Db.boutabag isn’t the next hottest artist coming out of Sacramento, he is THE hottest artist out of Sacramento. There’s a big difference.
Hailing from South Sacramento, the rising star distinguishes himself from his peers, creating street anthems to feed the soul — without needing to partake in the usual gangbanging that plagues his environment. Getting his start playing Pop Warner football before pivoting to basketball, it wasn’t long before Db.boutabag found his solace in music.
In describing himself, Db.boutabag states, “I’m all types of s###, I ain’t gon lie. I’m a hard working young n*gga who wants to be way bigger than his circumstances that he grew up around. Just all around do way more.”
Most recently, Db.boutabag unveiled his newest project titled The Real Boutabag, an 8-track project detailing why he’s the real Boutabag, talking his s### and reminding folks why exactly he’s up next. Additionally, he’s had the pleasure of working with Drakeo The Ruler and his brother Ralfy The Plug.
AllHipHop: How would you describe your sound?
Db.boutabag: Turnt up, party music. Fired up. Get the b###### shaking ass, the n*ggas throwing money, the whole s###. I can mellow it up too though, ya feel me? All around, I’d say turnt up and fired up.
AllHipHop: What was your upbringing like in Sacramento?
Db.boutabag: It was hard growing up in Sac, one parent household. Pops was kinda in and out, back and forth. Just me, my mom, and my big brother. Thanks to my older influences, my head was always steered in the right direction. I wasn’t too much worried about being in the streets hella much or doing hella extra s###, unless I was tryna get some money forreal.
AllHipHop: Who are the older influences?
Db.boutabag: S### my big brother, big cousins, uncles, aunties. Big female cousins, s### like that. No big homies. I don’t got no big homies.
AllHipHop: Any artists that inspired you to do music?
Db.boutabag: I wouldn’t say any artists inspired me, because I didn’t even think… I didn’t used to wake up like “oh, I’m gon’ be a rapper.” I used to hoop and s###. I was a hooping ass n*gga in high school. Then when I graduated, I started steering towards that more, the music. Because it was easy, I felt like it was easy. I wouldn’t say these n*ggas inspired me, but I listened to a lot of them growing up. All the OG Bay Area n*ggas: Too $hort, Philthy [Rich], probably some old school Messy [Marv] all day. F#####’ Lil Wayne.
AllHipHop: Messy Marv? I’m from the Bay, you talking my language
Db.boutabag: Yeah, I know about Mess fasho. The Jacka, really all the Bay s### when I was coming up.
AllHipHop: DaveO was getting on me saying Sac is not the Bay.
Db.boutabag: It’s fasho not. Sac’s not the Bay. It’s like the valley. If you want to put it in a category like the Bay, you probably gotta call it the valley. Sac’s really just Sac though. The Bay’s like our cousins. We f### with the Bay, we love the Bay.
AllHipHop: Do you feel like you’re the next hardest rapper out of Sac?
Db.boutabag: Next? Now. [laughs] I’ve been having my foot on the gas for a long time. I’m not letting up so I don’t want no one to get comfortable with that statement. Other than that, I feel like I’ve fasho been applying pressure. The next, the now, the whole s###.
AllHipHop: You recently dropped your project Real Boutabag. What do you want fans to get from this album?
Db.boutabag: S###, that I’m really the real Boutabag. All these other n*ggas talking bout this Boutabag s###, they not really it. They in it for the hype. We ain’t really hear nobody saying no Boutabag s### until I really started applying pressure, really doing all the footwork. These n*ggas think they finna take credit for my s###? [laughs]
AllHipHop: Is that you in the cover art?
Db.boutabag: Yeah, that’s me when I was a baby. I was prolly one or 2 years old.
AllHipHop: What do your parents think of the music?
Db.boutabag: They like it. My parents support me. They support everything I do, so shout out to them.
AllHipHop: How did you first link with Drakeo the Ruler? Rest in peace.
