Hip-hop may have originated in New York City, but many regions in the United States and around the world have since put their own stamp on it. Perhaps it first took off on the West Coast, where rappers brought their unique sounds and real-life struggles to the genre.
As hip-hop celebrates its 50th anniversary, ABC News interviews rappers Too Short, E-40, and Jay Rock, as well as experts Justin Credible, Touré, and rappers about the emergence of West Coast rap and more. , looking back at the history of this genre. Daniel Smith.
“I remember hearing Ice-T's '6'n the Mornin'” [being] Like, “Oh, what is that?” It is different. It's wild. That's outrageous. 'It was deeper and worse than what we were talking about on the East Coast,'' Touré, a music journalist, told ABC News.
The emergence of hip-hop from the West Coast caused a seismic shift in mainstream music as artists spoke about life on the streets of South Central Los Angeles, from gang life to the daily struggles of being black in America. Ta.
NWA arrived on the scene in 1988 and caused the first major disruption in the music industry, sparking a firestorm with hits like “F— Tha Police.”
“Listen, people think gangsta rap is like, 'Gangbanging, shoot up.' NWA started talking about police brutality,” said journalist Daniel Smith. “That's what infuriated them, and it's something we still talk about to this day. And with a group like NWA bringing such facts to the forefront, it's something that no one wants. I believe it's started a lot of conversations about conscious rap. ”
These life records provided a glimpse into the way of life experienced by a few people.
“They painted such a vivid picture that it was like watching a movie,” said Credible, host of Los Angeles radio station Power 106's Liftoff. I learned a lot from hip-hop in this city, and still do, but it wasn't necessarily what I was hearing in school, it was the brutally honest truth. ”
Lyric education was dismantled with the birth of the G-Funk era, which had its own sound and was transformed into melodic, funky beats.
“In a way, I think the G-Funk era was as much about aesthetics as it was about sound. It was about the bass on your car stereo speakers, your haircut, your clothes, your neighborhood, your city. Let’s turn it down and get some funky sounds,” Smith said.
The sound is also affected by the fact that more people drive on the West Coast than in New York City, Touré said.
“The West Coast is a total driving culture, right? So you listen to songs in the car. So the West Coast was always like, slow it down, tell a story, right? Make it funky. Well, then you can relax and listen while grooming yourself,” Touré said.
In Northern California, the Bay Area brought its own style to the landscape, displaying a hustling spirit with artists like Oakland's Too Short.
Rapper E-40, from Vallejo, California, just north of Oakland, was a natural successor to Too Short's celebration of the hustler lifestyle. Hop Hop Rapidly gained popularity with his group The Click, and soon after found success with his solo career in the early 1990s, his E-40 is known for its heavy use of regional slang and dual-purpose We set ourselves apart from other groups. Classic singles like “Tell Me When to Go” are just one of many that showcase E-40's talent.
From the Bay to South Central, the West Coast theme revolves around speaking truth to power, and rapper Tupac Shakur epitomized this. “Changes” is just one of his hit songs that themed around the socio-economic hardships of the time. Although Shakur rapped and repped on the West Coast, he spent much of his childhood on the East Coast.
“To get the materials to make Tupac, you have to birth him in New York, send him to Baltimore, send him to the Bay, and then push him to Los Angeles. Don't take him to those four places. Please,” rapper Too Short told ABC News.
From the emergence of gangsta rap and G-funk to the development of socially conscious lyrics, the origins and success of West Coast rap continue to evolve and leave a lasting impact on pop culture.
“Whether you agree with it or not, whether you like it or not, whether you believe it or not, they are telling their story.” [into] huge megaphone. We needed to make it more realistic and deeper than we've ever done before,” Smith said.
