YS Describes The Compton Lifestyle, West Coast’s Rising Rappers And Talks New Album ‘Runway Baby’ (Interview)

Coming out of Compton, CA, young rapper YS is expressing the daily lifestyle of the streets and where he grew up in Campanella Park through his gritty music. He’s been in the game for some time and worked with some well-respected artists, however the rapper is ready to take off as an independent artist and drop some of his best music yet. And his latest project is just one of many.

Home Grown Radio‘s Carissa Diaz sat down with YS to talk about the Compton lifestyle, progressing his sound, up-and-coming Los Angeles artists holding it down for the West Coast and his new album Runway Baby.

YS represents Compton to the fullest, but his roots stem from Gardena, CA and eventually spread out to Compton, where he spent most of his time playing ball and enjoying his childhood with his aunt. It’s also where he picked up the street lifestyle that eventually changed him. He started rapping at age 13, and since then, rapping has been his focus.

In his music, fans are able to grasp an insight to the Compton lifestyle and what it’s like on a daily basis, but to be a rapper in the city, also means drawing all eyes on you.

“I just move [like] somebody’s always trying to do something to me because for one, I know who I am, and then I know I’m a rapper,” he said. “So like being a rapper, that’s the most dangerous job as of today’s date … because everyone knows who you are, they know your face, and you don’t really know everybody.”

The “Cannon” artist also shared that he tries not to be out too much or stay in a place too long because you never know who’s around you and what their intentions are. Since he’s taken off in his career, he’s noticed different relationships shift whether he outgrew people or they moved differently. YS wants to be mindful of who he surrounds himself with.

“I lost a lot of relationships due to my music, but certain things you just can’t control,” he said. “Certain people be hating for nothin’. Sometimes it’s not even just hating. Sometimes you just outgrow people,” he continued. “But I don’t ever wish [anybody] harm that I don’t deal with [anymore]. It’s all love still. You just got to pay attention to how everyone moves and what they do around you cause everything is a sign.”

When it comes to his sound, YS is not afraid to mix up his unique voice with old-school beats and melodic tunes while repping his city. The young rapper unexpectedly found his sound when he dropped songs like “Bompton” and “Welcome To Stanford,” that highlighted more of the gang side, which he expresses are just one of many ways he can rap. However, YS is looking to drop something soon that’s more heartfelt for the ladies, as he’s been perfecting his vocals.

As a West Coast rapper, YS would like to see up-and-coming artists get their moment to shine and receive the respect they deserve. He expressed that he feels that the East Coast shows love to their new artists but doesn’t feel the same about the West Coast. Instead, he believes that mainstream artists and the well-known L.A. pioneers, like Dom Kennedy, Kendrick Lamar, The Game, are most talked about rather than up-and-coming artists.

“[There’s] a lot of up-and-coming talent. This shit’s crazy,” he said. “I feel like the West Coast is finna come back, like it’s going to be all eyes on us again. Everybody [has] a different sound too. Everybody is on a different wave, or a different page, and it’s letting the fans sit back and pick who they want to listen to.”

Some of the up-and-coming artists he shared that are holding it down for West Coast are Wallie The Sensei, Babystone Gorillas, Big Sad 1900, Young Threat, Kee Riches, Mari Ruger, MoneySign Suede and many more. YS also took time to show respect to rapper Mozzy, in which he expressed Mozzy collabs with both local L.A. talent and mainstream. The Runway Baby artist shared that the two rappers have two songs they worked on and a music video, which we can expect very soon in the next few months.

YS’ latest project Runway Baby’s is digging into the summertime in L.A. and the young rapper’s home grounds. The title itself explains the project perfectly as YS shared that “Runway” is a take on what they call the driveway when you pull into a complex and “baby” because he was raised there. The cover art also plays a role in that, as artist, Matt Castro, showcased YS in a cartoon form in front of his apartments with a red “runway” leading up to it.

“It’s really for summer, and it’s on some stuff like, ‘pay attention to everywhere you go. The summer is lit. The summer is turnt. The West Coast is dangerous, pay attention,’” he said. “And it’s really like music to get you turnt up.”

Runway Baby is completely YS with no features on the 16-track album. It’s currently out on streaming platforms and you can check it out below.