed to break through and open the doors for
everyone else. Do you feel pressure to succeed on behalf of your region?
Keak is a pioneer. He’s someone who’s taken a style that people initially
thought was awkward and off-the-wall and has influenced our genre of
music. Even if he never sells another record or never signs to a major label,
he’s a pioneer. He’s already had his jersey retired. He’s one of those guys
that still plays the game with their jersey in the rafters. We respect him. He’s
the people’s champ and we’re all rootin’ for him. Whatever happens now, it’s
no pressure for him because he’s already done what he’s done. Whether he’ll
become a regional celebrity or a worldwide celebrity, Keak da Sneak will
always be a part of this whole movement in history. As far as me, pressure
is just expectations. Sometimes people expect so much from you that they
begin to hold their ambitions and motivations and put it on your shoulders.
Sometimes they can’t take stuff on themselves and they need an outlet.
Pressure is really an expectation of others, like people who expected E-40 to
take the hyphy movement to the next level. There was a lot of pressure on
him. Whether he took that and digested that himself, that’s on him. I don’t
feel like it’s no pressure on me, cause I’m just doing what I’ve always done
in creating music and being me. Being me has got me this far, so why stop?
There is no pressure.
Who are some of the key players in the Bay movement that the rest of the
country might not be aware of?
There are several other artists, but a lot of the DJs play a big part too.
Regardless of my personal relationship to cats like Big Von Johnson, he has
a big role in the movement because he’s a music director. He really gets the
say-so on what plays and what breaks. Cats like Rick Lee, DJ BackSide, DJ
Juice, and a lot of other DJs have a major influence. There’s an abundance of
talent in California.
Explain what the hyphy movement is, in relation to Bay music in general.
The hyphy movement is something that has people outside of the Bay Area
interested. That’s what they identify with. When you say “hyphy,” you think
of the Bay Area, just like when you say “crunk” you think of the South. That’s
our demographical identification. That’s the genre of music we’re popular
for, but everything coming out of the Bay Area is not hyphy. A lot of cats
definitely don’t participate in the hyphy movement as far as their musical
preference. They don’t do hyphy music, which would be defined as uptempo,
adrenaline-filled music telling you to “go stupid” or “go dumb.”
Do you consider yourself a hyphy artist?
I’m an artist. I’d never downplay the hyphy movement because that’s what’s
helped me get attention. I would never downplay it, degrade it, or talk bad
about it. But I was an artist before hyphy and I will be an artist post-hyphy.
My musical aspirations and influences come from so many other different
regions, I can’t just categorize it as hyphy. I’m not banking on it. If it goes,
it goes, and I’m a part of it. I’m happy. But if the [hyphy movement] doesn’t
go, I’m still able to have relevance.
Why do you think the Bay movement hasn’t fully captured the nation’s attention yet? Too much internal issues?
Just grouping together. I believe in strict codes, like the mob. Whatever
you go through in the mob, you keep that in your own home. I wish other
people had that mentality and were raised on those ideologies. The Bay is
like a mob. Where I’m from in Oakland, it’s a real mob. You can’t be from
Oakland and not be affiliated with certain people. Most of the people that
sit in the circle don’t have nothing to do with music. They just have a say-so
on who’s going to represent their city. So to answer your question, it may
be inner issues that’s going on in the bay Area, but I can’t be the person to
point the finger. We’re a family. Bay Area. Sometimes brothers feud and fight.
Sometimes people don’t always see eye to eye. But at the end of the day, the
camaraderie is what we’re lacking. We have to be able to hit a city with 15
Bay Area artists and an entourage of 50 or 60 cats all from one region. It’s
really nothing to attract somebody to the Bay Area. We don’t have any main
attractions. A person would lose their love for the Bay if they came out there
in search of something. What we can do is take what we do to other people’s
cities and show them what we’re about. If we can just all get together and
be on the same page and go out to these other cities, it would be a beautiful
thing.
Just like the South, the Bay has traditionally not received a lot of media
coverage because all the media outlets are so concentrated in New York and
Los Angeles.
Yeah, it’s hard. The main [cities] right now are New York, Atlanta, L.A., and
Houston. In the Bay Area, there are no main attractions. There are no major
labels in the Bay Area. So we’re stuck tryin’ to get L.A. cats to feel us out. If
you understand the history of California, Northern and Southern California
have never seen eye to eye. Their main thing is that they don’t want the
hyphy movement to be bigger than what it is already. They’re trying to keep
the press to a minimum as much as possible.
Do you think L.A. feels like the Bay Area is going to overshadow what they’re
doing?
A lot of the L.A. cats are embracing it, believe it or not. There’s still deeplyrooted Southern Californians who are never going to see eye to eye with the
Bay. But you’ve got [Los Angeles] DJs like Felli Fel and Homeboy Miguel who
are taking a chance by playing Bay Area music, and it’s definitely helping us
out. Cats like Snoop Dogg and other people who have big influences in Los
Angeles are embracing us, and that’s beautiful. Snoop hopped on my album
just for the love, so that was a beautiful thing. It wasn’t on no industry shit,
it was love. We can just have one sound under that one umbrella. Just like
crunk music – there’s many different sounds under crunk, but they push it as
a movement. You got T.I., you got Jeezy, and they may not consider themselves “crunk” but that’s the umbrella they’re under.
Who else is on your album besides Snoop?
Fabo from D4L, Trey Songz, Too $hort, E-40. Damn, I got so many songs. It’s
going to be a double CD. I’m trying to finalize it.
What about production? Who did you work with?
I got Droopy, E-40’s son. He’s crazy with the beats now and his style is
constantly evolving. I got that boy Traxamillion, who’s known as the “hyphy”
beatmaker. I love his humility because he never tries to take credit for
the [hyphy] sound. He just did him and played his part. I got my in-house
producer Rob-E, who is one of the most phenomenal producers [out there].
I think he is a prodigy. He has a great sound. He’s dope. Shawn T, he did my
single “Ghost Ride It.” We just shot the video for it. It’s crazy. Young L from
the Pack, did the “got my vans on.” Jim Johnson. Me and Jim damn near did
an album together. Our chemistry is crazy. We went down to Miami to do a
couple songs. He’s such a great dude. He’s an all-around good ass dude.
Pitbull’s on the album. I did some work with Alchemist. I don’t know if I’m
going to use it on the album though. I got some big shit. Oh, The Runners,
how could I forget them?
So why don’t you explain who Mac Dre is, the whole yellow bus thing?
Those are two different things. Every region has a martyr for their music to
get their region recognized. Unfortunately New Orleans’ Soldier Slim had
to die, Houston’s DJ Screw… We can go on and on with the martyrs -Biggie,
Eazy-E.
What’s your definition of a martyr though? ‘Cause DJ Screw wasn’t crucified,
per say.
I’m not sayin’ a martyr in Biblical terms like that. What I mean is, anytime
you have someone who has such an impact or influence in an area and a
sound, that’s who you identify with anytime you say that sound. And then
that person dies and people start Chopped & Screwed music. Wasn’t that big?
DJ Screw died and people said he invented Chopped & Screwed music. Man, I
wish he could be here to see what [hyphy] is doin’ now. That’s what I mean
by sayin’ that he’s a ‘martyr.’
OZONE WEST // 15
So Mac Dre is the West Coast’s DJ Screw?
The Bay Area. And he had an influence in a lot of other cities too, like the
Kansas Cities. Even the place that he got killed was in Kansas City, but it
was just an unfortunate situation. But it’s people that really, genuinely love
Dre in Kansas City; just like in the Bay, they love that dude. And it’s a lot of
people in Kansas City who think that the Bay Area is mad at them and rival
like that, but it’s nothing like that. We know who the problem was with.
