Let’s take it back to the old school for a minute.
Jus Family Records was the only local label I knew of growing up, and that was really cool to me because they only made street music. A testament to their staying power, the label continues to operate to this day with Cool Nutz, Bosko and Maniac Lok at the helm.
1997 was a wild year for hip-hop. Biggie died, Wu Tang dropped Forever, Jigga dropped Vol. 1 and became my favorite rapper alive. But not to be forgotten, was a double disc – remember those? – called Western Conference All-Starz that, for me, was a solid introduction to Portland rap.
Well, the good people at Jus Family decided to re-release that album this week, making it available to stream on YouTube and Apple Music, and for real supporters, you can also make a purchase on Cool Nutz’ Bandcamp.
So take trip down memory lane one time and revisit tracks from Bosko, Kenny Mack, Kan’t Be Caught, DJ Wicked and a host of other Portland legends.