So as the end of the week rolls around, I, much to the dismay of pretty much everyone else, start to dig in my musical closet for some dusty old track to spit-shine and bump REALLY REALLY LOUD. This week, you can't beat The Pharcyde's classic, "Ya Mama". First I need to preface this by saying it was a near-impossible task to pick just one song from the group's 1992 classic Bizarre Ride II. There isn't a single bad song on this album, and every one has been my favorite at some point. You can't beat that consistency.
These Cali boys could not match II, but they helped to bring a Native Tongues-style Afrocentrism to the West Coast during the height of the G-Funk era. Amid rappers centered around Compton, 64's, 8 Balls, and Indo-nesia, The Pharcyde went the opposite route and were simply silly. And it's perfectly encapsulated in "Ya Mama".
With lightning-quick rhymes about peg legs with kickstands and Afros with chinstraps, this quartet endeared themselves to me as some of the more lovable rhymers that side of the Mississippi. They are a group of talented dudes having fun, and they are always available when I don't feel like hearing raps about which shorty got pistol-whipped that day.
So watch the video, cop the album, pull out those rosaries and pray for the day when someone even close to their talent decides to bring hip-hop back to its golden age of irreverence and fun.
For: people who smile at least once every other day.
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