Publisher Julia Beverly Editor-In-Chief N. Ali Early Art Director Tene Gooden Music Editor Randy Roper ADVERTISING SALES Che Johnson Isiah Campbell Contributors Big Fase 100 D-Ray DJ BackSide DJ E-Z Cutt Eric Johnson Jessica Essien Joey Colombo Keita Jones Luvva J Regi Mentle Shemp Todd Davis Ty Watkins Wendy Day Street Reps Anthony Deavers, Bigg P-Wee, Dee1, Demolition Men, DJ Jam-X, DJ Juice, DJ KTone, DJ Quote, DJ Strong & DJ Warrior, John Costen, Juice, Kewan Lewis, Maroy, Rob J Official, Rob Reyes, Sherita Saulsberry, Sly Boogy, William Major COVER CREDITS I Love The Bay photo by Vivian Chen.
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CHAIN REACTION: MISTAH FAB PHOTO GALLERIES BANGIN’ 101: BIG WY RAPQWEST WEST IS BACKSIDE: ASKARI X SHORT STORIES TJ’S DJ’S & OZONE AWARDS RECAP DJ 2 DJ: DOW JONES SLAP END ZONE
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PATIENTLY WAITING: 40 GLOCC PATIENTLY WAITING: CELLSKI PATIENTLY WAITING: GLASSES MALONE PATIENTLY WAITING: INTERSTATE IKE PATIENTLY WAITING: JACKA PATIENTLY WAITING: PROHOEZAK PATIENTLY WAITING: TOPIC
editor’s note
Aye Bay Bay
B
eing from the Bay is some strange shit. Real talk. It’s not me though. It’s everybody else. They don’t get it. They don’t understand why I rep so damn hard. Why I bought all those shirts and sport ‘em every chance I get; why I walk the way I do, why I talk the way I do – why I never let go of my Bay’ness. And it’s not even something that I consciously hold on to. The shit is just embedded in me, ingrained in my loins, sketched into my thinking patterns and fixed in my speech.
It’s San Pablo Youth Baseball, the Renegades, Saturday football at CC, AC Transit, Bayview Elementary, the daily trek through Hilltop, The Richmond Auditorium, The Plunge, PAL, the Marina, Blondie’s Pizza, Fat Slice, Kimball’s East, Sweet Jimmy’s, Foothill Boulevard (“the bumpy ass strip…”), the A’s, the Oakland Coliseum, BART, the Bay Bridge, my ’79 mob, De Anza High, Salesian Boys & Girls Club, burritos from the truck on 23rd, cheese dogs from Casper’s, Nation’s chocolate shakes and chilli cheese fries at 3AM, GIANT Burger, Mark’s Barber Shop, Geoffrey’s, Jack London Square, the City, the Trees, the Valley Jo, the water, I80, 580, E-40, Too Short, ‘hella,’ the game, the hustle and a gang of other shit. Mine may mirror another man’s experience, but it’s very obvious to me that a ‘Bayboy’ is an extremely unique breed. I see it when I’m at the club doin’ my thizzle and they see it the minute I step through the door. That swag, that rhythm, that Cali cool. It’s in me and it ain’t goin’ nowhere, no time soon. So in the spirit of OZONE’s fifth annual “Patiently Waiting” issue, it seems fitting that the Bay Area graces this month’s cover, as we know a little something about ‘waiting patiently.’ It’s been upwards of a decade since our last run – a time when the Luniz were poppin’ with the herb anthem, “I Got Five On It,” Dru Down was the “Pimp of the Year,” “Captain’ Save A Hoe” was on the loose, 40 and Short showed the world what a “Rapper’s Ball” was, Richie Rich was signed to Def Jam and the “Get
Low” was a party stopper on any dance floor in America that had a Bay Nigga on it.
Then came that exxxxtra long stretch where it dried up. And that was okay I guess, ‘cause the independent game in the Bay – the coldest on the earth – took over. That in and of itself, is the reason why the term “out the trunk” was coined to begin with. In fact, it’s the independence of the Bay, in my opinion, that helped resuscitate the rap trend therein (the Bay). No one stopped making music and no one in The Bay, Portland, Seattle, Denver, KC, LA or even New Mexico, stopped buying it. No one stopped thinking and being inventive. No one stopped creating. No one stopped performing and no one stopped having fun. In the process the term “hyphy” was born in the O and spread like wildfire. Mac Dre continued to push his movement, incorporated his version of “hyphy” into his shit, along with Keak Da Sneak – the undisputed “King of Super Hyphy” – and it was back on again. So I salute the Yay for being dedicated soldiers to a movement that illustrated to the world how to stay afloat whether paddles were plenty or not. Courtesy of Too Short and the Up All Nite Crew, this month’s main attraction (pages 26-31) is all about my soil, my turf, my home – The Bay Area. From The Godfather to the Ambassador, the Prince, everybody thereafter and in between, they all showed love, fittingly on a project entitled: I Love the Bay. In the words of Young Turfy, “We rep tha Bay!! We don’t rep California!” Ya Dig?! N. Ali Early West Coast Editor Ali.early@ozonemag.com *Keep ya head up E-Ratic!! Thanks for the pics mayne!
26-31I LOVE THE BAY
OZONE WEST //