2 years ago

167

Locksmith talks about his early days in the battle scene, the Bay Area, his place in the industry, and much more!

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00:00 Intro
1:11 - Growing up in the 80s and 90s in Richmond, CA
3:01 - Growing up poor with a black mom and middle eastern dad
13:13 - Locksmith’s older sister was a conscious rapper
20:05 - Locksmith lost an Unsigned Hype article in The Source to Eminem
24:35 - How Locksmith accidentally entered his first battle and got the name Locksmith
30:32 - Going on The Wake Up Show with Sway
35:50 - Winning the KMEO Battles for 4 weeks straight
39:05 - How Locksmith made it to MTV Battles in 2003
44:02 - Locksmith remembers losing to Reignman in the finals of MTV Battles in 2003
50:15 - Lush battled the fake Locksmith
51:45 - Experiencing fame for the first time after the MTV Battle
52:25 - How Locksmith connected with E-A-Ski to produce his first radio hit “What Is It”
58:42 - Remembering the New Bay Movement Show at Sweet Jimmy’s in 2003 with Mistah Fab, Balance, J Dandridge, etc.
1:02:10 - Locksmith says Keak da Sneak was the biggest thing in the Bay
1:04:35 - Starting to make money off rap and signing his first record deal
1:07:00 - Locksmith remembers discovering Smack DVD and Fight Club in NY and did his first battle against Iron Solomon
1:12:22 - Locksmith describes what it was like being a lyrical rapper during the hyphy movement
1:14:08 - Connecting with Mac Dre in 2001. Remembering the legacy of Mac Dre as one of the hyphy legends
1:21:36 - Locksmith on not being hyphy and how the New Bay Movement led to the hyphy movement
1:25:02 - Throwing shots at hyphy on “The Truth” from the last Frontline album
1:30:00 - Locksmith gives E-A-Ski his flowers and explains why they grew apart
1:33:00 - Breaking down the connection between Camp Lo, Ski Beatz and Jay-Z
1:37:18 - Locksmith explains why he’s not that interested in battling anymore
1:41:55 - Reflecting on the trauma that led to “Hardest Song Ever” and the impact it has on fans
1:55:44 - Locksmith reacts to the passing of Takeoff and new wave of rappers dying
2:01:33 - How gentrification has affected the Bay Area