Steve Gee97 said
Hammer looked out for his city, gave cats jobs and took em on tour, and he made fun music in the crack era.....
Yet,Hip Hop gave him their a$s to kiss.
Respect to Hammer for not forgetting where he came from unlike most rappers
YOU HAD TO BE THERE....
And I don't mean Oakland cause hell I ain't ever been, but the young cats don't realize we didn't have internet and podcast and sh1t, we had The Source magazine and what was on TV so just like us the rappers we "followed" at the time hadn't realized that everything on TV is IMAGE and BS and that the industry they worked in was "sold out" so there was some "jealousy" or simply misunderstanding of his success...
Now that I'm older and heard the interviews, heard the podcast and UNDERSTAND this world we live in a little better I have NOTHING and would never say anything bad about Hammer even though younger me was just as ignant as his "peers"...
Like he became a running joke "ahhh this nicca went broke...", "ahhhh he's stupid, spent all that money"...etc as the media painted that narrative but to hear him in an interview talk about how he would call home from tour and find out friends are dead, so and so locked up, so and so sells dope etc,
he legit tried to put the hood on his back...he made a conscience decision to put guys on payroll, take guys with him on these tours, attempt to use his wealth and his influence to make his COMMUNITY BETTER and he got sh1tted on for it in real time...