*On FX’s The Drop: A Snowfall Saga, Lamar, James and Artillery are chasing opportunity in a Los Angeles music scene that hasn’t yet become the billion-dollar West Coast rap machine history remembers.
For Asante Blackk, who plays Lamar Kinsey, that uncertainty is essential to understanding the young characters.
“There is no plan,” Blackk told EUR. “These are just some young Black kids in the neighborhood, literally just trying to be successful.”
Lamar may have talent, but Blackk says he is still learning what to do with it.
“Lamar has no idea what he’s doing,” he explained. “He’s never been able to express himself in this free way that he is now finally allowing himself to step outside of this box.”
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Simmie “Buddy” Sims III, who plays Artillery, sees his character as driven as much by expression as by strategy.
“Artillery has little to no concern for what people think about him or how he is perceived,” Sims said. “He is solely expressing himself the best way he knows how.”
Meanwhile, Peyton Alex Smith says James is fighting a different battle: figuring out who he is outside of the streets while also trying to protect his younger brother.
“James’ whole thing is figuring out who he is,” Smith said, explaining that James is searching for a new sense of structure while moving away from the life that previously defined him.
Behind the scenes, creator Malcolm Spellman and the show’s music team were equally focused on making sure the world surrounding those characters felt authentically early-’90s.
Love Rance pointed to breakbeats, bass lines and live scratches used to recreate the period’s sound, while Problem said even the language had to remain locked to 1991.
“We make sure we stay in pocket and don’t go ahead of the year that we’re writing about,” Problem explained, adding that the team stayed connected to artists who lived through the era.
Spellman also brought part of his Bay Area upbringing into Lamar. Growing up in Berkeley before moving to Los Angeles, he described LA as a culture shock and said he used some of that Berkeley-Oakland perspective in Lamar’s consciousness.
But Glasses Malone says one element of early-’90s LA is often left out of the mythology: love.
“The truth is, we did love each other,” Malone said. “Love got us through a lot of these days, even if we don’t acknowledge it.”
The Drop: A Snowfall Saga airs Tuesdays at 9 PM ET/PT on FX and streams on Hulu. It is also available internationally on Disney+.
Jill Munroe is a Los Angeles-bred entertainment journalist, producer, and host. Follow her socials @StilettoJill or visit JillMunroe.com. Catch her live M-Thu on KBLA Talk 1580 from 6PM to 7PM.
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