South Cali rapper El Prez recently released his song and video for 20 Karats On The Wrist, a double entendre in its lyrics and imagery. A wavy Cali instrumental beneath a smooth flow so signature to West Coast Rap delivers his message like a double-sided coin, lending this aspirational record its character. The song teeters a tightrope between the highest of highs and lowest of lows, dreams and nightmares of reaching the top and facing the fear of failure, yet choosing to courageously climb and move mountains despite one’s obstacles. Perseverance is the only thing that sets us apart from our highest achievements, and only those willing to trust the journey succeed.
I asked El Prez to DeCypher a sentimental verse from his song Lose Some, Win Some that brought a conversation of perseverance to mind:
It sparked in me the thought of how often I come up against this idea that there should be no reason why people cannot succeed in an era of instant access to information. “Telling someone things are out there in an age where everyone should have ‘access to resources’ is not enough” says El Prez, “Kids need to be led to The Well to know it exists and that it’s there. My nephew came home one day in middle school and asked for help because the teacher had to pool money together to get supplies! When I attended that school it was never like that. But that’s how it is for kids these days, and so you have a lot of kids that might give up and block it all out, or they will switch into that other person, and we don’t want people to do that. A lot of kids don’t have a path to the Lake to drink, so they need guidance. We can complain or come up with our own solutions so we have to provide the kinds that go into action”
The astounding discrepancies in our public schools when it comes to the youth not having enough school supplies hardly makes sense, considering the ample amount of tax dollars our city collects (which should more than solve the issue), yet we barely seem to see these funds trickle down past support services in such ways that struggling communities can help themselves. However, El Prez shares a golden key to unlock Success for any one, anywhere, at any time, and it boils down to standing in the confidence of one’s destiny;
he says in his song 20 Karats on the Wrist. “The line is spoken to myself as much as everybody else. Especially in Entertainment, you find the most peace within yourself by letting things happen. Just because one person’s success is that person’s success doesn’t define what is meant to be your success. So just be yourself because when you do what you do, the opportunities will pop up when your time comes. Could take 10 years, could take 10 months but just be sure to stay prepared. Take your natural course and tap into your natural abilities to execute and deliver your best. I let my dreams fuel me, rather than getting stuck in fueling the dream and neglecting the Art whenever the business gets overwhelming. You can’t help no one else if you can’t help yourself, so it’s important to learn how to monetize your career. You don’t have to chase your audience though, because they will catch up to you. It’s good to keep a little mystique sometimes.”
Overdoz finally releases their long-awaited album “2008”
Overdoz finally drops its album 2008, with fans eagerly awaiting its release since…well, 2008! If you’ve never heard of them, say hello to these West Coast rock stars, whose name rings bells across the land from Dena to South Los Angeles and beyond.
The brothers have been together since day one, chillin’ on avenues and cruising highways most Cali Natives would only pass through. Documenting their journeys in LA, Overdoz takes us back as far as 2008, When Everybody Loved Everybody.
One thing most people don’t know much about is 4711 Expo, the studio where several paths crossed, including the likes of Miguel, ASAP Rocky, Jhene Aiko, Dom Kennedy, the Fistacuffs, THC, and several other aspiring local artists who would collaborate. Folks from every hood would come together in the name of creation where this studio once stood, including Overdoz. It was the block no one would want to walk through at night, with burnt out light posts unworthy of fixing and street-life exchange on every corner.
Today, these old warehouses are barely recognizable, developed into the types of contemporary décor that typically follow gentrification shortly thereafter. Coffee shops and industrial conversions are tucked away on streets where underserved communities of color were once left destitute long after the LA riots had given way to an influx of black wealth amongst the Baldwin Hills, Ladera, Leimert Park, & Crenshaw areas. Although Ujima and Ujamaa principles were reserved amongst several families in the area, others would choose to take their earnings and resources outside of the community, creating an interesting dynamic between rich and poor black families from the hills down to the flat lands. These areas would later face troubles self-sustaining, but the Youth of these local towns would go on to create great art.
2008 is an important project for several reasons. Film director Calmatic has been working with Overdoz for several years, catching controversial footage like Overdoz’s “Rich White Friends” and landmarks that may someday be archived as a blast from the past alongside other monumental black eras, like the times of Black Hollywood in West Adams. These places are important to Los Angeles culture, as they are what make Southern Cali one of the dopest spots across the globe. Of course, such locations would simply be architecture if not for the people who create its diverse artistry, of which Overdoz is a part of.
Their charismatic and quirky humor blends a conscious lyrical wordplay with notes of funk, acid jazz, neo – soul and West Coast HipHop. Someday I imagine them sharing memories as old men in one of these new cafes around here, maybe even some coffee shop that sprouts up near 4711 Expo just for the irony of it.
It is with great honor to announce CyHi the Prynce’s album release “No Dope On Sundays”, a highly anticipated project amongst his following and a breakout moment for those who are newly introduced.
CyHi guides listeners through the perils of his plight to the end of a tunnel where light glows with a promise of redemption. He takes us back to the Cocaine 80’swhen women were especially vulnerable to the effects poverty, often so consumed by its challenges that there was barely the wherewithal to pay attention to one’s own body. CyHi’smother had no idea she was pregnant with him until she was six months in, consuming drugs and alcohol in her unawareness. At this point, his destiny was a coin toss.
As seen time and time again with black youth abandoned by the public school system, CyHi the Prynce would go on to become a student of life well before his adult years. He was kicked out of school and forced to define a new path for himself. He would utilize his three- dimensional experience of family, faith and street life as a tool to turn his life into a blessing. All sorts of innovative outcomes are produced in Ghettoes that typically operate as a right-brain world with a left-brain mentality. Every move is life or death and requires strategy. As a result of this struggle, a thin line between Underground Hip Hop and Pop Culture is heartfelt, because a paradox exists where Black African Natives are pushed into underserved communities and treated like experiments until their “worth” is proven in Colonial American terms. Then their innovations are taken to a mainstream market and flipped into processed factory food through the chain-of-supply. Although there is nothing wrong with reproducing something that works, CyHi notes the evolution of black culture while exploring Pan-Africanism and holding black cultural values to their own standard in ways that further elevate their communities.
“No Dope On Sundays” is an amazing documentary that moves the spirit and still holds true to the streets. It can be archived with other great Hip Hop projects in its integrity and ability to fuse classic Hip Hop with contemporary styles so seamlessly. For an in-depth conversation of “No Dope On Sundays”with CyHi the Prynce, please visit NPR Radio’s coverage for more!
Welc0me 2 The Z3r0 P0int 
