Stayin’ strong

By Star-Bulletin staff
features@starbulletin.com

SNOOP Dogg might be the biggest name in the rap game to hail from Long Beach, Calif., but Warren G is the undisputed king of the city -- and he's got the key to prove it.

Born Warren Griffin III, the 33-year-old was honored last week when Mayor Beverly O'Neall

declared Aug. 1 to 6 "Warren G Week," and presented him with a commemorative key. The award follows just weeks after being recognized for his work with a local youth midnight basketball league, and was an-nounced in conjunction with an academic enrichment program he founded with the help of NFL football player (and fellow Long Beach native) Willie McGinest.

Warren G
Where: Kapono's, Aloha Tower Marketplace
When: 7 p.m. Saturday
Tickets: $30
Call: 536-2100

Such family-friendly behavior is a far cry from the sunshine, spliffs and lowrider switches that went hand-in-hand with Warren G's reputation as one of the originators of "Gangsta Funk," a style of hip-hop made popular a decade ago in Southern California.

Oahu residents will get a chance to hear material from his first new album in four years tomorrow at Kapono's, when the rapper headlines a concert sponsored by Washington-based label Hawino Records.

GROWING UP in Long Beach wasn't easy for Warren G, who had his share of run-ins with the law over his involvement with gangs and drugs, and the types of crime associated with that lifestyle.

Along with childhood buddy Nate Dogg and Nate's cousin Snoop, the three high school classmates vowed to make a positive change in their lives. The vehicle for that change was hip-hop, and they were able to persuade a local record store to allow them use of a makeshift studio to cut demo tracks.

Using the name 213 (after their home area code), the trio started to get serious about making music. The year was 1991, and the West Coast was in the midst of its rise to prominence. At the same time, Warren G's stepbrother Dr. Dre was blowing up as a member of the gangsta rap supergroup N.W.A.

For months, Warren G had tried to get Dre to listen to their demo without much success. As the story goes, he got creative one night at a party and slipped a 213 tape to the DJ, who laced it into his mix.

When Dre heard Snoop's laid-back rhymes, the seed was planted. The two started working together soon after, releasing the single "Deep Cover" and collaborating on Dre's landmark 1992 solo debut, "The Chronic."

art
COURTESY OF HAWINO RECORDS
Warren G's new album, "In the Mid-Nite Hour," gives voice to serious topics such as racism and freeway violence.

Before 213 could ink a deal as a group, Dre signed Snoop and Nate to solo deals with Death Row Records. Warren decided that he wanted to make a name for himself outside of his stepbrother's shadow. Signing a deal with Def Jam about a year later, he released his own debut album in 1994.

"Regulate ... G Funk Era" was a multi-platinum success, largely due to the mainstream hit "Regulate" that he recorded with Nate Dogg and had included on the soundtrack for the movie "Above the Rim."

The next decade would see Warren G drop three more albums, the latest being 2001's "Return of the Regulator." He also reunited with Snoop Dogg and Nate Dogg as 213 last year to release "The Hard Way," which enjoyed modest success.

NOW SIGNED to Hawino Records, a Washington-based label run by former Hawaii resident Kyle Gilmore, Warren G arrives in Honolulu to begin promoting his new album. "In the Mid-Nite Hour" is set for release on Sept. 27, and promises more of the laid-back G-Funk stylings that have made him popular among millions of fans.

But if the first single to be released, "Get U Down," is any indication, the rapper might have decided to take a slightly more serious approach to his music this time around. Instead of keeping things light, his verses speak on issues such as racism, freeway violence, the price of gas and the struggle of single parents. The overriding message is one of perseverance, with Warren G encouraging his fans to "stay strong" as they face life's challenges.

Also making the trip to Hawaii are B Real and Sen Dog, original members of the group Cypress Hill. Both artists are part of the Hawino family, with B Real working as a solo act and Sen Dog teaming up with his brother Mellow Man Ace to record as The Reyes Brothers.

Strapt, a Los Angeles-based hip-hop/hardcore rock band, rounds out the lineup Saturday at Kapono's.

Hawino Records
www.hawino.com