What Too $hort did for Oakland (ie. put it on the map in the rap world), Mack 10 is likely to do for the city of Inglewood, CA. He's got luv for his town and he lets it "B" known. He stepped on the scene first on a cut on Da Lench Mob's last LP, "Planet of the Apes", called "Cutthroats". Listening to that one verse he busts is enough proof to see that this Inglewood Blood has rapping skills. He had a chance to bring this point home on the "Friday" soundtrack, a cut called "Take a Hit", in which One-0 (Mack 10) compared his rapping skills to some good weed...not a new concept, even at the time, but he did one helluva good job with it, though. The song's producer, the one and only Ice Cube, was so impressed that he got Mack 10 a record deal on Priority records. This self-titled debut was a stepping stone to stardom, and One-0 got a name for being the epitome of the bird-slanging dope dealer, pulling licks (robberies) once in a while to make ends meet. Yeah, it sure is emphasising on negativity and criminalty, food for the the anti-rap sharks like Dolores Tucker and Al Gore, but one can't forget that this portayal is reality for many people in Mack's city. Also, he makes up for it with loced-out quotes that make you want to check your hearing to make sure you heard that right, like "Cause a nigga gotta eat, fuck the world, let my bullets hurl, and feed my baby girl"
In '95, the Westside Connection was formed, a trio of L.A. rappers Ice Cube, W.C. and Mack 10. Although he was the "newcomer" among the three, he stood out in his own way, almost stealing the show from Cube, and in any case from W.C. His second LP, "Based on a True Story" was highly anticipated, and it was a short release with only 10 cuts over 3 minutes long (one of which was already on Ant Banks' "Big Thangs" album, but it was a solid effort nonetheless. He does show though, that he's not the only nigga from Inglewood with talent. Groups like the Comrades and AllfrumthaI, featured on this album, definitely are groups to watch out for. Before long, heads around the world might be saying: "Where's that nigga One-0 from? INGLEWOOOOOOOOOD!!!!"
| Mack 10 Releases | |
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(LP-1995) |
(LP-1997) |
