Eight Years After His Death, The Jacka Lives On Through Bay Area Hip Hop Culture
Bay Area rap artist The Jacka emerged in the late 1990s as part of the Mob Figaz collective. I remember being exposed to Jacka on Sacramento rapper C-Bo’s “Til My Casket Drops” album in 1998. After listening to this albums first track, it was clear as day that Jacka was going somewhere with his music. All the Mob Figaz were dope on this release, and are considered one of the greatest groups to come from the Bay Area.
Growing up, Jacka spent time in various places throughout California. He had been in Oakland, Richmond, Stockton, Pittsburg, and Los Angeles. Both Oakland and Pittsburg claim The Jacka as one of their biggest cultural icons in the Bay Area rap movement.
After years of grinding it out with group projects, solo releases, collaboration albums, and features, it finally became Jacka’s time. The Jacka evolved into a solo star with gritty street albums like 2005’s The Jack Artist.
In 2009, he had his biggest hit, Tear Gas, which reached Number 12 on Billboard‘s R&B Albums chart, delivering the regional anthem, “Glamorous Lifestyle” with San Francisco rap legend Andre Nickatina.
On February 2, 2015, he was fatally shot by an unidentified gunman in Oakland, CA on 94th Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard. Before his untimely passing, Jacka owned his own record label named The Artist Records.
The Jacka had worked with many, featuring and collaborating with artists from all over. He can be heard on tracks with Messy Marv, Guce, Rob Lo, Lee Major’s, former Roc-A-Fella Records recording artist Freeway, Blanco, C-DUBB, SpenDoe, Yukmouth, C-Bo, San Quinn, Traxamillion (RIP), The Mekanix, the Mob Figaz collective (Husaluh, AP.9, Fed-X, and Ridah J Klyde), and many others.
Here are some albums to check out, if you aren’t too familiar with Jacka’s music:
- - C-Bo’s Mob Figaz
- - The Jacka of the Mob Figaz
- - The Street Album (U.S. R&B #80)
- - Tear Gas (U.S. #93)
- - Flight Risk (U.S. R&B #70)
- - Highway Robbery (with Freeway)
May his music live on, forever.