So what was the situation around his death?
It was unfortunate and ertain things happen. Like I say, certain things in life,
there really are no justifiable situations for it. And it’s sad to say sometimes
we have to take things for what they are. I lost a big brother. His kids lost
a father. His friends lost a best friend for a long time and the Bay Area lost
someone who has a big impact as well as a great representer of the area. He
wouldn’t represent it anywhere.
What was your relationship with him?
Big bro. That’s like Big Bro. You seein’ his lil homie, his lil cutty, somebody
he took in and recognized had talent and realized the situation that I was
in could have been a lot more brighter if I would have been under that right
kin. He gave me an introduction to a different world. He introduced me to
the “hyphy world,” as they would say, although I was already involved in
it. Being from Oakland, that’s just a natural instinct for me to be involved.
But when he brought me in and brought me into Thizz, to the label Thizz, it
was like he opened up my eyes to his fans and other Bay Area fans who may
have slept on me. I’m originally a backpacker. That’s how I really get down.
A lot of it wouldn’t even be possible. A lot of my commercial regional success
wouldn’t be possible, like if that wouldn’t have happened if I didn’t connect
with Dre.
What role does Thizz play in the Bay Area?
We play a big role. We have influence.
You’re signed to them under Atlantic?
Our movement with theirs is like a brotherhood. It’s like a fraternity.
Are you actually signed to the label?
Naw I got my own label – Forever After. But I’m from a Thizz camp and I
represent Thizz. Like Swisha House, they can do they own thing, but they
represent. When you see me, I’m throwin that ‘T’ up. I represent Thizz ‘cause
I know that without them and without the movement, the whole lil hyphy,
yellow bus, Mistah FAB wouldn’t be possible.
So what’s the yellow bus chain for?
I said a line off my single from my last album “Son of a Pimp,” I said, “I do
the dumby retarded and ride the yellow bus.” And what it did was signify being hyphy to the fullest. If the whole purpose of hyphy is going stupid, going
dumb, when you see the yellow bus, that’s the first thing you think.
Have you had any Special Olympics people get mad at you?
Oh no, because I make contributions and donate money to the Special Olympics people. I can show people my contributions every month for the past
three years. Sometimes people are so sensitive to certain issues that they
can’t prevent, but when you realize my real intent behind it and the hidden
intent, it’s what we’ve established over these past few months. Yellow bus is
something that the kids identify with and we were able to get inside of there
minds and not to play mental or minds games with them. What we be pushin’
to them is stayin’ in school. We been pushin’ a real stay in school movement.
And it’s a strong movement because we realize that we have the power and
the Bay Area kids listen to us. They love us. We’re walkin’ fuckin’ icons and
legends. Me and Too $hort go to these schools and talk to these kids weekly
and they just be like mesmerized. And that’s what it’s about. The yellow bus
has been transformed to let them know that it’s cool to go to school.
What are you talking about?
Just basically there are central points in life: staying relevant and somebody
who just don’t expire. Inspire but don’t expire. Certain people, they do certain things in life, not lookin’ at the possibilities that it might not come true.
Everybody can’t be a rapper. Everybody can’t be a ball player. But set a goal
for yourself, a legitimate goal and if you have legitimate ways to accomplish
something, it can be possible. But always realize at the end of the day, the
main thing is always being able to take care of family and provide for you
family. We don’t go in there tryin’ to preach to the kids. We let them know
that the reality of it is, out of 100 kids, we probably gonna reach ten kids.
Fifty gonna listen. Thirty already got their mind set on what they wanna be
in life regardless of what we got to say or not. And then ten of them are
going to be like still kinda undecided. We can either win them over or loose
them. But my purpose is if I can save one kid, that’s better than savin’ none.
And what I mean by savin is showin’ them that they can do the same thing
16 // OZONE WEST
we doin’, just on a different level. It may not be from a rapper point of view,
but it can be on what they see themselves doin, makin it and getting money
to take care of their family, ‘cause that’s all its about. Who gonna take care
of their family at the end of the day?
Do you have any comments on the youth center or what’s the youth center
doin’ for the kids in that area?
The youth center has definitely taken a negative look on Oakland and turned
it into something positive. Recently we just gave out gifts for Christmas.
Thanksgiving we passed out Turkeys. And it doesn’t have to be a holiday.
But when kids go up there and they see cats like Too $hort and they see
cats like E-40, they see cats like myself and any other artist or a person of
importance, when they see these cats in these buildings, that’s inspiration to
them. They like, “damn, they right here in the hood!” And the media comes
up there and their so shocked that this is goin’ on; all this positive stuff right
in the heart of the negativity, that they give us the good publicity and at the
end of the day you just tryin’ to save lives. People is dying at a rapid pace
everywhere and to plan and spot some spots of inspiration anywhere, it’s
better than what it was.
What’s the negativity issue?
The negativity is that every two days somebody dies in Oakland, you know
what I’m sayin’? Numerically that is the statistic. That’s the ratio. Every two
days somebody dies. We don’t have gangs. We have blocks and turfs, it’s the
same thing. At the end of the day it’s black on black violence and its genocide. Regardless how we want to disguise and hide it in, whatever form it
may come in, the end of the day it’s genocide. We are constantly destroying
ourselves and allowing it to happen because there is no one who is willing
to take that chance. Everybody has such a doggy dog mentality in today’s
life that no one cares [about] these kids who’s parents are drug addicts,
who’s parents are incarcerated; they don’t have any positive images to look
upon. They don’t have anyone to see themselves and identify with, except
for the drug dealers, except for the thugs and so when you constantly tell
these kids at this young age, “oh you bad, you this, you that,” somewhere
in their mind they start believing that. And they start living the life like they
bad and after so long of just doing that, they actually become what they’ve
been told all their life. You become this bad person and you’re doing bad
things. You’re doin’ evil things. But as far as the original root of a child’s
innocence, there is no such thing as a ‘bad child.’ They may be mischievous,
[but not bad].
What was your upbringing like?
I have a great mother and the reason I say I have a great mother cause no
matter what my mom did in her life, from the drugs, to hustling, to runnin’
the strip club and doing stuff like that; no matter what she did, she was
always honest. She never hid anything from me and I respect that. Now that
I get older, I respect the fact that she always told me, “This is what it is.”
When I was 13, 14, while other kids was going home and going to school,
I was in the strip club with my momma. All the ball players that play for
the Warriors was in the strip club. I was sittin’ up like, “Damn I got to go to
school in the morning, but mama is allowing me to do this.”
In the earlier stages of my life, I stayed with my grandmama because she
was going thru her drug thing. Even then she was like, “I got to get my life
together. Let me handle my stuff.” Unfortunately, my dad died of AIDS when
I was twelve. But even my dad was a great dude. It was the decisions that
he made, but that don’t mean he’s a bad person. That just questions his
judgment. But he made a few lil bad decisions that cost him his life and its
unfortunate. But as I said earlier, as you grow older certain things happen
for a reason and it made me as strong as I am. With my father’s story, my
mom’s story and learning from lessons my brother, showed me [the way].
He just recently been incarcerated for the last eleven, twelve years. Learning
from that I really seen my road. I was like, “Ok, I can do like my brother did
and end up in jail, do like my dad did and end up dead or do like my mom.”
