A couple weeks ago I apologized for not writing enough about the female artists in our area. I then brought up Lady Versatile, and this week I'm shining some light on Nuvo Tha1. She is the first lady of the Gonzo Family and she is more than just a token female member of the crew. Nuvo is a talented MC, singer, producer and engineer. She records and mixes her own music. She orchestrates the mic, the boards and the engineering all seamlessly. Her voice is strong and her flow is sharp. She adds a maturity to Gonzo without coming across as the Mama Bear. Her debut album, 2 Cydez, has her flipping bars, and belting hooks with her Gonzo Fam, Darius and me. It's not a one-dimensional product. She's got songs ranging from R&B to pop and from commercial to lyrical. She goes from broken-hearted odes to revolting against the system. Download her album at soundcloud.com

Speaking of Darius, go to dariusalexander.bandcamp.com to listen to more of him. He is also a multi-talented singer/MC. His performances range from R&B, to spoken-word, to poppy hip-hop. Ya can often find him running the party at Krickett's in Spanaway. He's got a good solid three years of music on his Bandcamp page for free download.

Thanks to the military bases around Washington state, there has always been an influx of people from other parts of the country. This has benefited our hip-hop scene. Many military people who moved to this state to live on the military bases brought with them knowledge, albums and information about the burgeoning hip-hop scene emerging in urban centers around the country. Back in the '80s there were multiple small music stores all around Fort Lewis where hip-hop heads would convene and buy underground hip-hop from all over the country. Even though these stores are now closed, this tradition continues to this day. Bama Da Prince from Alabama has been with us for seven months. I caught his set on a Thursday at Hacienda Real. I could tell it had some extra out-of-town flavor. Check it at soundclick.com.bamadaprince.

Next week we'll get into Cedric The Great and General Wojack's 24/7-365 Northwest Hip-Hop radio-station.