Turf talk.

IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME coming, but Yay Area hip-hop, or the hyphy movement, is finally getting the worldwide respect and recognition it deserves. And one of the biggest Yay Area hip-hop tracks banging in the clubs worldwide right now is Turf Talk's hyphy anthem "Supa Sick Wid It (We Iz Supa Sick Wid It)." Turf Talk represents a new West Coast that reps not just the birthplace of hyphy, the Yay Area, but California and the West Coast as a whole. Turf officially brands it L-Yay (translation, "LA to The Bay"). Turf has a brand new album dropping called West Coast Vaccine, guaranteed to deliver this new WC sound. The album drops on his own label, Sick Wid It Records, and features a host of Bay Area rap stars including E-40, Yukmouth, Phenol, and Killa Keith. Party people get yo W's up in the Ozone, V-JO, Oaktown, Frisco, Palo Alto, Compton, Watts, South Central, East LA, Long Beach, Sac Town--California make some muthafucking noise. Turf Talk in the building. New West Coast stand up.

Let's talk about the new album.

West Coast Vaccine (the Cure) comes out April 3rd. It's something to wake people up to the new West Coast; a new breed of gangster rap coming at you. Bringing back that old-school feeling of how it was back in those NWA days, back in the Death Row days, Ruthless Records days. We just bringing that real California West Coast feeling back to the game.

West Coast certainly needs that.

Yes, please. Believe it.

Your single "Supa Sick Wid It" is blowing up right now.

Yeah, that's Fab. It's a single we put together; me, E-40, and Mr Fab. I got a new single called "Can You Feel It?" produced by with E-40.

I have another song on the radio called "The Groupie Song," 'cause out here in the Bay I have a big fan base. I had to give my ladies a shout.

What producers, guest artists, you got on West Coast Vaccine?

I got Rik Rok producing most of the album. I got a couple of joints thrown in by Droopy. He's a new upcoming artist who is fire. Rik Rok and Droopy put together a flava for me; new millennium mob music is what we call it. I got a lot of slaps on there. I got Freeway from Philly on there, Yukmouth on there, OG Short Dog on there, my gangsta partner Phenol on there, Killa Keith from Frisco, E-40 of course, B Legit, and a lot of Tuff Talk You really get to see the versatility of Turf Talk on this album. Most people used to hearing me with the character style of my voice and shit, but this album I changed it up to show people I can rap. It's not just a gimmick.

Talk about the hyphy movement finally getting the respect and recognition it deserves.

The whole hyphy movement is big; it's a big thing that we need to keep supporting out here on the West Coast, 'cause they checking for us right now. Hyphy movement ain't just about dancing; it's about how we get down out here in The Bay. Each person, each city in The Bay Area, played their part in the hyphy movement. Everything we do is hyphy; I'm hyphy talking to you right now. It's big; hyphy is big. Turf Talk was here before hyphy, and I'm going to be here after the hyphy.

"Hyphy" is a buzzword all over the South. How are other areas of the country feeling about the hyphy movement?

Each place I been to I get mixed feelings. This ain't no dancing and clown music. That's why I'm glad I got the fan base I got, so I can show people another level of the hyphy movement. It ain't all about fun and cheerful shit; we gangstas out here, too. I don't rap about ghost riding the whip, hanging out of the car going dumb. I rap about what I went through in the 'hood. That's Turfy. I think right now certain people got a view of the hyphy based on a couple of people who they seen bring it to them. Now they going to see Turf bring them another side, that's what they going to see when the album West Coast Vaccine drops.

People outside of the West just see E-40?

Yeah. They just seeing 40 and Keak the Sneak, Mr Fab, and the Pack. E-40 is all street, he is OG. He got his fan base, he been there.

I am just glad that finally E-40 and cats like yourself are getting the light. Who else you feeling in the game right now?

My crew, for the simple reason I am trying to patent my career after Ice Cube. When everybody was on the Tupac hype, Ice Cube stayed true to himself on his thing. I like Ya Boy, Yukmouth of course, Killer Keith out of Frisco, the Jacka, my boy Phenol--there's a whole lot of talent out here in The Bay. They just need to focus on coming to the stage; a lot of times with the hyphy movement, people who put the work in on the underground get over shined.

How much of a role did other Bay Area rappers like JT the Bigga Figga, Cellski, Dre Dog, and Master P have in laying down the foundation for the hyphy movement to happen?

They laid down the path for us to follow; they put out the blueprint for us to now manipulate and find new ways of doing it. They did it this way, we doing it this way--we just adding on. I respect all OGs in the game. All the people that came before me I learn from.

Mixtapes were a big part of that, too. Bay Area artists like Master P, E-40, they set that precedent and came up like that.

Yeah, man. People got to know that when we go out, we demand a certain level of respect. We stars out here in The Bay. We got our own luxury cars, homes. It's hard for a major label to come sign us because we already out there eating independently, so they got to come with some serious bread.

Give out some shouts.

My crew, everybody doing they thing in The Bay, and LA. Check my Myspace.com/turftalk, and make sure cats know I rep L-Yay to The Bay. I coined that term.