Joe Blow is a fake. Dude is from Antioch repping Oakland. The fact he had beef with AWAX further solidifies that. No one outside of East County givesa flying fuck about an AWAX beef.
I've lived all over the Bay Area, but I've spent the majority of my life between Oakland and Martinez, currently in Vallejo.
Other places I've lived:
Daly City
Concord
Pleasant Hill
It didn't seem any worse than Concord. I went to San Jose for a Craiglist trade and it was in Alum Rock, people...
Vallejo is kinda street by street, it's not like most cities where one side is bad and the other is good. One street here will be nice, the other one will be fucked. Even The Crest has some nice places if you go up the hill.
I can see it happening, it's smack dab between Napa Valley and San Francisco and since it's bayshore, it has a breeze. But people are still pretty scared to be here. I moved here from Concord and and some friends won't visit because of the reputation.
I live in Vallejo. Trust me, it's not gentrified. I wish the stuff you were saying about Vallejo was true. Last year Vallejo had 14 homicides, and several other shootings that weren't fatal.
Richmond and Vallejo haven't gentrified, and a ton of talent is coming out of Vallejo. So to say the Bay is dead isn't fair. Also Antioch rap is coming, watch. Mike Sherm is just the beginning for East County. San Francisco rap is on its deathbed, and Oakland is on thin ice, but Richmond...
I think Berner is a horrible rapper. I respect him as a businessman, but he has no flow or charisma. That's just my personal opinion. If people like his music, they like his music. (y)
Looking back at this thread, it's clear whose career turned out for the better. I love A-Wax, but his street mentality has ruined his shot at success. Vlad is a household name, Wax is still up and coming. Shit's true.
San Francisco had the best rap in the Bay during the 90s and early 2000s. Oakland and Vallejo were vying for second place, but there's no album out there that's as solid as Mr. Predicter, or catalog as interesting as Andre Nickatina's.