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Bay Area hip-hop, with its unique style, slang and sound, has long been a pioneering force within the genre. Casual fans may be most familiar with the explosion of the hyphy movement in the 2000s, but the scope of the Bay’s influence goes back much further than that and continues to expand on the foundations laid by the scene’s legends including Hieroglyphics, Souls of Mischief, Mac Dre, Andre Nickatina, E-40, Too $hort, The Jacka (RIP) and many more. San Francisco native, A-1, has been carrying on that legacy for quite some time pushing the music of his predecessors forward all the while fusing elements of electronic music into his sound. As he prepares for his upcoming album, A-1 has been putting out new content every Thursday and we’re excited to be premiering the latest in that series.

“Doing the Most,” titled after a common Bay Area term for letting your guard down and being yourself to the fullest, features a minimal instrumental driven by steel drums, rolling percussion and rumbling 808s crafted by fellow San Francisco natives Left Lane and Soulection‘s Mikos Da Gawd. The backdrop fits A-1’s style to a key and, unsurprisingly, everything about the track is delightfully Bay, from the lyrics and production to A-1’s vocal inflections and delivery. Although “Doing the Most” definitely fits the party vibe, there are more serious undertones about being proud of who you are in the song, further enforced by an airy, thought-provoking monologue about the human experience during the outro. It comes as little surprise that Mac Dre served as an inspiration for this track, and more broadly for A-1’s music–read what he has to say about the late legend below:

Slap this one above and look out for more tracks from A-1 in the coming weeks leading up to the release of his album, Thurlian, on March 5th. Head to A-1’s website for some more content and info.