G4TV

Los Angeles is often thought of as gangland central when it comes to hip hop. From N.W.A. to Snoop Dogg to The Game, west coast MCs have always been known to spit tales of violence, Crips and Bloods. But not everyone. For every Dogg Pound, there was The Pharcyde and Ugly Duckling. For every South Central Cartel, a Jurassic 5 and Dilated Peoples. And People Under The Stairs proudly help carry on the post-A Tribe Called Quest backpacker tradition out here in SoCal …and are takin’ it ‘round the world.

Formed in 1998, and over four albums deep, rappers Thes One and Double K tour constantly and rock the stage mightily. Ya see, they came up in the golden era of Los Angeles hip hop, the days of The Good Life, Project Blow’d, Unity and Freestyle Fellowship, as is evident on their latest platter, the awesomely titled Fun DMC.

At the Engine Room in Hollywood, Thes One and Double K went hard over a funky Golden Hour beat, rappin’ about videogames old and new, and even giving out a few retro school cheats in the process. They were clearly going off the dome and having a blast doin’ it. And watch out fans of Mortal Combat and Tekken, ‘cause the boys have some controversial words for you.

If you like People Under The Stairs, make sure to check out Freestyle 101s with fellow west coast underground vets Del, Murs, LMNO, Busdriver, Pigeon John, and Freestyle Fellowship members Aceyalone, Myka 9, and P.E.A.C.E.. Freestyle 101 goes up every Tuesday at 9 a.m. PST (except this week of course...long story). Check us on Facebook and MySpace, rant in the Forums or dig our photo gallery. Up next is Sen Dog of Cypress Hill, Wu Tang's Cappadonna, Teflon, Charli 2Na and more.