By sweeneykovar | January 27th, 2013
This past December, the good folks at Blisswave routed a tour of the Pacific Northwest that would make any underground hip-hop head anywhere in the world salty with envy: Guilty Simpson headlining backed by his longtime friend and collaborator House Shoes, supported by Samiyam and Knxwledge.
Yours truly was lucky enough to tag along as an unofficial roadie and official blunt roller. In a smokey European-style van, we trekked from San Francisco to Seattle, making stops in Sacramento and Portland along the way. The shows went well; the crowds were enthusiastic, responding well to the rap sets as well as the instrumental parts of the show.
During the run, I got a chance to build with one of the finest MCs from The D, one of the most hallowed cities in hip-hop. I asked Guilt to list out his top five favorite hip-hop joints from the year, and he quickly obliged. The list includes his brethren Sean Price and throwback wonderkid Roc Marciano, as well as newcomer Quelle and material from Guilty’s own 2012 output.
When you’re done checking out the playlist, peep the recap video of the tour, shot and edited in house by Blisswave.