It recently turned fall. All the kids are back in school, football is on every Sunday & the leaves have begun piling up on the streets with its reddish gold foliage. It’s also a time artists make their final push for end of the year award considerations. This week we’ve been blessed with a solid amount of dope music from some of Northern California’s hottest artists. So much so that we’ve decided to compile a top 5 list (in no particular order) for y’all to check out.
Berner ft. Wiz Khalifa – Brown Bag
Berner & Wiz Khalifa take us back to 2010 in one of their first smoke sessions together, followed by Berner gifting Wiz a plant of the finest cookies at the time. The video artistically paints a picture from back in the days that Berner used to spend in the trap. Wiz comes in on the chorus and provides a classic Wiz Khalifa-style hook with a chill & catchy chant about counting up brown paper bag money reminiscent of how Bone Thugs-N-Harmony used to do it in the 90’s. It’s fitting because the video and song gives me a strong throwback stoner vibe, but also shows how much they’ve both leveled up since first meeting in 2010.
Cookie Money ft. Boosie Badazz & Philthy Rich – Get A Bag
Cookie Money & Philthy Rich bring the Baton Rouge legend Boosie Badazz out in the streets to visit some the toughest neighborhoods in Oakland. Even though Lil Boosie is a Down South artist from Louisiana, he’s always been a very popular artist in the streets of the Bay Area, particularly Oakland. Cookie Money gives us a gem-filled verse about how to make boss moves in the streets and how he keeps himself ahead of the game. Boosie Badazz talks about how he feel like he’s home when he touches down in the Town, smoking some of the best weed in the world by the pound. The video turns to Philthy Rich’s hood in Seminary where he delivers a fire verse worth rewinding, talking about how he plays his role in the game.
X-Raided – California Dreamin
X-Raided has spent the last 26 years locked in prison for a murder and was recently released on parole. The Sacramento legend spent little time dropping new music and a new visual. Even though X-Raided first released music in 1991, “California Dreamin” is his first music video as a free man. X-Raided links up with T-Nutty & Brotha Lynch Hung. The three enjoy the water while X-Raided shares everything he’s been holding onto while being locked down. The energy X-Raided shows in this video is of a man that is truly happy to be free and content on living the California dream 2Pac described in his classic “California Love”.
MBNel – In My City
MBNel takes us on a trip to his city Stockton, California to show us how they get down in the San Joaquin Valley. He talks about how the people he grew up around are more prone to becoming gang members than scholars. The Stockton native says that even though he didn’t go the route his parents wanted him to, he’ll make it out of his city. For Northern California rap fans who may be unfamiliar with MBNel, this is a great track to get started hopping on the bandwagon. MBNel’s use of autotune and the subject matter, along with the flow reminds me of Youngboy Never Broke Again. So if you’re a fan of his, you’d enjoy listening to MBNel.
Mozzy – Choke On Me
Mozzy just dropped one of the best albums of the year with Gangland Landlord and his visuals leading up to the release have not disappointed. Mozzy’s theme for his latest visuals off the Gangland Landlord album gives the viewers a sense of 90’s era gangsta nostalgia, “Choke On Me” continues on this theme. For those who might not be familiar Mozzy loosely recreates the plot for the hood classic Dead Presidents in this visual, which brings out the lyrics for his music beautifully. When the video recreates the climactic heist scene, the song changes to the “Dead Homies” track. The visual ends with Mozzy in a face-off with the police. Definitely one of the candidates for video of the year.