So I really just combined that story and it made me. I was my mom’s only
child, so I spent a whole lot of time alone as a youngster. I found writing
as an outlet, like to get out how I was feeling, what I was going through
emotionally of being from a single parent home and mom tryin’ to raise a
man from the streets of Oakland. That’s not an easy task, so I definitely have
a respect for her. That’s like one of the hero’s in my life cause I realized it
was hard for her to do the job that she did, but somehow she accomplished
it and got me on the right track. In my music, you hear a lot of that. It’s
not all just hyphy with me. On my album The Yellow Bus Rider it’s the front
of the bus and the back of the bus. It’s a double CD. It’s more like the real
street tales, where I’m from, my life, what’s going on, a lot of my political
views. I’m very politically involved in the community, workin’ with the mayor.
I work with the new elected mayor as far as his ideologies and what he’s
finna do for the youth. [I’m like] the communication gap, because politically a lot of young people don’t want to hear about that. People are scared
‘cause they don’t understand [and] they tend to not pay attention to things
that they don’t relate to. And they relate to me. In the community, if you
tired of thing happenin’, you want change to happen. Then you have to be
involved with all angles. I’m involved with hyphy movement. I’m involved
with the youth center and I’m involved with the mayor election ‘cause I realized that this mayor is the same dude that’s gonna pass a law that’s gonna
stop anything that I wanna do, or he can pass a law that’s gonna propel
anything that I wanna do. I’d rather work with him then work against him so
I can be involved in all aspects that’s going on in my community, cause I am
a reflection of my community.
What’s the details on the album? When is it coming out?
Album comes out March 6th. The video is on MTV Jams.
When you filmed the “Ghostride” video, I heard you weren’t allowed to do
what you initially wanted to do?
Initially what we wanted to do was show what ghostridin’ is. Like I showed
you that day when we was just playin’, hoppin’ out the car, ridin’, get out the
car, let the car roll, dance on top of the car – but with the certain stipulations that a lot of the video companies had, they felt that it was somewhat a
public endangerment, cause some people have messed themselves up doin’
that. You watch a lot of the YouTube videos, you see some people done really
messed themselves up ghost riding. And like I said, it’s not an easy thing to
do. It can be dangerous. I”ll be the first to admit and wont try downgrade
it like, “Oh yeah, nah it ain’t dangerous. It’s cool. It’s safe.” It ain’t safe.
Shootin’ the video I messed myself up, fell, everything. I broke my chain. All
type of stuff. So it can be dangerous. So I understood what they meant by
editing it down. But you could do a disclaimer like “Jackass” cause I’m Fabby
Chan. I do all my own stunts. But certain things can be a lil bit risky when
it deals with stuff like that, ‘cause you know you dealin’ with people’s lives.
We’re a TV generation, a TV culture. We were raised off TV. You got people
who wanna imitate what they see. So we kinda made it commercial a lil bit
as far as the video with the editing and stuff. What I was afraid what it might
do is not fully explain what it is. It’s a street thing. The song ain’t sound
poppy and commercial, but if you really [listen] to the lyrics, I’m really doin’
some street stuff that happened in the streets. I just wanted to be able to
catch that in the video. I’m pretty sure that will be enough where people
will be like, “Ok I see your point. I see what you was doin.” But at the end of
the day, you can say you do it for the hood as long as want to, but the hood
ain’t sellin’ no records. So if you want to make it to where the mainstream
will accept it, then that’s what we gonna do. We check the YouTubes. We got
people everywhere ghost ridin’. It be crazy. We go the internet like going
nuts right now.
Why should the people in the South care about your album?
Music is music, you know? So many people for years were turned off by a
lot of Southern rap and they never really listened to it. But I have been one
of those people who wanna listen. I wanna hear what they talkin’ ‘bout,
because pain is a universal felt substance. It’s something that’s everywhere.
A pain, a story, an idea or something like that, it’s something everybody can
identify with. And so my album is gonna definitely be a tour guide for someone who may wanna come out and show them what it is. At the same time,
I’m bringing a music that’s for them. I incorporate the South in my music.
Shit, sometimes I even sound Southern on certain songs.
I’m always in the South. I’m always in Atlanta. I’m always in Miami. I go
to Houston all the time and fuck with Baby Bash and Chingo Bling. Them
my peoples. Fabo on the album, Jim Johnson, one of the biggest Southern
producers, produced a lot of tracks on the album and Pitbull. It’s a new vibe
going on and this is what we doin’. Music is still gonna be our thing. I ain’t
gonna lie to you. I ain’t about lyin’ on something I ain’t did. I’m telling you
the truth. I’m givin’ you me. I’m a 80’s baby. I’m givin’ you me. I’m representing for all the people that go through what we go through. It’s human
shit! You wanna party, I got party songs on there. You wanna hear some
lyrical shit, I got some lyrical stuff on there. You wanna hear some street
stories, I got all that, along with good music to go behind it.
One thing a person ain’t gonna do is get bored with my album. It’s gonna be
something you can listen to, pick up 6 months later, catch something and say
“Damn I didn’t know he said that.” I’m definitely gonna keep on enlightening cats. Like cats right now, get my Son of a Pimp album and say “Why you
ain’t gonna re-release that? Are you gonna use any songs off that?” I’m like,
“Why?” I’m a creator. I create. I’m an artist. I love artistry. I don’t even listen
to rap too much. You go through my ipod you’ll see some crazy shit. You’ll be
like, “Who’s Esthero?” I love Esthero. She’s so dope to me. I wouldn’t necessarily call her alternative, but it’s a different type of music. Bjork… this is the
stuff I listen to that’s in my ipod, that people when they see they wouldn’t
expect me to listen to. I’m open to change and that’s all I hope people do
with my album. Be open to change. Just listen to it. Don’t turn it down just
because you think that you already know what it is. “Oh that’s all that hyphy
shit. I don’t want to hear that!” I’m definitely a book that can never be
judged by its cover.
People see me, they see the yellow bus chain. They see the grill. They see
all type of shit when I’m in rapper mode. But when I sit back and get into
intellectual mode on a person, the person will open their eyes to a different
light, like, “Whoa Ron, I never knew you was that deep.” It’s always two
sides of a coin. Some are just focused on the head. What about the tail? I’m
just tryin’ to bring different sides. I got a lot of people who support me. Too
$hort? That’s the Godfather. And being from Oakland if you don’t come under
that mob, you can’t rep Oakland. You cannot rep Oakland if you not in that
mob. And they inducted me. They show me, like big street cats, the lil D’s,
the jocks, these are real people that got nothing to do with music. The Bill
Haneys, the real street cats who got influence and they done told me, “It’s
all you, lil bruh. You do what it do. Don’t let us down.” That “don’t let us
down” is serious ‘cause it goes to the pens, to the streets; it goes everywhere. It’s some major people in the city of Oakland that people don’t know.
The people behind the Jeezys, behind the Rick Rosses; it’s some big players
that really don’t put it out there. It’s the mob. It’s just certain shit. Anything
happen to him he just gonna make certain calls. It’s a real mob. I’m telling
you, Oakland is like skull and bones, the coldest fraternity. //
“I’d never downplay
the hyphy movement
because that’s what’s
helped me get
attention. I would never
downplay it, degrade it,
or talk bad about it. But
I was an artist before
hyphy and I will be an
artist post-hyphy. My
musical aspirations and
influences come from
so many other different
regions, I can’t just
categorize it as hyphy.”
.
