Brooklyn's GS9 crew hails from a stretch of East Flatbush referred to locally as "The 90s"--infamous intersections known for quick action and thick gang presence. In his breakout video "Hot Nigga," GS9's Bobby Shmurda mobs out on Clarkson Ave in blue G-Star sweats and a Knicks fitted, spitting charismatic raps about selling crack since the 5th grade--not to mention the "Shmoney Dance," a diddy-bop that's made Bobby Vine famous in recent days, laid over everything from classic Bad Boy singles to gospel choirs. Elsewhere on the crew's Shmoney Shmurda Shmixtape, released this week, Flatbush landmarks and slang are shouted loud: Don't make Kings County have another patient / all them zoes I bought with me, bitch them niggas Haitian / no green cards, don't call immigration, Rowdy Rebel spits on "Shyste Time," a tribute to their fallen comrade (the "Sh" prefix is a nod to his name). The crew have definitely caught the city's attention: "Hot Nigga" has been banging at local parties throughout Brooklyn for weeks, and both Hot 97 and Power 105.1 have sniffed out the single. Comparisons have been made to Chicago's "drill" sound, but there may be more overlap in perspective than style: street-level narratives from the mouths of the youth that live and die through them, presented to a public that may have never otherwise noticed.
