BUDDAH LOVAZ

Growing up I had no clue what they were saying, but I bought every cassette tape that they released. I would play each tape in my Sony Sport Walkman and pause after each line to try and catch the fast words they put out. Bone Thugz-N-Harmony produced some of the cult classics like “1st of the month” “Ecstasy” “Mo murda” and even a Phil Collins collaboration “Home” to name a few. Regardless if you listen to Hiphop or not, you may have heard a Bone song when in a blunt rotation, playing on some dudes Pandora playlist as you bob your head to the melodic sound of the Cleveland Ohio natives who shaped 90’s Rap. Each member has a strong verbal style that emphasizes rhythm, speed and emotion through each verse. I heard this may be the last tour for the group who recently celebrated twenty-plus-years of releasing music, so it was was no question for me to attend the “E. 1999 Eternal” album performance in its entirety at the Observatory OC last Sunday night. The merchandise was simple, Olde English letters on everything and a lot of black and white t-shirts and hoodies. What stuck with me the most was the variety of people who attended and shared the same excitement of reciting each song, and the nostalgia it brought to most. If you have the chance, watch the music video “Cross Roads” which has the Grim Reaper taking souls with the help of 90’s special effects.

Bone, bone, bone, bone.

-Stay trippy