Db.boutabag: RIP to Rula. I was on the Gram one day, just scrolling on some regular s### early in the morning. That n*gga Drakeo was slapping my s### on his Story. It was “Crunch Time,” that n*gga slapped “Crunch Time” on the Story. He was turning up, vibing to it going crazy. Everybody was sending me his Live videos. He was slapping my s### for a couple days, then he just tapped in. I tapped back in, we went from there and made it work.
AllHipHop: Were you a fan of him too?
Db.boutabag: Hell yeah, fasho. I don’t know nobody who wasn’t a fan of Drakeo. Especially when I was in middle school, high school, Drakeo was fasho poppin’ in Sac. For that n*gga to reach out to me was crazy.
AllHipHop: How did you feel when he passed?
Db.boutabag: Damn man, I can’t even explain the feeling. I just felt blessed to be able to work with bruh. For even bruh slapping s### and showing love, how genuine he was on some regular s###. I don’t even know, I never really thought about how I felt.
AllHipHop: Talk about your relationship with Ralfy the Plug? Y’all shooting a music video today.
Db.boutabag: Oh yeah, me and Ralfy man. Me and Ralfy been doing some s### though, I ain’t gon’ lie. We gotta hella little s###. We just did some s### last night, we finna shoot this video. This s### so regular though. Ralfy f### with it though. Just like Drakeo, Ralphy a genuine n*gga. The whole Stinc Team. N*ggas working, applying pressure. That’s what I’m all about: working, applying pressure.
AllHipHop: What’s one video fans need to check from you?
Db.boutabag: Keep running up that “1st Off,” ya feel me. We need that m########## at 100 million, we tryna go crazy. That’s one everybody already knows.
AllHipHop: How’s the independent grind?
Db.boutabag: It’s good. It’s solid, I like it. I feel like you gotta be more hands on, you gotta be more on your s###. But other than that, yeah it’s certain s### you don’t get by being independent. At the same time in the long run, it feels better and you gain a lot more experience. You’re getting more hands on with everything you got going on. That’s how I feel about it.
AllHipHop: 3 things you need in the studio at all times?
Db.boutabag: Some weed, probably some pizza or some Chick-fil-A. What’s a third thing I need? S###, a good couch in that m###########.
AllHipHop: What would you be doing if you weren’t doing music? Would you be hooping?
Db.boutabag: Yeah, I hope. Or I’d be doing something else that don’t need to be mentioned in the interview. [laughs[
AllHipHop: What is it that you want fans to get from your story?
Db.boutabag: Grind bruh, nothing’s ever gon’ be handed to you. Nothing in this world around here is free, you gotta work for what you want. You gotta stay consistent, with anything. You could be dropping music, hooping, if you a blogger, if you a interviewer, you gotta stay consistent with whatever you do. You gotta perfect your craft.
AllHipHop: Any goals for yourself?
Db.boutabag: Fasho, I definitely want to be a successful label owner. Not just a label owner though, a successful one. My artists are really going crazy, with a platform that’s going crazy. S### I could really brag about, some s### that other people want to be involved in.
AllHipHop: Heard you’re going on tour?
Db.boutabag: Yeah, me and Capolow going on tour. I don’t know too much information about it. We coming out to LA, going to Seattle. We hitting up the Bay, it’s gon’ be lit fasho.
AllHipHop: Do y’all have records?
Db.boutabag: Nah, we don’t have none yet. But we got some coming though, that’s my boy so that s### easy.
AllHipHop: What can we expect next?
Db.boutabag: I’m tryna drop a bigger project than usual. I usually drop 10 to 11 songs a project. I’m trying to stretch probably 5 to 10 more songs on this next one, just give my fans some more s### to listen to. All around more music, tryna flood they ass. Be expecting a big project fasho.
AllHipHop: Any features you can tell us?
Db.boutabag: Ralphy gon be on there. A couple of my artists gon’ be on there, if not all of them. I’ma just leave it at that.