B
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A
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F
h
a
t
s
i
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y
t
i
C
e
h
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f
o
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c
n
i
Pr
OZONE WEST // 17
K
C
A
B
G
N
I
T
FIGH
WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM BAY AREA RAP STARS,
OAKLAND’S YOUTH UPRISING IS SUCCESSFULLY WAGING
WAR ON TEENAGE VIOLENCE & PROSTITUTION BY
OFFERING BETTER OPTIONS & A POSITIVE ENVIRONMENT
WORDS // JULIA BEVERLY
PHOTOS // D-RAY & JULIA BEVERLY
Y
outh UpRising, a 25,000-square-foot youth center in East Oakland, has
over 2,000 members between the ages of 13-24. The facility opened in
2005 and has quickly become a symbol of positivity and hope in a community that desperately needed it. YU not only provides youth with mental
and emotional stability, but also offers state-of-the-art computer labs and
recording facilities, career counseling, a health center, a daycare and GED
program for teenage parents, and many other things.
art in the building. It’s really vibrant, and to get young people to come you
really need to try to make it the best.
The phrase “youth center” brings to mind a cold, boring place with a couple
couches and a TV and maybe a gym –
And an old-ass pool table.
Obviously it takes financing to run this type of operation. How is the youth
center funded?
It took a tremendous amount of work for Alameda County. They built the
center for around $2 million. They felt that they needed to do something
about the violence in the community and the county stepped up and put the
money not only into the building and the land but also $6 million to renovate the building. In most areas of the country they have buildings like this
and could pool their resources and do something like this for the community.
And this isn’t just altruistic; it’s not just us doing something nice for young
people. This could actually feed people by helping to propel an explosion of
talent and develop their creativity. In this instance, the county government
gave us some money, but this could be a model for what other people could
do in other parts of the country.
Exactly. So first of all, maybe you can describe the facility and explain how
it’s different from people’s perceptions.
The center is huge. It’s 25,000 square feet and it’s vibrant. It’s alive. It’s more
like a TV set than a youth center. There’s colors, there’s equipment, there’s
If it’s being funded by the county, why aren’t some of these same ideas being utilized in the public school system?
Well, what’s harder about the public school system is that you’re on the
county’s property and you’re a nonprofit. You have to deal with “No Child
The center has attracted a number of Bay Area artists who have donated
their time and connections to help offer positive career alternatives. YU’s
Executive Director, Olis Simmons, has earned the kids’ respect through tough
love, genuine empathy, and a take-no-shit attitude. Here, she explains why.
18 // OZONE WEST
K
Youth UpRising’s “mother” and Executive Director Olis
Simmons (center) with Too $hort and E-40 at their
annual Christmas gift giveaway
Left Behind” and the State Educational Board and the unions. We’re a
non-profit and we don’t have to deal with [certain] people. I could fire
them. As a schoolteacher you’re trapped by unions. People could perform poorly and you wouldn’t even care much about it because you’re
stuck with them. So I think people [in the public school systems] want
to apply this kind of thing but they’re trapped by civil service. They’re
trapped by unions and TV stations and large publications. They forget
that this is supposed to be about the kids.
How did you get involved with Youth UpRising? Have you been there
since the beginning?
When I entered, the plan was to do something for young people. We
were looking at the architectural design of the building and trying to
get some clarity about what we were going to do. So I was the mother,
the person who gave birth to it. I feel really fortunate to have been
there at the right place at the right time. I was able to do the dirty
work of actually putting it together, getting the money and hiring the
staff. My resilience to do this comes from my commitment to young
people. I come from a place of devastation and I was able to make
smart choices. The difference between success and failure isn’t about
the circumstances you’re born into but the choices you make. I want to
tell people that they can be leaders. You can make certain choices and
have a different life and I’m happy to be contributing to that.
SANTA’S
HYPHY HELPERS
Bay Area Artists Team Up to Bring Holiday Cheer
Bay Area rap legends Too $hort, E-40, The Hieroglyphics, and Mistah F.A.B
joined forces to play Santa to over 300 youth this holiday season. Gifts were
personally given out by the artists at a party hosted by the Youth UpRising (YU) Center in Oakland, CA on December 22, 2006. Guests were treated
to gifts, food, performances and inspirational words from the Bay’s most
popular hyphy artists.
The event was emceed by YU’s “RiseUP Radio” broadcasting class with a little
help from Too $hort. Various performers graced the stage but the highlight
of the evening was performances, showcasing the work of YU members,
which included dancing, beat-making, DJing, and singing. The rappers
took time to spread some game to the enraptured crowd. Too $hort urged
them not to aspire to live the illusion of a BET video life, saying, “The girls,
cars and jewelry are all rented. Only the work is real.” E-40 spoke on the
importance of having an education, and Mistah F.A.B. challenged attendees
to appreciate their families.
Presents were given to YU Members to celebrate their participation in
programming and for their academic, artistic, and personal achievements.
They received magazines, CDs, and Mac Dre bobbleheads, and nearly 200 YU
Members got high-end Starbury gear fits, to promote the Starbury “Robin
Hood” vision (www.starbury.com). To top it all off, Corner’s Café, YU’s own inhouse youth-run cafe, served up generous portions of home-style soul food
to over 400 guests.
YU has emerged as a pivotal hub of Bay Area hip-hop culture since opening.
This event is a part of a movement to build productive partnerships with hiphop artists across the country. Olis Simmons, YU’s Executive Director says,
“Working with these artists, YU reaches and helps young people in a way that
more traditional organizations can’t.” Many exciting plans are in the works
for the New Year, when several prolific artists will become a permanent part
of the YU family. In January, Too $hort will launch a label with YU featuring
youth artists. In March, Too $hort and other Bay legends will host a “Rock
the Runway” show as a fundraiser for YU.
The generous contributions of the main sponsors - Up All Nite Crew, Sick Wid
It Records, and Hieroglyphics - were aided by Thizz Entertainment, Brandon
J. Peters of XXL, Joseph Patel of MTV News, Tony Ng of 106 KMEL, Tresa
Sanders of TreMedia, DJ Backside and SMC Recordings. The nights festivities were captured by D-Ray, the Bay’s unquestioned hyphy photographer,
who snapped the who’s-who of the Bay in attendance, including B-Legit,
The Pack, Zion-I, Traxamillion, Mac Mall, Ray Luv, DJ Vlad, Clyde Carson, The
Jacka, Bavgate, Dem HoodStarz, Gorilla Pits, J-Diggs, G. Archer, Tuff, Ray
Rydah, Pretty Black, Miami da Most, Kilo Kurt, and more.
It seems the hyphy movement has found its most important purpose: promoting community giving. Let’s hope this powerful trend sweeps the nation.
You said you’re from a place of devastation; are you originally from
Oakland?
I was born and raised in Manhattan. I grew up in East River Projects,
one of the worst housing projects in New York. I grew up part time there
and part time in an upper middle class neighborhood. I come from a long
line of hustlers, so I was in the life.
Did you come to Oakland specifically to work with Youth UpRising?
No, i moved from Manhattan to Oakland in ’84 cause I hate the cold. It’s
a different scale her. In New York you could be phenomenal and no one
would notice. But in Oakland and the Bay Area, if you have a New York
hustle, you can really make a change and a difference.
What is the criteria for kids to become members of Youth UpRising and
what are the rules they have to abide by?
We accept people 13 to 24 who are residents of Alameda County and have
a willingness to become a member. You have to come in and fill out a
membership application. If you’re under 18 you have to get a parent or
guardian to sign. You have to abide by the house rules. The house rules
are simple: respect others and respect the house. There are a couple of
other things like no gambling and no getting high on property and things
like that, but becoming a member is pretty easy.
How important is it for the kids to respect you or have a healthy fear of
you in order for Youth UpRising to be successful?
