Bay Area Hip Hop

Mafia Furniture

Brand new track “Mafia Furniture” produced by DJ Pharoahgamoe of Def Star Production, mixed by D-Wiz, mastered by Far Beats, and artwork by Dreez Kendick.

Mafia Furniture

Kensho Kuma Verse 1: “Feel like there’s a target on the back of my head/ what make it so apparent is the lack of respect/ never mind the patrons, we cashing a check/ from a lineage of ninjas, get slashed in the neck/ ughh got our young boys, and our Jewish lawyers/ I know ’bout your coke abuse, all you do’s annoy us/ my inner circle tight, letting no crew destroy us/ you getting agitated, but your boy’s truly joyous/ ain’t depending on no Spotify or TIdal/ do this for my culture, drop this shit on vinyl/ goons out in Shinjuku, awaiting my arrival/ 地元じゃ足りなねー, haters let me guide you/ never did contribute to making rap violent/ but coming for my kingdom will get you clapped trying/ always pushed the boundaries, dropping Exact Science/ I rule with an iron fist, Kuma’s the Jap tyrant/”

Kensho Kuma Verse 2: “Leviathan, most rappers are tadpoles/ coming to the party behaving like assholes/ why you jealous homie? I gave you the platform/ never been a killer, but killers will clap for him/ all you think about’s your shitty little cash flow/ while I kick it in a foreign city during Rap tours/ I’m not any better, but I left my backyard/ ’cause this saturated place don’t care for local Rap stars/ go get the knowledge, I ain’t have at your age/ only ’bout 30 percent’s how you rap on stage/ other 70 percent’s how your music’s managed/ gotta be professional when repping what your brand is/ so many damn artists never got to leave the Bay/ never did a video, project, or an EPK/ dedication to your music’s one thing I’m sure of/ it got me out to South East Asia, Tokyo, and Europe/ (that’s what’s up)/”

Return of the Cypher

If you know me from real life, you already know that I am one of the directors for the weekly Return of the Cypher party @the Boom Boom Room in the historic Fillmore district in San Francisco. I am proud to report that our event recently celebrated our 5 year anniversary!!

R.O.T.C. is an open-mic cypher accompanied by our in-house Get Down Band and legendary DJ Kevvy Kev. All emcees and vocalists are welcome to rock with us.. as long as they read the rules, acquire a wristband, and of course adhere to the guidelines stated in the rules. It is the most accurate representation of Hip Hop culture in the SF Bay Area.. and if you were raised by this culture, you will surely agree. Many of our patrons consider R.O.T.C. to be their temple/ mosques/ church , and religiously attend. Iconic legends that are in your iTunes right now regularly are in attendance. Large Professor, MC Akil of Jurassic 5, RZA, Killah Priest, Rappin’ 4-Tay, and Lyrics Born, have all stopped by and/or performed at R.O.T.C.!!

Our event features a special performer doing a set every week. We have had touring acts from every imaginable region of the U.S., as well as international artists that ventured from Japan, Mongolia, Bali, Vietnam, U.K., and Sweden. We also feature the monthly M.V.P (Most Valuable Poet) contest, where competitors go after the coveted R.O.T.C. dog tags, a beatsmith live production set known as the Boom Boom Bap Session, and guest hosts with varying flavors.

If you are a newbie emcee still mastering elementary skills, there doesn’t exist an environment more supportive than R.O.T.C. If you are a mid-tier flame spitter or veteran, our platform is the perfect place to try out new material, keep your bars sharp, and be reminded why you love rapping in the first place. If you are a veteran, please help us carry on tradition!! The essence of rap camaraderie is extremely powerful in our community; cats routinely cypher outside the venue after the party has ended.

 

Killings Must Stop

Look, I’ve never in my life considered myself an activist.. nor a “political” MC.. just a regular dude with integrity and morals. But with all the madness going on with our police departments, this song naturally came out. Took the instrumental from Japanese producers Typewriter&YMG, mixed by D-Wiz, and yes, this is one of the last songs I’m preparing for my “Lineage ov the Lyricist” mix CD.

