*There are times when individuals of great repute exist within the same timeframe but seldom within the same creative spaces. And, in the instances in which they do, rivalries both of ego and of artistry often emerge. With the creation of Mount Westmore, Ice Cube, E-40, Snoop Dogg and Too Short have taken their decades-long admiration for one another and formed a supergroup of some of the greatest Hip Hop artists that California has ever seen. Their moniker, Mount Westmore, is an homage to Mount Rushmore, which displays four of America’s most famous presidents.
A few weeks ago, EURweb was in attendance at a digital listening event that featured some of the biggest outlets in contemporary Hip Hop journalism. While Snoop Dogg never arrived, Cube, Too Short and E-40 appeared to be energized by the interest in their new project.
Ice Cube: I’ve been a part of three major groups in my career. NWA, Westside Connection, and now Mount Westmore. And I think this is just a great thing for hip hop in general to show. And after 35 years plus in the game, we all can still get together and form a group and do multiple albums together.
And I just think it’s good for hip hop outside of just being huge for the West Coast. I think it’s huge for every coast. Cause if you could picture Mount Eastmore Mount Southmore, you know, can kind of picture what could be done in the future with major artists when they get together and do something like this.
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The first song streamed for the audience was called ‘Too Big,’ a song that clearly harkens back to the aesthetics of a prior day while celebrating their contemporary lifestyles.
Ice Cube: Yeah, “Too Big.” It’s just a fun song. I’ll let Short talk about it. It’s just a fun song, you know, it has us coming in back to back to back. We thought the format was dope and we just think it is a great song that describes what we are pulling off here with Mount Westmore?
Too Short: It’s the song where we trade off bars the most. We all, everybody’s on every verse. So it’s not like the format of one of us doing eight bars and the other one doing eight or we doing 16 bars and doing our own verse.
This is a group verse. So, it gives it a little different vibe on that. Like you said, it’s a fun song. So before we really start just being the OGs that we are, we wanna just have a little fun, big subs.
A fun record, just a fun record. We kind of wanna break the ice a little bit and then we gonna get into it as a group. So this is some more of the good vibes.
Ice Cube: And so, we just think it’s a dope song to jump off this album. It’s a, we are having a lot of fun, talking a lot of shit. But we having a lot of fun with it too. Think that’s missing in hip hop right now. Everything seems kind of dark so it’s cool to have us all four on there. Getting down damn short.
E-40: We all good friends and been knowing each other 30 plus years and we all get along and then we all icons. What I’m saying our own way in our own, what I’m saying in this hip hop game, not just West coast but overall we brought so much to hip hop and the culture over the years.
Each one of us has played a big part some sort of way. You understand me? So basically these songs right here is we try to find that.
We don’t want it to sound like we trying to be hella new school and we ain’t trying to sound hella old school. We just wanted that happy medium where we give you that vintage, you know what I’m saying? That vintage sound that we got, but at the same time with a new school little twist to it. So we feel like we felt a happy medium with this particular record.
Ice Cube: E-40 set it off with the shit-talking tone and the rest of us just followed. So I think it’s another one of the ones with the energy. That’s all I’m saying. We try to have a little energy, we have a little fun little shit-talking spit a little game. This is one of the more higher energy shit-talking song. So have fun with it when you hear it.
E-40: Oh fam. No, it’s definitely a heat rock. I like that one. This next one is up down. This is one for all the women that have a hard time putting their jeans on or whatever kind of pants they and trying to get up.
Ice Cube: We got plenty of songs when we are spitting, talking shit this a song More conceptual kind of pointed in that direction. Got E 40 on the hook. I don’t think 40 has ever done a bad hook a day in his life. All his hooks of fire.
Yeah, I think we all have our songs where you know, just take off everybody got their verses I think and they songs where they just take off and it is one of em for me. Definitely.
Ice Cube: This next song is we, we’ve been in the game, like I said for a while, considered OGs in the game and to me, you know, gotta fulfill that role. You gotta lace people, you know what I mean?
We have always been really generous with our knowledge and our time when it comes to youngsters, whether they are in hip hop or just in the streets. And so this next song is called “Lace You Up” and it’s really about the OG spitting. Spitting the game to the youth, letting them know the pitfalls out there. And it’s a cool song. It’s what you expect from a group like us.
We can’t just be talking shit without giving up the game. That’s why I wanted y’all to hear free game. But you guys, hopefully, some of the guys may have a few things to say about “Lace You Up.”
Too Short: If you play the album in its entirety, it kind of goes along with all of our careers. Each one of us has a different style, different subjects we on, and different types of production.
But fans will tell you that all their lives listening to E 40, they learned a lot listening to two Short Ice Cube, learned a lot, learned a lot, bumping Snoop Dog, and just following Snoop Dog.
And I think that the album, even though the first few songs we played kind of just got vibes and shit, whatever talking shit when you listen to the album, it also is just like all our careers. It will teach you some things, it will remind you of some things, educate, motivate, all that stuff. So the next couple of songs are spitting some real shit and “Lace You Up” is just really an OG talking to the young homie, just game like bro, check this out. That’s it.
Too Short: Out of 50 songs that we made, and we did make 50 songs. This was one of the first, wasn’t it? This was way in the beginning.
This was early on. So I just feel like, to me, as I am listening to all the songs on the album, this is one of the ones that just before we even thought about anything, we were just making the early songs. This one of the ones that just came out the way it is and it’s one of my favorites. It’s definitely one of my favorites. What do you think Earl?
E-40: This one slap! This a classic. It’s forever to me. Yeah, it’s one of them ones. Definitely my favorite.
Too Short: I was dead ass serious about what I said on this song too.
Ice Cube: I ain’t ain’t gonna say this my favorite but it’s a dope ass song. Yeah, this is one of my favorites. We got some uptake
Too Short: That go crazy just when you get in the car and you play ’em loud as fuck. This is one of them ones that just, it does the speakers good.
Mount Westmore is slated to release their debut album on December 9th and is titled Snoop, Cube, 40, $hort. The irony of the project being released on Death Row Records does not escape us.
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