In an environment like this, young people have a long track record of
how unreliable and scandalous adults are. Adults break their word and
fuck them over. You’ve got grown-ass people trying to have sex with our
babies; just scandalous. When you come into that type of devastating,
depressing environment, you have to have integrity. It has to be clear
to the young person that you care about them. Once they know that you
care about them, they’ll tolerate a tremendous amount from you. I’m not
taking no shit from them. They know that if I’m mean to them or impose
rules on them, it’s not for me, it’s for them. I would never impose something on them that’s not in their best interest. I leave my purse out, I give
them rides home, I do all kinds of things that put me in situations where
I’m one-on-one with them. The young people know that I love them.
They know that I’m not a crooked bitch. Anything I do for them is out of
love, it’s not because I’m an easy mark.
Do you believe the theory that kids become what they’re expected to
become?
No question about that. The purpose of being young is to discover who
you are. When they’re around people whose expectations of them are
really low, you’ll achieve that lower expectation. I hold them to a different standard and say, “I know you’re capable of doing better. I’m really
disappointed. I’m gonna leave, and when I come back, it better be fixed.”
Some kids grow up with people always telling them, “You ain’t shit. You
ain’t never gonna be shit,” so they believe it. You’re always looking for
somebody that expects more; they want you to see something in them
that they don’t yet see in themselves. That’s the magic of what we do.
The beauty is when they see themselves through our eyes, and we believe
they’re capable of greatness. That’s why they keep coming back.
What is the biggest problem that the youth at YU are dealing with? Drugs,
OZONE WEST // 19
violence?
Oh my God. With violence, you have old-fashioned
beatdowns, shootings, police brutality. The place we
serve is one of the most violent places in America. You’re
dealing with chronic problems with violence. Oakland is
a place where you can be mistaken for somebody else or
just be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Violence is
a constant issue for them. But there’s also an explosion
of teen prostitution with both males and females. The
level of exploitation is – let’s be honest – it’s the artists.
Everybody wants to be a pimp. In today’s pop culture,
with the booty-shaking video hoes, the message that we
send is that it’s not about your values. It’s about how you
look. And the easiest step from that is to get money from
it. So there’s violence, there’s sexual exploitation. They
can’t get any real good paying jobs. The school systems
are failing them and they feel trapped economically. And
sexually, even if they’re not in prostitution,
the amount of sexually transmitted diseases
is scary. Some of them will just have sex with
anybody. There is just very little instances of
hope around them. There are a lot of problems besides violence that people don’t want
to talk about. There’s homelessness, and the
number of kids in the foster care system and
the juvenile justice system is just staggering. It’s not like they can just go home to
their mama. They can’t go home to a family.
I don’t think people understand the state of
hopelessness that these young people are in.
(above) Everything
at YU is focused
on positivity,
even down to the
bathrooms’ “Wall
of Perception,”
featuring tiles with
various words &
phrases; (right) The
Pack, who signed to
Jive off the strength
of their single
“Vans,” recording at
YU; (below) Oakland
rapper Too $hort in
front of the youth
center with a few
members and YU’s
Executive Director,
Olis Simmons
You commented that a lot of artists perpetuate negative stereotypes, but you also have
a lot of artists involved with YU and even
performing at YU.
Well, yes. Artists are in a position where they
can help their community, but sometimes
they’re not mature enough to reach that
level. So they’re “pimpin’” and perpetuating
that lifestyle. Also, because of the way our
airwaves are controlled and the people who
decide which records get played, rappers feel
compelled to perpetuate that lifestyle even
though that may not be their lifestyle. They
want to get [radio] spins. I have relationships with some artists that aren’t even living
like that. That’s just the reality of mainstream music. What’s also true about
rappers is that certain artists recognize that this is a business. Too $hort
is a shining example of that. There is a common misinterpretation of him.
People just look at him like Too $hort. They get caught up trying to live in a
BET video but they don’t realize that it’s all an illusion. He says that the girls
are fake, the cars are fake, the jewels are fake, and the only thing that’s real
is the work. So how do you get access to artists that are really committed
to helping their community? How do find artists that are willing to tell the
truth? The veterans will do it. And even if [the kids] aren’t in the [music]
business, let them know realistically what success is about. The streets ain’t
got no love for you. To tell the truth about [the music industry] breaks the
illusion. There’s no quick fix to success, and the artists can tell that story
much more powerfully than someone like me. And to be willing to dispel
those myths will earn you honor, respect, and pride. That type of message is
invaluable. That’s why I love $hort for that shit.
When I visited YU you were getting ready to film an anti-prostitution commercial and I told Too $hort he should be the spokesman. I was joking, but
seriously, isn’t it a contradiction if you’re fighting teen prostitution and at
the same time affiliated with artists who promote the opposite?
It is ironic. There are two answers to that question. One is broad and the
other is very specific. The broad one is that most artists themselves are
young people. I’m 46, so I’m way older than y’all. Let’s not forget the power
that these artists have to influence other people. Let’s not forget to support
these artists as they themselves are maturing. Knowing that they have that
power to help young people, you would be remiss not to support them as
they’re maturing and help them use that power well. So that’s the broad
answer. More specifically, I don’t think I’ve ever met [Too] $hort. I’ve always
20 // OZONE WEST
talked to Todd. When he first came to YU, he said, “This is the neighborhood I grew up in, and the kids that are in this building, I owe a large part
of my success to their parents.” He felt an obligation to give back, and you
can’t teach somebody that. Either they’ve got it or they don’t. He felt that
it’s his duty to give back to the community and he can be a role model for
other artists, which I think is a very important role for him to play. And even
aside from his obligation to the community, he thinks about his legacy. He
doesn’t want to go out being known as the “Biiiiitch!” guy. People might
not be accepting of who $hort is because on every album, he talks about
“Biiiiitch!” and people have come to expect that from him. But why can’t he
be a producer and a promoter of other artists just because he has a role to
play? And the value of their message is in no way diminished. So I think he’s
a person that’s a veteran in his field and is committed to giving back to his
community. I think the beauty is in the irony. Another example is that we
shot part of E-40’s “Tell Me When To Go” video at the center. A lot of people
thought I was out of my mind because the song is about a sideshow, right?
One kid said to me, “What a mind fuck that you could take a sideshow and
turn it into a violence prevention intervention!” And that really is the beauty
of the center. It’s not about judging people, it’s about meeting people where
they are and extracting the value out of that. If that means pushing something that’s broader than what people would expect from an artist like $hort,
that’s all good.
You’ve mentioned Too $hort and E-40. Who are some of the other artists that
have been involved with YU?
You know, we’ve had a bunch of artists that have come through. I think $hort
is certainly the most popular with the teens and its our deepest relationship.
We’ve got a deep relationship with [Mistah] FAB, who has come to the center
“WHEN KIDS ARE AROUND PEOPLE WHO HAVE LOW EXPECTATIONS OF THEM, THEY’LL ACHIEVE THAT LOW
EXPECTATION. I HOLD THEM TO A DIFFERENT STANDARD AND SAY, ‘I KNOW YOU’RE CAPABLE OF DOING BETTER.
