SFist loves us some old-school hip-hop, yo. We've got an entire library of classic movies, records and books on the subject. Which is why we were so excited to attend a park party hosted by Kevvy Kev on Sunday. Kev has been spinning the good stuff all over the bay Now that, friends, is old-school. To celebrate the twentieth anniversary of his radio show, Bang the Drum (6-9pm, Sundays, KZSU), he invited some of the top names in hip-hop from around the country.
Of course, it ain't a hip-hop party unless the venue's changed and half the performers don't show up. So instead of Kezar, the location was moved to the grove behind the conservatory, near 6th and Fulton. The long list of MCs on the set list seemed overly optimistic in retrospect - but when one of your headliners, Planet Asia, gets pulled over by the cops on the way to the show, the guys who do make it just get longer sets, and nobody better complain.
The sound system was weak, but the performers represented. Especially nice were the beat-boxing-MC duo of Felonious, recently voted Best of the Bay by readers of the Guardian. Finishing the concert with a nice long set was MC-Producer RZA of Wu-Tang fame. SFist has been happy to watch RZA become something of a big shot as a composer for film scores - he did the music for Ghost Dog, Kill Bill and the upcoming Blade: Trinity. We were lucky to see him rockin' the crowd like it was back in the day. Check True Skool for future events.
for twenty years!