Looks like we got another dose from NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series this week, the spotlight is not only on the legendary West Coast hip-hop ensemble, Cypress Hill, but also on a few of our favorite homegrown musicians hailing from Richmond. This killer set, along with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, was cherry-on-top blessed with accomplished horn players Reggie Pace, John Hulley, and Sam Koch from our city legends No BS! Brass out there backing the group.
It was an overdue debut on the Tiny Desk for the Cypress Hill luminaries — B-Real, Sen Dog, and Eric Bobo — who demonstrated their magnetic stage presence alongside their stalwart bandmates DJ Lord and Money Mark along with background stories a lot of people hadn’t heard before.
The Cypress Hill team, undeterred by the passage of time, revisited some of their classic hits from their 1991 debut album, including “When the Shit Goes Down,” “Hand On the Pump,” “How I Could Just Kill a Man,” “(Rap) Superstar,” and “Insane in the Brain.” The ensemble’s 30-minute set was a rhythmic whirlwind, supercharged by the vibrant performances of the Richmond brass contingent.
Cypress Hill, widely regarded as pioneers in the hip-hop world, have also made strides in achieving broad cultural representation, being the first Latino hip-hop group to earn platinum and multi-platinum status. Their unique soundscape, shaped in the ’90s by B-Real, Sen, and DJ Muggs, transcended regional boundaries, delivering a dark, psychedelic melody that, at times, addressed mental health issues with candor, long before such discourse became commonplace.
