If you’ve paid any kind of attention to Hip-Hop in the past year, then you’re at least semi-aware of the renaissance happening in Los Angeles. After the emergence of TDE and YG’s 400 collective, L.A. rap took a bit of a brief hiatus on a national scale, and in the last year, that’s changed. Spearheaded by artists like Drakeo The Ruler, 03 Greedo, Shoreline Mafia and more, the revolution has been more than televised. Thanks to L.A. natives, Rosecrans Vic and Kali Shashati, every little bit of the scene’s rise was covered by their publication, Rosecrans Avenue, which gave many of them their first piece of press. Flipping that into a deal with EMPIRE Records, the duo is now stepping onto the other side, with their new join venture, RoseGrown Records. Celebrating the deal, they released their high-profile compilation album, A Ride Down Rosecrans.
Featuring a who’s who of upcoming So Cal artists including Rucci, Kalan.frfr, Rob Two and more, the album sounds exactly like the title suggests: a breezy ride, with the top down, around one of the city’s most legendary areas. Just pick any song, and you’ll see what I mean. The Matt Bricks-produced, “True To This,” is tailored made for you to sing along with Kalan and Rob, while, “Fuck That,” from Rucci sounds exactly like the unshakeable confidence that you can find in any given native. And let’s not forget Chris O’Bannon‘s heartwarming tribute to the city with, “Nowhere Else,” which sounds like it should definitely be on the soundtrack for whatever new teen movie they wanna make about the city that happens every few years–looking at you, DOPE.
Another standout for the project includes, “Secret,” the Saltreze-produced collaboration between Kalan–MVP of the album–A$ton Matthews and Feefa, an intriguing Latino rapper that’s quietly becoming one of the more popular new acts in the city. Others include, “My Ride,” a gangster ballad that showcases Fat Meech highlighting his ghetto charm, and “Down For Me,” a hard hitting record that features OhGeesy, Fenix and the late, T. Swish trading clever bars over a Ron-Ron beat.
It’s one thing already, to build a cohesive compilation project, but it’s a whole other thing trying to create one while keeping your voice, especially when you’re not the recording artist. Utilizing a array of different sounds, one of my favorite parts about the project is that even though Vic and Kali have a grand total of zero words on this project, you can still feel their presence. Everything sounds tailored made to their tastes… which has emphatically shaped the current Los Angeles scene for the last two years.
Take a listen to the project below and get familiar with RoseGrown Records.
