Rep Yo City is a recurring segment that highlights artists from cities in Northern California. On the latest installment we highlight Sacramento! These are the 5 artists you have to mention when discussing the current state of Sacramento rap.
Sacramento has a rich rap history in the Northern California scene & has brought us some of the toughest gangster music to ever hit the streets. If you do some digging & research Sacramento rap you’ll see some very important players in not only the Northern California scene but they’ve been pioneers to the rap scene at large. You can go back to the times when Brotha Lynch Hung & Sicx were pushing the boundaries with their “ripgut” lyrics & street tales fit for a horror movie on cult classics like 24 Deep & Season Of The Siccness. X-Raided became the first rapper to be convicted from his music and receive a 31 year prison sentence. C-Bo’s impact cannot be overstated. His work with 2Pac greatly shaped All Eyez On Me, the first 2Pac album with classic mobb production. Finally, we can’t forget that he was responsible for discovering the legendary Mob Figaz.
Sacramento & The Bay Area have always shared such a close relationship musically & culturally, that it can at times be hard for fans from other locales to tell the difference. Mac Dre treated Sacramento like a second home & did a lot of collaborations with Sac artists like Luni Coleone, Sumthin Terrible & others. Make no mistake Sacramento has carved out its own lane & needs no help getting recognized. Today the region is thriving as much as it’s ever been. There’s plenty of talent brimming from the State capital, and we’ve done our best to narrow it down to 5.
Mozzy
Where do you start when talking about Mozzy? Mozzy’s reach, fanbase & music has gotten further than anyone else on this list. The song that changed everything & helped push not only Sacramento but the entire Northern California back into the national spotlight was “Bladadah”. The Oak Park rapper has created his own slang in his raps that give his bars a distinct signature. Since “Bladadah”, Mozzy has only gotten hotter while giving his fans album after album, keeping himself relevant with constant videos & well-timed collaborations with some of rap’s biggest names.
Mozzy has been a part of multiple collaborative albums with some of the hottest artists in and out of town with joint projects with Philthy Rich, Yhung TO, Gunplay & Trae The Truth. Mozzy has blessed singles with YG, Nipsey Hussle, Young Thug, Rick Ross, Eastside Peezy & Jim Jones just to name a few. The biggest co-sign Mozzy has gotten was from Kendrick Lamar, when he shouted him out at the 2018 Grammys, and went on to include him on the Black Panther Soundtrack. Mozzy’s “Sleep Walkin” also made an appearance in the film, one of the biggest in history.
CML
CML, known by most fans by his old moniker Lavish D, has been able to grow his buzz while being in beefs with some of the biggest rappers in the region. CML’s signature is definitely his shit talking and brash personality. He isn’t afraid to speak his mind about any rapper or person he has an issue with & doesn’t back down from any competition. The song that really opened the door for CML was “Speak My Mind (What Else)”. The record effectively began to end what CML would refer to as his blackballing in the local scene. It became too popular to deny. “Speak My Mind” was released while he was in jail, and he hasn’t stopped releasing music since. He most recently dropped his album, The Mobb Would Like To Speak With You, and has been working a bunch with Oakland rap vet DNI Mike and his crew consisting of Zayel, Bossland Chris & Prince Dreda.
BOE Sosa
BOE Sosa is the youngest in the group, but in terms of buzz, he’s as popular as anyone on this list. BOE Sosa’s first single to gain major attention was “Keep It With Me“. In the video’s comments, fans were shocked to hear such lyrics about the gang lifestyle coming from someone who looks so young. When you give Sosa’s music a deeper listen, you get the sense that he’s been going through the struggle even at his young age, and the choices he’s made are a means to escape the poverty that’s stricken his neighborhood. After “Keep It With Me” blew up he was arrested & was just recently released. After his release he dropped “First Day Out” & he shows the news story that talks about what happened to him.
ShooterGang Jojo & ShooterGang Kony
Shootergang Jojo was the first member of the Shootergang to really break out with his hit “99 Problems”, his ascent was slowed by stints in jail. After his first release, he dropped “Fresh Out”. The record has already reached near 4 Million views. Unfortunately he wasn’t able to celebrate the release’s success much, as he’s currently locked up again on pretty hefty charges. #FreeJojo
Shootergang Kony has been carrying the torch in Jojo’s stead with the 2 projects he’s released this year in March Madness & Ginobli. The song that really put Kony on the map was “Location On The Flyer”. It’s a good introduction into the type of rapper that Kony embodies. Kony spits bars about living life with such reckless abandon but does so in such a nonchalant way that it’s almost chilling. He discusses murder & long stints in jail so calmly. Kony has been able to work with some of the Bay’s most exciting acts such as ALLBLACK, Slimmy B, Nef The Pharaoh & Benny. We’re excited to see what’s next from Kony, Jojo, and the rest of the ShooterGang camp.
Stunna Girl
Stunna Girl is starting to create her own wave. The record that made her stand out, was her scathing diss track “Let It Drip” which is directed to fellow Sacramento rapper Noni Blanco (who also is carrying a strong buzz at the moment). Stunna Girl has stated that she makes music for “the get money bitches”. Whether they’re making money on the pole, the blade, scamming, or hitting licks, Stunna Girl makes music in line for women that can relate to the relentless pursuit of the bag.
Her lyrics give us a raw look into the inner workings of that lifestyle. As of late, the rising rapper has been taken under the wing of Detroit’s TF Entertainment, who also works with BandGang, Drego, GT, and CashClick Boog. Every video she posts performs well and only continues to climb daily. She doesn’t have a full-length project out just yet. But she’s probably just one strong project away from blowing up.
