Straight Outta Locash, Crazy Mutha... Right into the Summer!

By late summer of 1993, Hip Hop wasn't just music, it was the culture — my blueprint. That golden era delivered some of the most recognizable, generation defining artists of all time. Tupac Shakur, Cypress Hill, Scarface, and Eazy-E. They weren't just shaping music, they were shaping the culture. 

They were also shaping my teenage identity. Chest out, a little extra slow in the walk, a little bit low in the jeans, shoes with the laces untied… the details bro!! We head out on a beautiful summer day. Me, my older brother and my first cousin. Open the doors of Superior Video, throw Major a head nod, and then we see it on the wall. 

Three letters, in blood red, C B 4. Chris Rock with a mouth full of grills puffing up his upper lip, an Ice Cube jheri curl still dripping, and the tag on the top right of the cover that said, “Sex, Rap, and family values?”  Little did we know this VHS was going to become a repository of inside jokes for life. 

Reliving this moment in time made me remember how much excitement we felt grabbing the VHS and walking up to the counter. Normally you'd have to have someone with you that was over 18 to get R-rated content. But we had the plug… Major. This was our spot! Our guy knew we weren't knuckleheads and in a way we were our own version of CB4. Three suburban kids, who fell in love with Hip Hop, but weren't tough guys, or gangsters and unlike the movie, our cosplaying had no stakes.  

Enter Chris Rock - a once-in-a-generation talent . Not only did he star in the movie but along with hip hop journalist Nelson George and Robert Locash (BASEketball, High School High) he also wrote the movie. A sharp, satirical take on outrageous gangster rap tropes, and also introduced the world to the late, great Charlie Murphy.

By the time the film had released on VHS in September we had already had a few months to marinate with the soundtrack. Released by MCA records and featuring future legends Public Enemy, Boogie Down Productions, MC Ren, Blackstreet — and an unknown trio of rappers that formed the fictional group CB4, featuring Chris Rock, Daddy-O and Hi-C dropping lyrics that would make a grown man blush. 

The film opens on a sunny day in the west coast somewhere in California. Chris Elliott (Kingpin, Scary Movie 2 & 4) plays the mockumentary filmmaker that gets to spend a day in the life with the hip hop supergroup CB4 played by Chris Rock (MC Gusto), Allen Payne (Dead Mike), and Deezer D (Stab Master Arson)

On the surface this film could be written off as a goofy, over the top, gratuitously violent and cuss-filled parade of nonsense. But then you didn't see it you just watched. This is a layered, angry, yet comical take on artists striving to maintain credibility, and social relevance all while making a living and not selling out. 

Shot in a reality tv/documentary style footage, cinematographer Karl Walter Lindenlaub (Universal Soldier, Star Gate) made great decisions utilizing the backdrop of California to make you feel the sunny, warm vibes — even while there's a storm of tension and chaos brewing. 

At just 90 minutes and a budget of 6 million dollars, this film exceeded all expectations. It didn't break any records but pulling in just under 18 million at the box office, tripling its budget is no joke. It also went onto become a cult classic across hip hop culture and is responsible for a myriad of memes that has maintained its cultural relevance.

We get to see the make-up, break-up, and maybe a make-up again of this maligned supergroup. With three hilarious side mission solo careers which to this day has me quoting Dead Mike (Allen Payne) “Cause I'm black y'all, and I'm black yall,”  and I'm not black, but I'm still cosplaying it. 

Coming off the success of the Dr. Dre & Ed Lover film Who's the Man, CB4 created a legion of films that were hip hop inspired and were hugely successful in the 90s. But CB4 will always have a different credibility because of the cameos. Not just your run of the mill guest appearances. The list of Hip Hop royalty that appears in this is ruthless, including an incredibly rare sighting of Eazy-E (RIP), which flashes a glimpse of what could've been from the immensely talented entrepreneur. 

The 90s. Those summers. The feeling, the vibes, the sun on your skin, it's almost like I can smell, see and touch the moments. That's what makes summer special, the way it makes you feel, and the movies you get to take in within those moments make them immovable from your memory. That's what CB4 is to me. Not just a movie but a time capsule, an immovable memory that always brings the nostalgia of summer.