Thug Life Army

Bay Area rap artist Esbee will be accepting the Hall Of Fame Award at the Bay Area Rap Scene (BARS) Awards on December 2nd in honor of his late brother, hip hop rap artist Cougnut. The awards will be held at the San Mateo Expo at 3:00 pm on Saturday. 

Esbee’s debut solo album “Growing Pains” is scheduled for 2007 release on RNB Entertainment Group’s imprint label The Pen, distributed by Universal Music Group’s Fontana label. Cougnut’s immense contributions to Bay Area hip hop include his recordings, which have appeared on countless compilation albums, the moral support he gave to his fellow Bay Area hip hop recording artists, and his historical significance in being the first Bay Area artist to achieve a hit with his song “I’m Rolling,” which inspired generations of Bay Area artists and hip hop label entrepreneurs. Cougnut and his seminal crew yielded San Francisco’s first major underground street hit in the late 1980’s called “Scandalous.” Cougnut’s career with the Ill Mannered Posse tragically ended as the result of car accident.

In addition to accepting the prestigious award on behalf of his brother, Esbee will also be performing a tribute to Cougnut with C-Fresh, Cellski and Baldhead Rick of UNLV at the awards show. Esbee states, “I am really grateful for this. I get a chance to show the Bay Area, as well as Northern Cali as a whole, what Cougnut meant to me and to others. He may not be here physically, but he sure is here spiritually, and you will see that on December 2.”

Tickets are still available for this noteworthy event.