Killings Must Stop

Kensho Kuma Verse 1: “Ignorant people think Asians eat cats/ I love eating pussy, please believe that/ we could joke around but these stereotypes/ are killing Black people in the dead of the night/ prejudiced Caucasians, perpetuate fright/ cops see the melanin, and pull weapons on sight/ (from the Bay Area) where we hella liberal/ yet Barbecue Becky think you’s criminal/ depending on your damn traits, phenotypical/ after Oscar Grant, most of us remained cynical/ ughh, still can’t believe they acquitted Zimmerman/ the mass media, don’t want us to remember him/ I’m down to go riot ’cause I like vengeance/ but I’d rather see a cop get a life sentence/ for taking the lives of these minorities/ some do believe in white superiority/ they known to be liars who commit forgery/ when they doing they dirt, we gotta record the scene/ ah! hold them accountable, in a court of law/ if that don’t work, we bringing war to yall/”

Chorus: “Too many people have been killed by the cops/ nobody can afford to chill and just watch/ protest, riot, or go and bust shots/ we gotta do whatever, the killings must stop/ too many people have been killed by the cops/ nobody can afford to chill and just watch/ don’t know what to do, but I’ve seen too much/ in the Bay Area, shit’s been too corrupt/”

Kuma Verse 2: “I’m hella racist like the world I was raised in/ get buck-fiftied if you disrespect Asians/ immigrants, Tibetans, or folks from Wakanda/ want more than cash, I need freedom and the honor/ forefathers proud, I’m a Japanese soldier/ some paying to be white, fuck a Sammy Sosa/ the European standards of beauty is wack/ in Hip Hop, what’s considered beauty is black/ ah, worst gang members are the agents of ICE/ what familias in Oakland be facing ain’t right/ it’s about the colored kids, not the hatred for whites/ but I’m not a pacifist, I can’t break up no fights/ at a damn Trump rally, stand with the refugees/ Latin youth in cages, cry out rescue me/ officers ain’t letting kids in the ghetto live/ people from the Middle East, get called a terrorist/ politic with doctors, and some gang members/ and learn from both groups, to further the agenda/ streets to the campus, we are making anthems/ if you down with POC’s, please put them hands up!/”

Chorus:

the Game Music Video

I am featured in the brand new music video “the Game”, off of Japanese emcee/ producer Rikinish‘s album “Everyday.” The video also features and is directed by R.O.T.C. all star Jane the Message. Shot by Sarah Arnold and cameo appearances by UnLearn the World, Po, Ismael Ahmad, quattro, Alex Pascarz. Special Thanks to Christopher Tang and the Boom Boom Room.

R.O.T.C. TV Season 2 Episode 1

R.O.T.C. TV Season 2 Episode 1 is here!! Orchestrated by Return of the Cypher Director Unlearn the World and Boogie the Man, the debut episode for the new season accurately captures what our R.O.T.C. world has become. We will have ongoing episodes getting produced, so please stay tuned!! Photo credit: Sarah Arnold Photography

If you don’t know by now.. R.O.T.C. facilitates top-tier, organic cyphers powered by our in-house Get Down Band and songstress Jenna Medina. It goes down every Sunday evening at the Boom Boom Room in the historic Fillmore District of San Francisco. These cyphers are open to the public, and all MC’s, lyricists, rappers, vocalists, etc., are welcome to participate.. as long as they read our rules, acknowledge them, and receive a wristband. Our event also features a traditional dance party segment overseen by R.O.T.C. Commander DJ Kevvy Kev and a special weekly guest performer!!

Permanent Scars (Final Fantasy Instrumental)

2 Mello is a multi-faceted producer who samples retro Nintendo games. I was immediately interested upon discovering his Final Fantasy- the 3-6 Chambers project.. (he flipped Wu Tang acapellas over Final Fantasy samples!) He also has Nas x Castlevania, Jay-Z x Chrono Trigger, and the full instrumental version for each project!! WHAT!? A beat from the FF batch served as the perfect, beautifully melancholic soundscape for some painful-ass bars I was chiseling when I lost my older brother this past July. This instrumental truly saved my damn sanity.

