Scarface picks his favourite rap albums of all time
Scarface pioneered Houston rap and was one of the first hip-hop exports of Texas. From the frontman of the Geto Boys to a prolific solo artist, he has had an illustrious career. However, before he burst onto the scene and became the icon he is now, he was listening to a range of artists who helped develop his style.
Scarface and the Geto Boys’ origins are firmly in the late 1980s. To this day, they are known as one of the first mainstream hip-hop groups from the South. As such, the rap of this decade shaped Scarface and his crewmates, Willie D and Bushwick Bill.
As a pioneer of Southern rap, Scarface has had a long and compelling career full of twists and turns that have seen him grow from a small Texan emcee to a versatile lyricist capable of adapting to a range of styles.
From New York to California, Southern artists looked to several regions of the US before putting their own unique spin on the burgeoning scene that was gathering momentum. As such, Texas MCs such as Scarface were highly aware, musically, of all the different movements that were popping up across America.
In a sit-down interview, Scarface reflected on his career, spoke about his adolescent life in Houston’s Fifth Ward and unveiled some of the albums and performers that inspired him to get into rap and informed his lyrical style.
He also spoke about some of the newer music that has been released, the artists that he loves, and some of his gripes with contemporary MCs, their material and the kind of music that is allowed to come to the forefront.
Opening up about his early love for New York hip-hop, Scarface unveiled that one of the groups that stood out to him was A Tribe Called Quest. More specifically, their 1990 project, People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm. Detailing the impact they had on him, Scarface explained, “A Tribe Called Quest really made me want to rap. It was already cool to talk about hustling, but it was better to talk about hustling skillfully.”
As well as the East Coast collective, Scarface shared how California artists of the same era shaped the South, recalling, “Along with Tribe, Richie Rich, MC Eiht, and Spice 1 were the guys that helped really mould that vibe for us. They talked about the streets like nobody had ever talked about them before.”
The Texan also explained how the early days have now tainted his perception of current music, stating, “That’s why I’ve been questioning the way I feel about the new music because it all sounds the same. Back then, you knew exactly who you were listening to. Now, you don’t know. Is that Lil so-and-so? Nah, that’s Big so-and-so. I don’t think this shit is policed the way it used to be. There was a time when, if you put out some dumb shit, they’d whip your muthafuckin’ ass!”
“I was straight listening to rap at 15: LL Cool J, the Skinny Boys, Whistle, UTFO. And Run-D.M.C.’s debut was at the top of my list. I wasn’t rapping myself yet. I wanted to be a DJ like Eric B, Jam Master Jay, Scott La Rock, Marley Marl, Grandmaster Dee, and because it seemed like it was the DJs who controlled the MCs—they were the heart of the group.”
He continued, “It wasn’t till later that the MCs started to control the DJs. [We loved tracks like] ‘Freaky Tales,’ [Boogie Down Productions’] ‘9mm Goes Bang,’ and [Public Enemy’s] ‘Bring the Noise.’ We felt that shit because we understood what it meant.”
You can listen to Scarface’s two favourite rap albums of all time below.