SOME KIDS GROW UP WITH PEOPLE ALWAYS TELLING THEM, ‘YOU AIN’T SHIT. YOU AIN’T NEVER GONNA BE SHIT,’
SO THEY BELIEVE IT. YOU’RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR SOMEBODY THAT EXPECTS MORE; THEY WANT YOU TO SEE
SOMETHING IN THEM THAT THEY DON’T YET SEE IN THEMSELVES. THAT’S THE MAGIC OF WHAT WE DO. THE BEAUTY
IS WHEN THEY SEE THEMSELVES THROUGH OUR EYES, AND WE BELIEVE THEY’RE CAPABLE OF GREATNESS.”
a lot. Around Christmastime he always throws a party, and is just a mainstay
around the center and is always willing to be here. We’re looking into forming a deeper partnership with E-40. Really, the who’s who of the Bay Area
comes through and shows us love.
Are most of the career-oriented programs that you have geared towards the
music industry, or what types of equipment are available at the center?
Music’s just one of them. We focus on media arts; film, graphic design, that’s
just one part. We have a café that’s geared towards helping young people get
into the culinary field. The food service industry is the second largest industry in the country. We really are all about jobs, jobs, jobs for young people.
There is a career education center that is all about helping young people
get into and out of high school or into a GED program. There’s career paths,
whether it’s construction or childcare or a technical field. We help them get
into college; a two-year or four-year program is what we’re pushing for.
There’s also an alternative high school on-site. There’s a whole career education aspect, and then there’s a physical education aspect. There’s a dance
studio, the media arts, the performance arts. There’s a film class – begin-
ning, intermediate, and advanced. The music side covers the whole array.
[The music industry] is like a baseball team. Not everybody’s the pitcher.
Not everybody’s the batter. Who does marketing? Who does promotions? Who
does management? We push them to think about that. Not everybody has
to be the artist. It’s all about educating young people. Who is really making
money in the music game? If most artists get $.15 off each $1 [from their
CD sales], who gets the other $.85? You need to actually think about owning
a label and doing digital recording. Where’s the ringtone money? There’s a
whole industry on the music side just like there is on the film side. We’re not
necessarily trying to push young people into those careers, but giving them
the skills they need regardless of what field they decide to go into.
And you have counselors or advisers that are available to meet with them on
a one-on-one basis?
Absolutely. There’s a team that develops one-on-one strategies and asks
them, “What’s your plan? What’s your dream? What are your aspirations in
life?” And then it’s, “This is where you’re at. Where do you want to go? How
are we going to get you there?” For young people, the thing is to get them
out of high school and get them in college. For some young people, their
housing situation is so bad that they’re getting their ass beat. There’s no
public school system to fix that, right? But there are some things we can do.
We can give you a job, you can give your mom a little money to keep her
off your back. We can bring her into the center and talk about how we’re
going to help her if she’s at fault. And we’re going to talk about getting into
college, because college is four years of free room and board. We try to get
kids to see that college is an escape route. So whether you’re interested in
being in music or being an occupational therapist or being a chef, it’s really
all about finding and implementing a plan to get you where you want to be.
And music is a part of that. It’s the sexy, groupie part. It’s part of the illusion. It’s the “I’m gonna be Too $hort, I’m gonna be a 16-album-veteran and
I’m gonna get paid.” And that’s true for very few people. That’s not to say
that you can’t pick up all the skills along the way. There are a lot of kids that
are truly gifted and talented but are not going to make it [as rappers], so we
also provide them with other alternatives. //
To find out more about Youth UpRising or to make a donation visit www.
youthuprising.org or call 510-777-9909.
(left) E-40 with Youth UpRising members; (below) YU members decorate the walls of the
center with photos and tell their stories
OZONE WEST // 21
“
“
s on some
The Bay was alway e out with
grimy stuff. We camelry, the
the chains, the jew basically
ice and all that. So are folall these cats now up on it.
lowing and pickin’
KAFANI
OVIN’
DOIN’ ITli M
Early
Words by N. A
Photos by D-Ray
22 // OZONE WEST
I
hear they’re fussin’ over you out there, man.
What did you do to get all these people talkin’
about you? You doin’ it “Fassst (Like A Nascar).”
Yeah, I just really put it out there. That’s a little
lingo we put out. It started in East Oakland, so we
just put it out there and the streets got on it.
But I know it’s a little bit deeper than that.
I mean, fast is almost like, it’s like hyphy. It’s
another form of hyphy. We fast. Everything is fast. I
tear my money off fast. I go fast. That’s what everybody on. They on that fast movement. It’s another
deviation of hyphy. Feel me?
I do. That’s the single, right?
Yup, with Keak Da Sneak.
Y’all were supposed to be Keak’s artists at one
point, right? What happened with that?
We still workin’ with him, but we really just deviating right now, kinda doin’ our own thing. We still
be doin’ stuff with him or whatever, but we really
just branchin’ off right now doin’ us. Everything still
good though. We still workin’ with him on projects,
but lately the motion has been about me gettin’ my
album and my mixtapes done.
Was it strictly a business decision from one side or
the other or was it that you just felt an urge to get
your own music out there without so much assistance from him per say?
He put his name on it and vouched for us and that
really helped us get knowledge, cause we had been
doin’ it for a number of years. We just wasn’t really
gettin’ the credit due. We wasn’t gettin’ acknowledgement from radio and stuff like that and basically we started doin’ a lot of stuff with Keak and he
really put us on.
I’m sure a gang of rappers have approached him
and not had the same amount of success you all did,
so what was it about y’all that made it work?
It was just the conversation [off top], feel me? We
just vibed. Everything we did was good. Keak really
don’t deal with a lot of artists as far as shows and
dealin’ with them, so he just really just took us under his wing. It was right when that “Super Hyphy”
song came out. So it was real big to be a part of
that, doin’ shows [as his] hype man, all of that.
How did y’all meet him?
Yeah, we met him on a business level, tryna do some
work with him and do some songs with him. So we
had got him on a song and hooked up that way.
From there we just vibed and kept on doin’ it, kept
on workin’ with each other. From the business we
formed a friendship.
You did a two or three year bid, right? Were y’all the
Babyface Assassins before your bid?
Originally the Babyface Assassins started before I
went to jail. We actually put an album out, doin’ a
lot of collaborations with a lot of different artists.
We did a song with Too $hort, and Coo Coo Cal when
he was hot and had that “In My Projects” song. We
ended up puttin’ it out with Select-O-Hits and I
ended up gettin’ locked up. When I got out my boy
who had been workin’ with us, we came together
and we just formed the Babyface Assassins, ‘cause
me and my brother had fell out.
What happened with you and your brother?
He wanted to do his own thing, ya feel me? We still
work together. Like the single that we did the video
for, “Hyphy Ill,” he produced that. But we still work
together. We workin’ with each other right now.
Is he on the production end or is he rappin’ too?
He still rap too. On my album right now, he on a lot
of songs. We been really bondin’ and doin’ it, but
you know how cats wanna do they own thing. So he
doin’ his own thing and I’m doin’ my own thing. It’s
like it wasn’t just fly workin’ together. Even though
we family, we wasn’t seein’ eye to eye on certain
situations as far as how we was flowin’ with it. He
went his way and I went my way. He actually on that
“Fassst (Like A Nascar)” song. He did the last verse.
So yo pa’tna came in kinda on the tail end of your
relationship with your brother.
I mean, my pa’tna had always been dealin’ with us.
To keep it real with you, Babyface Assassins in the
beginning was like a clique. We just was all rappin’
tryna come up and we put the group project out. Me
and my boy, we just really clicked. When I was down
he was writin’ me, shootin’ me his lyrics, showin’
me that he was gettin’ dope and doin’ his thing. So
basically what ended up happening was I had a case
in New Orleans and he ended up bailing me out up
outta there. Ever since then we ain’t looked back.
We been doin’ it. It’s still Babyface Assassins, but I’m
just doin’ my thing too.