I present to you Permanent Scars. Props to 2 Mello. Mixed by DWiz. Pic by Sarah Arnold.

Kensho Kuma & Cloud NI9E- Temple Work

Here we go once again.. my partner in crime Cloud NI9E and I released a brand new banger.. this one’s called Temple Work and it’s from a vinyl that we’re currently working one. This is the free version, so it’s been ran through a maximizer, but it hasn’t been mastered..

For those of you who don’t know, Cloud NI9E is a producer/DJ from Tokyo, Japan. I did a collaborative album with him back in 2013, and he has served as our tour DJ on numerous overseas solo and group tours.

R.O.T.C. Official Newsletter

I have started the Official R.O.T.C. Newsletter!! If you don’t know by now, Return of the Cypher is where Hip Hop culture resides in the SF Bay Area!! Every Sunday evening at the historic Boom Boom Room in the Fillmore District of San Francisco, we facilitate an organic, top-tier cypher, backed by our in-house live band. The event celebrated its 5 years anniversary this past summer, and the movement is showing no signs of slowing down.. please come through!! Please sign-up here!!

 

Never Be Famous

Brand New Banger by Sticky Ricardo featuring Kensho Kuma!! “Never Be Famous” is scheduled to appear on Sticky Ricardo’s upcoming “Sticks and Stones” debut album; his project will also have appearance from the legendary Killarmy clique. This track is about being content with accepting that you’ll never “blow-up” by so-called “industry” standards and is written from the perspective of an independent artist dealing with everyday trials and tribulations. The graphic was created by Jane the Message and is modeled after the Japanese Doraemon font.

Never Be Famous Verse 1: “Yeah, rappers talm ’bout, getting more Prada/ your boy’s independent, shipping out product/ never sold hella units, gotta day job/ I’m performing at the local shows, on my days off/ yeah, use my vacation, for oversea tours/ I’m flirting with a mermaid, on foreign seashores/ hi! getting more supporters, more than before/ but we can’t buy a house or afford the decor/ and we blame one percenters and white older heads/ but I’m more evil when I’m outta bipolar meds/ ughh, Lithium, Depakote in pill cabinet/ but I hate feeling numb, rather feel passionate/ ’bout everything in life, success to the failure/ you talk a good one homie, let’s see you wager/ running with the immigrants, Mexican neighbors/ know the Japones is raw and get’s only greater/ invest my Bitcoin, in Vivranium/ and hire more teachers and librarians/ I don’t give a shit if I don’t rock in a stadium/ but tired of the students getting shot in the cranium/”

Chorus (repeat x 2): “I ain’t even tripping that I’ll never be famous/ ’cause I murder everything, when I hit the stages/ nothing but my real life, written on the pages/ we’ll be here forever, ’cause the way we flows ageless/”

Never Be Famous Verse 2: “My beautiful masseuse got me feeling great/ I’m on a cruise boat with friends and we grilling steak/ if you, talk shit my killers will seal your fate/ ughh, jets and helicopters on my real estate/ I got every pair of Nikes, that were ever made/ at the venues in your city, my records getting played/ Kendrick called last night, and asked for a feature/ my photo shoots packed with some Japanese divas/ (wake yo ass up!) damn, back to my real life/ what I do for a living doesn’t even feel right/ trapped in a meeting writing verses in my head/ I should be out touring in Europe, but instead/ my bitch of a boss, writing me a reprimand/ if I get one more, I’m fired so I’m stressing fam/ lemme get you tea, ah! mix it with some Diprivan/ kill all the cameras, return with some weapons (blam!)/ I ain’t even serious, my dreams and my nightmares/ always influence the rhyme schemes that I write here/ we respected for the way we rep on the mic/ but we speak for real people with some regular lives/”

Chorus (repeat x 2):