Dallas rapper BigXthaPlug continues to solidify himself as one of the biggest artists coming out of Texas. Last year, he dipped his toes into the waters of country music, earning cosigns and collabs from some of the genre’s biggest stars with I Hope You’re Happy. Now he is putting North Texas rap on the map and showcasing the region’s best and brightest rappers on a new G-Funk-inspired mixtape, 6WA. 

Invoking the iconic late ’80s Los Angeles Rap outfit NWA, 6WA is produced by BigXthaPlug’s 600 Entertainment record label and showcases the label’s roster of talented North Texas rappers. Paris, Texas rapper Ro$ama, Fort Worth’s MurdaGang PB and North Dallas’ Yung Hood feature on the tape alongside BigX. 

The mixtape cover features BigX and his newly formed rap posse decked out in black, paying tribute to the legendary album cover of NWA’s debut album Straight Outta Compton. The NWA and West Coast love only begins there, as the album is heavy on the G-Funk tunes mixed with some Texas bang. (G-Funk is the West Coast subgenre of gangster rap, gangster funk popularized by albums like Dr. Dre’s The Chronic.) It’s not some one song gimmick but actually a full tape of North Texas rhymes set to G-Funk and trap. 

The imagery and musical tribute of it all are very purposeful; 6WA serves as an announcement of a label and cohort of rappers to be reckoned with. Ro$ama, Yung Hood, and MurdaGang PB all show their strengths, and labelmates like KevanGotBandz and KaineMusic leave an impression in brief appearances. 

The tribute to and co-opting of NWA and all the different classic West Coast tracks like “6 in the Mornin'” by Ice-T and”It Was a Good Day” by Ice Cube give the overall project some more credibility in what it’s attempting to do. 

Solidifying the entire endeavor is the fact that the tape features a verse form West Coast legend Snoop Dog and legendary Dallas rapper and producer D.O.C, an influential voice and talent who influenced and contributed to the work of NWA and Dr. Dre. D.O.C is one of the prime connectons between West Coast rap and Southern rap, and his interlude where he is giving BigXthaPlug advice and praise extremely meaningful. 

“You doin’ big things for the city, Dallas and Fort Worth, ’cause it’s a DFW thing,” D.O.C says on “A WORD FROM THE D.O.C.” 

“My guys out there on the West Coast and how we did it, but this your time. This DFW time,” he continues on the song. 

Texas and West Coast rap have had a long history of cultural exchange. Early albums from Houston’s Scarface, hailed by many as “your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper,” was heavily inspired by G-Funk production as the backdrop to his extremely southern and cinematic storytelling style. In turn, Scarface would become a major influence on West Coast icon Tupac Shakur. Port Arthur’s UGK blended G-Funk-like synths with Texas blues, slowing down the tempo to fit the syrup-sipping vibe of Houston, creating the “country rap tunes” that catapulted Bun B and Pimp C into rap royalty. 

While BigX’s 6WA is telling the rap world that North Texas rap is to be reckoned with, it is also a reminder of how special regional sounds are and the cultural exchange that could exist within hip-hop, especially in a hip-hop world where the differences between different rap regions are so blurred. It’s paying homage to the past, but also prepping listeners for the future of Texas rap.