Throwback Slaps #3: Sacramento Edition

100 Grand on My Wrist has had a bit of a Sacramento theme running for the past few weeks and what better way to continue that theme than with some classic, underrated jams from California's capitol:

X-Raided "It's On"



Garden Blocc Ridaz: Ride Til We Die Compilation Vol. 1 released in 2002 was sort of a big release at the time, I remember a handful of friends had this disc and bumped it regularly (remember when people bought CDs, lol). The compilation featured every big name in Sacramento at the time and a bunch of up and comers. It's interesting how almost ten years later the biggest names in Sacramento rap (Brotha Lynch Hung, C-Bo, Hollow Tip, X-Raided and Luni Coleone to a lesser extent) remain the same and T-Nutty is still viewed as a youngster with potential, even though he's been making music for over 10 years now. Apart from maybe Smigg Dirtee there hasn't been much new talent coming out of Sacramento that have had much of an impact on the scene. I wonder why that is? Anyways, this song is by X-Raided and it slaps hard, the rest of the compilation is good too, displaying the distinctive Sacramento sound, which can bounce between dark and menacing to downright bizarre. There's a volume two and three of this compilation series too, but they aren't worth your time.


P.C.O. "Federal Offense"



Paper Chasin' Organization (P.C.O.) were a quartet of rappers from Sacramento who released their debut Money Hungry in 1999 through Black Market Records. If you like some classic dark Sacramento rap that Black Market was known for back then you should check the album out, it has some good cuts on it. Apart from a few obscure solo releases from members of P.C.O. they pretty much disappeared after this release, which is too bad considering how few quality rappers there are in Sacramento these days.


Big Hollis "Sidewayz"



Big Hollis is one of the biggest producers in Sacramento, but he has always rapped here and there and back in 1999 he released his only solo album, Millenium: The Day is Comin'. The lyrics don't really follow the theme, but the album title hints at the impending doom of the Y2K apocalypse that never occurred. People were really losing their shit over that at the time. The album is dope, with real musical diversity in each song and it has a lot of rap songs along the lines of "I GOT REAL LIFE STRUGGLES," which is always a relatable topic. Why is it that Sacramento rappers always seem bummed out, while Bay Area rappers are having fun?
A friend told me that Big Hollis reminds him of 2Pac and the comparison is understandable; similar delivery and subject matter, but not in a painfully obvious way like Tha Realest. Big Hollis doesn't rap much anymore and has been focusing on the productions side of things since this album's release. He can make some great beats though and has made beats for just about every major rapper in Sacramento and the Bay Area since this album's release.

What do you think of these songs?
What are some underrated Sacramento releases?
Were you losing your shit about the Y2K apocalypse in '99?