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Homegrown Hip Hop
Thursday, May 12
The Mercury News.com, of all publications, ran a piece recently on the re-emergence of the Bay Area hip hop scene.
Back in the day, Northern California had flashes of becoming a hip-hop power center. Tupac, with his charisma and controversy, had roots here with the very popular Digital Underground. Too Short, despite getting little radio play because of his explicit and sexist lyrics, was well-known nationally. And, of course, there was MC Hammer. That was during the late 1980s, when rap was beginning to take over the suburbs.But then the local scene stagnated, and the power shifted. New York and Los Angeles were already solid, but Atlanta, Detroit and even St. Louis became hip-hop hotbeds.
``We've had a long drought and been disappointed,'' says E-A-Ski, an East Oakland producer who has worked with Dr. Dre and Ice Cube. ``For over 10 years, we have been doing all the right things musically and lyrically. We won't be denied anymore.''
There is too much talent in the Bay Area for us not to be a center of new music, especially a source of independent, nationally recognized hip hop. But one key thing that is required is support from fans of hip hop. So to those of you who like Tone and other local artists - don't forget to support them however you can, whether going to see their shows, buying (NOT burning) their CDs from the store, and even calling local radio stations to request their music. Or, if you don't mind hearing Ja Rule and Chingy for the next 3 years, do nothing, watch MTV, and forget I said anything.