So you were down in New Orleans and in the Bay?
Yup. I caught my case in LA County and I was
out there and they transferred me through the
penitentiary system to San Quentin, Delano, and
then I finally moved to Jamestown. I had a case in
Louisiana so basically I was supposed to get out and
they extradited me there. They was tryna give me
like four more years and then I bailed out and I just
had to end up payin’ ‘em some money. I ended up
payin’ my way out of it.
What were you down for?
I was initially down on a probation violation that
I had did when I was like 18. You know how it is. I
was young and I was like, “Okay, they gave me a
slap on the wrist.” They gave me like a year probation, but I didn’t really understand what probation was. I moved down to Louisiana, but I wasn’t
supposed to leave the state. So when my P.O. found
out I went out of state or whatever, I had violated.
So I was on the run for like three years. The whole
time I was doin’ the initial first Babyface Assassins
project (Ruby RedEye) I was on the run and I had
just got caught up in LA. In the process I had got
caught up in Louisiana doin’ some dumb stuff, but
I’m good now.
I was going to come out and make it happen. You
gotta realize, before I got locked up, the Bay wasn’t
on. It was straight independent, no radio play, no
nuthin’. So my whole thing was, “How I’ma make it
happen?” I knew it was about networkin’, but the
whole time I was down I was just writin’ and just
keepin’ myself motivated on how I was going to
get out and network and do the business end. I’m a
smart cat. I went to college for a minute, but I just
ended up goin’ the wrong way. I just had plans of
gettin’ out and gettin’ on my feet. I got a truckin’
company and everything. I was reading different
magazines and I saw different cats like, the Bay is
back. I was in jail and I was hearin’ Messy Marv and
Keak on the radio, so I just decided that I was gon’
smash. And that’s what I did.
What was the first thing you did when you got out?
My boy picked me up – damn, man. The first thing I
did? [laughs] First thing I did was went and messed
with my girl. That’s the first thing I did. First thing I
did, I had to go get some man.
She waited on you, huh? That’s a beautiful thing. So
what was it that really got y’all poppin’ in the Bay,
cause it’s a gang of niggas rappin’.
It’s a gang of cats, but DJ Rick Lee kinda got us
poppin’. He was the first DJ to really play us at
5 o’clock and just broke our record. A lot of cats
weren’t really givin’ us a chance, you feel me? So he
gave us a chance by throwin’ us on and he breaks
records out here, so once he got on it, everybody
started respectin’ it.
I heard the females got y’all poppin’.
Yup, yup, you right. You been doin’ your research.
Yup, before all that it was the females. You know
what, ‘cause on the cover of the album I had my
shirt off. I showed my bony chest, so that’s what
really, really got us on. Everybody seen the flyer and
wanted to know, “Where he at?”
Right. “Whose bony chest is this?”
That was my bony chest. Yeah, before we got on the
radio and everything, people started hearing us on
that level. We got the females on lock. That’s what
we do got.
So what happened with you and your pa’tna?
Shit, nothin’ really happened. I had just been tryna
do me. At the time, he doin’ his thing and I’m doin’
my own thing. It ain’t like we separate like that. I
just wanted to do a solo project. Feel me? Just to
see if I could do it by myself one time. He workin’
on his little solo mixtape too. We finna put an album
out together too. He had went out of town to Alabama for a few months so since he been out there I
just been recordin’.
I hear that beyond all the game and the hype, all
these rappers wanna truly be like y’all.
Exactly, man. In the Bay it was always on some
grimy stuff. When we came out we came with the
chains, the jewelry, the ice and all that. So basically
all these cats now are following and pickin’ up on
it. To me it’s turning into a big competition to where
I’m tryna get a bigger chain than him. But we didn’t
start out like that. We just had our image. That was
us. We always been fly. We started a trend. If you
look back about two years ago, the only people
you’ll see with chains is Yukmouth and E-40. The
rest of the cats didn’t have npthin’ on.
I heard something had jumped off with him.
Oh, you heard the rumor mills, huh? [laughs] Yeah,
it’s some little rumors in the street that I don’t
really wanna talk about, but yeah, it is. But we still
workin’. You feel me?
Right. But typically it happens the other way
around. First you get the money, then the chain. But
y’all did it reverse. So how’d y’all do that?
I got a truckin’ business and Kash do real estate. But
mainly hustlin’. It’s all a hustle.
So he just gone for a minute then huh?
Yeah, he out the way for a minute. He tucked for a
minute. But we’ll see him back shortly. So I had to
just do my own thing for a minute.
What’s the name of the album?
Money is My Motivation, presented by Clinton Sparks
and DJ Rick Lee.
Jail will do a lot to motivate a nigga to do different
things, but was there anything else that served as
motivation to keep you going, knowing that when
you got out this is what you were going to do?
I had a plan, you feel me? Basically I had nothing
but time to plan and think and strategize on how
Who are some of the artists you’ve got featured on
the album? And what are you talkin’ bout?
I got Keak, F.A.B., Quinn, Freeway, Clyde Carson, it’s
a number of Bay artists on there. It’s a few hyphy
joints on there. We got a few joints on there for the
ladies. It’s well-rounded. Hustle music. It’s different
stuff on there. It ain’t all ‘Fassst.’ //
OZONE WEST // 23
A
I
N
R
O
F
I
L
CA //j diggs
BEAR
Words: N. Ali Early
// Photo: D-Ray
F
or ten years he dwelled in a cell no bigger
than the communal bathroom in the million
dollar mansion he now calls home. An acknowl-
edged mastermind behind the once famed Romped Out Productions, J
Diggs is known throughout the Bay Area as the originator of the nationwide
phenomenon “Ghostridin’.” Close as anybody was to Mac Dre, the fallen soldier whose charismatic antics created the Bay’s most celebrated movement
ever, Diggs, President of Thizz Nation Entertainment, has the all-inclusive
duty of carrying on a label that his comrade never saw materialize completely.
Various sources report that he’s the shit in the Bay, but unlike a Keak Da
Sneak or Mistah F.A.B. (also a Thizz Nation artist), Diggs’ buzz is relegated
to the streets and/or word of mouth promotion. Given his allegiance to the
only place he’s ever called home, this Bay Area underground legend could
continue to eat big steaks and lobster dinners for the remainder of his rap
existence. The reality though, is Thizz is meant to blow up. Among other
majors, Def Jam and Shady are courting not only Diggs for his ability to sell
records as a solo artist, but his entire label on some Cash Money type shit.
While he anticipates the release of his third solo album J Diggs.com (Both
24 // OZONE WEST
“I
sta
on
lik
[t
fr
Sides of the Gate, California Dreamin’ II) Diggs granted OZONE an exclusive to
chop game about the hyphy movement and all things Thizz.
In the months leading up to you coming home, did you know that this is what
you wanted to do, or did you have an option as you saw it?
Diggs: It wasn’t about what I wanted to do when I came home. This was
damn near it. I didn’t really have no choice. It was like, ‘You can fuck with
this music, or you can go back to the streets basically.’ Feel me? I’m like 30
years old and I ain’t never had a job in my life. I never worked at a place
of employment. I never flipped a burger, never waited a table. I never did
nothin’ that concerned workin’ for nobody. But I’ve always had pretty much
everything I wanted. I just knew how to get around and do what I needed to
do.
Did being locked up do anything to kill your dreams of rap success or did it
work the other way around?
