West Coast rap legend Kokane is bringing G-Funk back to the attention of the music industry on his new album, King of GFunk. He says in an episode of Unique Access that as he’s been in the game for more than two decades, he appreciates the new generation saluting the originators of G-Funk.
“I’m just thankful that some of those youngsters are really going back to those G-Funk elements, YGs, Kendrick Lamars, Nipsey Hussles,” he shares. “It’s always good because whether you young out there doing your thing, I won’t knock your hustle or whether you’re OG, but music is music, no matter if you’re nine or no matter if you’re 79 years old. And we were able to come up with a good project that reintroduced those elements that really helped pave the way from what genre of music we come from, from old West Coast and outside the West Coast.”
King of G-Funk, a double-disc project, boasts features from several respected MCs over a classic G-Funk soundscape provided by Battle Cat, Westcoast Stone and Theory Hazit. Album standout “Plastic Surgery” features one of Kokane’s favorite rappers, Short Khop.
“I just wanted to take it back to the elements, there’s slaps,” Kokane says. “We put that together, we wanted to make up something that was really metaphoric. Not just talking about plastic surgery, but just talking about just fake shit in general. And we bust that record wide open.”
Kokane explains his pure love for music has allowed him to keep creating with his friends in the group Diirty OGz, his cousin Cold 187um and Xzibit. As he approaches the age of 50, he feels he’s reaching his prime, not losing his touch.
“I think just staying hungry, staying passionate about the music, not getting distracted, not getting distracted by money or anything,” he says. “You know, just sticking to the script.”
Working with Bootsy Collins on “Forty Below” and George Clinton on “Diplomatic” gave Kokane extra joy in creating the project. Having his longtime friends and his lifelong inspirations all together brought his career full circle.
“It’s a dream come true,” Kokane says. “Who’s the biggest in the industry? We all, especially coming from the West Coast, we all grew up on Bootsy Collins, George Clinton, Parliament [Funkadelic], and James Brown and all that funk stuff. … There’s certain points in your career to where you really feel like, ‘Ok, I have achieved something.’ Because it’s good to always honor those that paved the way.”
As for his own legacy, Kokane thanks his father who was a writer and composer for Motown. He also gives credit to Cold 187um and Ruthless Records, including Eazy-E and Dr. Dre, who welcomed him into the rising rap empire.
“I never did say, ‘Ok. I’m not making it. I’m not making it,'” he reflects. “It wasn’t about making it. It was more about music. It wasn’t about fame. It was more about the people, getting this music out there.”