Dr. Dre – Marcel Friday

INTERVIEW: Warren G on His YouTube Original Documentary ‘G-Funk’ & His Influence on Rap: ‘I’m the G-Funk Era’

Updated: December 30, 2018

Originally posted on Billboard 7/31/2018

When you think of the pioneers of West Coast rap, there are a handful of names that come to mind: Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, 2Pac, Eazy-E, Snoop Dogg, E-40, Too $hort. Arguably the most deserving name, however, is consistently glossed over. Warren G, as both an artist and producer, is one of the most important names to the culture, and you might not even know why.

The pioneer of the G-funk era not only ushered in a new musical subgenre, but was personally responsible for introducing Snoop Dogg, Kurupt and Daz Dillinger to Dr. Dre, along with being instrumental in helping to shape the sound of Dre’s first solo album, The Chronic.

Billboard was able to sit down with the Regulator to discuss his YouTube Originals documentary G-Funk and his influence on rap.

MOVIE REVIEW: Warren G’s Brilliance Revealed In YouTube’s ‘G-Funk’ Documentary

by Marcel

Updated: December 30, 2018

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Originally posted on Vibe 7/25/2018

In the 1990s, three best friends at Long Beach’s renowned Polytechnic High School polished a new sound at the intersection of funk and rap music. Warren G, with the help of Snoop Dogg and Nate Dogg, ushered in what will be forever known as the g-funk era. While the three didn’t create the musical subgenre, they built on the foundation created by the West Coast rap quintet Above The Law and took the sound worldwide. YouTube Originals partnered with Warren G to create G-Funk, telling the untold tales of arguably hip-hop’s most underrated legend.

The full-length documentary starts off in Long Beach, Calif. as we’re introduced to a young Warren G and Snoop Dogg. “Every time you seen Warren, you seen Snoop,” Warren recalls as he and Snoop trade stories of their early LBC experiences. They would later meet Nate Dogg at Long Beach Polytechnic High School and form the group 213.

INTERVIEW: Producer Jimmy Duval on Creating XXXTentaction’s ‘Look at Me!’ & Expanding Outside of Rap

by Marcel

Updated: December 30, 2018

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Originally posted on Billboard 7/17/2018

It’s not everyday that you wake up to your song hitting one million streams online and without even realizing it. For Jimmy Duval, that hard-to-believe scenario about producing his first hit almost never happened. “Look at Me!,” the track that took Florida rapper XXXTentacion from SoundCloud to RIAA Certified Platinum was a beat that was never meant to land in XXX’s lap.

If left up to his late collaborator, the success of the record was also never meant for Jimmy to enjoy. Initially released on SoundCloud by Rojas, a former associate of Jimmy’s, the song not only left him off the credits, but he didn’t even know it existed until his manager happened to stumble upon the track.

INTERVIEW: Stat Quo Spills What He Knows About New Eminem Album

by Marcel

Updated: December 14, 2018

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Originally posted on HipHopDX 3/9/2017

Could Eminem be working on a new album — he actually plans on releasing?

Stat Quo, the former Shady Records MC, mentions that such a project is in progress as he breaks down how he is still known in the circle by the incident that led to his Shady Records exodus. “Denaun called me yesterday [when] him and Em were working on the album and he was telling me, and I haven’t really been in the room with [Eminem, since leaving Shady Records], that shit that happens is still what they say when they mention me,” exclaims Stat on his most recent episode of #DXLive. “So we gon’ work that out. When he comes out here [to LA], I’m pulling up [and] I’m going over there with him and Dre… and we gon’ figure that out.”

ALBUM REVIEW: M-1 & Bonnot – Between Me And The World

by Marcel

Updated: December 11, 2018

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Originally posted on HipHopDX 5/23/2016
Rating: 3.3/5

Inspired by famed black author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates, the dead prez’s most outspoken member M-1 grabs his Italian tag team partner and producer for their second album together Between Me and the World. Sitting down with DX in February, M-1 described his process for the album having recording it in Italy at a time where America was dealing with the outcome of Mike Brown, Eric Garner, and Freddie Gray, “Soon there’s going to be a solution that was the same as it always was. People aren’t going to accept the same old conclusions about how we’re treated here and what justice really means.”

Built on a platform of black power and edutainment that dates back to 1996, Between Me and the World follows the script he and his group member stic.man created two decades ago. That familiarity serves as both comfort for a loyal fan base and as a hindrance for those who look for their artists to grow their style within the current climate. M-1, while always potent and poignant in his message, doesn’t quite hit the mark with the entertainment appeal.

Marcel Friday

Social Media Manager Creative & Social Strategist Journalist

Tag: <span>Dr. Dre</span>

INTERVIEW: Warren G on His YouTube Original Documentary ‘G-Funk’ & His Influence on Rap: ‘I’m the G-Funk Era’

MOVIE REVIEW: Warren G’s Brilliance Revealed In YouTube’s ‘G-Funk’ Documentary

INTERVIEW: Producer Jimmy Duval on Creating XXXTentaction’s ‘Look at Me!’ & Expanding Outside of Rap

INTERVIEW: Stat Quo Spills What He Knows About New Eminem Album

ALBUM REVIEW: M-1 & Bonnot – Between Me And The World