When I was incarcerated this music shit was more or less a dream. If I ever
got another shot, what would I do and how would I do it? I was lucky enough
to get another shot, but I basically was motivated more or less by the people
that I knew that was in the game. From the Spice 1’s to the E-40’s to the Mac
Mall’s to Mac Dre going back home. So my motivation was just being there
and really just opening up magazines and seeing niggas I grew up with,
dudes I was in the studio with… it was like, “Wow, if I ever get a shot at it
again, at least I know I got an avenue I can go run at.” So when I got out
that’s what it was. Me and Dre talked about this a long time ago.
How difficult is it to maintain your focus as an artist, seeing that you’ve never
parked a car or waited a table and you have all these other options to make
money in your face on the daily?
It’s hard Bro. I ain’t gon’ lie. I’ll be the first to admit when I came home I
found myself caught up in some situations that could’ve had me back in
the penitentiary. So it ain’t like all that shit just instantly disappeared and I
was automatically a rap genie. I had to come back out and once again take
certain steps and go through certain trials and tribulations to get back here.
I understand the block and having to go back to the block. But I put myself
in a situation where it was going to have to be either one or the other. I’ve
been there and I know the streets will come get you. I know that that shit is
only so long. I felt like if I could get out here I would take advantage of the
first little crease and I was gon’ mob. I know that I’m not one of the greatest
rappers out here but I do know that I can make it happen out here.
What was the transition like coming back in terms of getting your rhythm
back?
It was a cold transition. I ain’t gon’ lie. I didn’t even know what a carpool
lane was when I came back. That’s how long I was gone. From 1992 to 2002,
that’s a helluva change. A lot of shit changes in the world. But I feel like I
was pretty much grounded and pretty much structured. I’m one of those guys
who can pick up fast, so when I first came home I kept my mouth closed and
kept my eyes open. I eased back into the situation.
gas and you get out of your car and you got your hand on the door? You gotcha hand on the steerin’ wheel and you pushin’ it? Well, this is where it came
from. It originally came from a muthafucka doin’ that, pushin’ his car. It was
out of gas and he pushed it and let it coast a little bit. He lets it go and he’s
walkin’ next to the car. I took it to a [different] level. I started lettin’ the car
go, jumpin on top of the car, ridin’ the car like it’s a surfboard. That’s what
[the term] ghostridin’ comes from.
Tell us a little history about the label itself and how it evolved over the years.
Before it was Thizz it was Romp. It was Romp Records. We changed the name
to give a whole new look to the label, to give a whole new feel, to give ‘em
something else to talk about because we had got so much negative publicity
behind the Romper Room and the feds. So we try to give a whole new look, a
whole new atmosphere. Dre came with the new sound, the new thing to party
to and we called it ‘Thizz music.’ When you dance to our music it feels like you
on a drug. So we came with this new sound, this new hyphy shit and the Bay
Area jumped on it.
So in a sense, Thizz Nation is kind of responsible for branding the Bay.
We built this whole thing. It’s carried across the country, state to state and
everybody’s throwin’ they T’s (for Thizz) up. Everybody got they thizz face
on. Everybody goin’ stupid, gettin’ hyphy, ghostwalkin’ they Lo’s and bottom
line, this is where it came from. Right here, the home, the Crest, Mac Dre, Thizz
Entertainment and we was responsible for givin’ the country a look. Showed
em ghostwalkin’ for the first time on DVD. I did that. Dre gave em the thizz
dance and showed em the thizz face… that was all out of our crew. So right
now, that’s what the Bay is made of.
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“I took iltettotina’ [the car go, jumaprin
started of the car, ridin’ the c hat
on top a surfboard. That’s w
like it’s m] ghostridin’ comes
[the ter
from.”
Did you practice your craft while you were locked down?
I rapped the whole time I was in the system. I went to eight different
penitentiaries and every penitentiary grounds I went on they was beggin’
for me to get down at the shows and shit. So I stayed on top of my game.
Once I rocked a show in California then I rocked a penitentiary in New York
and rocked a penitentiary in Pennsylvania and rocked a penitentiary in North
Carolina, I knew I probably had something special ‘cause I was dealin’ with
muthafuckas from all over the world.
You didn’t have Dre back that long after you got out. Considering how much
of the hyphy movement was his brainchild, what are your thoughts on how
it has taken off and how it’s been credited to certain people who weren’t
necessarily involved from jump?
It’s crazy, but that’s the game man. It happens everywhere my dude. It’s like
how the boy Lil Jon went down to Tennessee and seen these Three Six Mafia
boys workin’ they gas cans and workin’ that crunk shit and next thing you
know, he had crunk music down in Atlanta. That shit happens. It happens to
the best of them and sometimes you gotta take the bitter with the sweet. It’s
like any other legendary story. We had to see 50 Cent (the rapper) before we
could learn about the other 50 Cent – the real 50 Cent. With Dre being dead if
the hyphy movement hadn’t [gone] to another level, it would still be a lot of
muthafuckas still sleep on the real Dre and where it really came from. I’m not
mad at the dudes that takin’ it and runnin’ with it. It’s just like ghostwalkin’. I
invented that because I got a Range Rover and I couldn’t figure out how I was
gonna get on my hood. I know in my heart that I’m the first person that ever
did that, but it’s gettin’ a look. They talkin’ about it.
How is the Nation being received outside of the Bay?
It’s a great look. Me myself personally, I’ve always been a do it
movin’ type of guy. I get from state to state. I mess with all the
bosses and the underbosses across this country. I always been in and
out of the New Yorks and the Chicago’s and the Detroits, down south
from Louisiana to Mississippi and this music game that I’m twistin’
out there is givin’ them a chance to [receive us differently]. Even if
they don’t know that music they know the face.
I understand at one point you were totally against going with a
major label, which is often the case with Bay Area rappers. What
changed?
It wasn’t that I was totally against going with a major. It was that
I understand how they do shit; how they come through and break
up dynasties. You feel me? I understand how that shit works and
my whole thing was we have the whole Nation. Thizz Nation is a nation
and it consists of certain muthafuckas that make our chemistry go right and
make our fans love us. Our fans like to see us together and the first thing
that happened when the majors come in is they wanna go in and see who
they can pick out. Once they pick out who they can pick out, they done broke
that up. So my fans are begging me to not leave Thizz all over my myspace,
my website and I can’t do that. Thizz is a part of me. I’m the President of this
company and I helped it grow to the level that it’s on by way of Mac Dre. My
whole thing was, if we gon’ do the major, let’s do it major. I want the whole
label to go. I need that Cash Money deal. I got a whole arsenal that’s worth
that.
So it’s safe to say that Thizz Nation has grown from the ubiquitous shadow
that Mac Dre left behind.
Oh yeah, definitely. It’s like any old school legend. If you kill the brain, the
body gon’ go. We was the body and Dre was the brain. He was the captain
of the ship and he moved the ship mayne. Once our brain went, it was up to
us. We had two choices. We could either keep the ship movin’ or we could go
down. We had to fight man. We had to make the fans trust in our music and
put lots of it out and what we did was we united the Bay. A lot of people
don’t understand that. We united the Bay. The Bay had been segregated into
‘Frisco, Oakland and Vallejo. That was basically how it was chopped up in this
rap game. What we did was we branched out and we got rappers from Frisco,
Oakland, Richmond, Hercules, Sacramento; the whole Bay under one umbrella.
We brought anybody with good talent that was rappin’ under one umbrella.
What’s the difference between ghostwalkin’ and ghostridin’?
It’s the same thing. It started [out as] ghostwalkin’. I started ghostridin’. The
reason why it was called ghostwalkin’ is, it’s kinda like when you run out of
OZONE WEST // 25