Young Sham wows Bay Area hip hop underground
By Aitor Zabalegui
In his latest release, the "ShamWow! EP," Young Sham professes, "West Coast take no make-ups or apologies, said if you goin' bring it, bring it back and bring it properly." Sham, born Brian Green, was raised in Oakland and has developed a reputation as a respected emcee in the Bay Area underground hip hop scene. He also happens to be a communication major at Santa Clara.
Green made his first mixtape when he was in the eighth grade and since then, has remained highly prolific and was touted as "The realest emcee from the Bay Area" by LavMagazine in 2008.
Young Sham's "Homerun" mixtape series was an original outlet for him before releasing his first street album, "Slaughter House." Green produces and mixes all of his material -- a process that he referred to as "straight independent grindin'" -- crafting his own beats which can range from heavily fierce to undeniably poppy.
Take "Play," a standout track on "ShamWow!" featuring slick production and a beat so full of hook it all comes out squeaky clean. It wouldn't be surprising to see it becoming a huge hit if Sham got the exposure a track of this quality deserves. "Play" isn't entirely indicative of Green's upbringing, though.
His other songs heavily draw upon his experiences on the streets of Oakland, rich with drugs, guns and gangs. Money flows righteously in the streets, which obviously impacted Green as he considers it a primary influence.
"When I listen to my old stuff, I can see my growth and the stages I was at and that reminds me of all the work I've put in to get where I am," he said, clearly appreciative of the cathartic outlet music has given him in life.
Talking about his lyrical message, Green mentioned frankly, "My message is me. For anyone that listens to my music, I just want them to feel the vibe of what I go through, from the lyrics I choose to say to the beats I choose to use. All in all, I just want people to love the music."
There are different degrees of appreciation as Green notes a difference in the vibe from his hometown East Bay crowd and people whom he humorously deemed as "more structured" in the South Bay.
Though Green has been doing the majority of his shows in the South Bay lately, while he attends school, he intends to return to his home base of Oakland to further pursue his rap career post-grad. He's already had major label offers, but has passed on all of them to ensure finishing his degree.
Another Young Sham EP is currently in the works along with a couple of music videos Green would only preview as "Smackin'."
As far as musical influences go, Sham didn't have much to say about current mainstream hip hop.
"My genre done changed up," he said bluntly, "Lot of the music I used to listen to isn't the same anymore. It doesn't give me the same inspiration so I gotta broaden my horizons and listen to everything that comes my way just for the love of music."
Interestingly enough, one of Sham's old influences, Jay-Z, has said the same thing about the current state of hip hop. Nevertheless, the underground scene has remained as hungry as ever, a trait which can be seen in the talented Green as he prepares to make his mark in the industry on his own terms.
The "ShamWow! EP" along with some of Sham's mixtapes are available at his Myspace page: http://www.myspace.com/youngsham.
Contact Aitor Zabalegui at azabalegui@scu.edu or at (408)554-1918.
r4l3_opt.jpegr4l4_opt.jpegr4l%206_opt.jpegr4l2_opt.jpegr4l_opt.jpeg