Happy Milwaukee Day, everyone! What started as a lighthearted acknowledgement of the city’s area code between a small group of friends has quickly become a full-fledged local holiday with no shortage of things happening around town. Though every April 14 now serves as a day for locals to celebrate all the wonderful things the city has to offer, it also is a reason for residents to look back on the city’s storied past to both appreciate it and to track exactly how far Milwaukee has come over the years.

While Milwaukee hip-hop has never been in a better place than it is today, local rappers have been building a solid foundation locally for much longer. Thankfully, the hip-hop archivists at Dope Folks Records have unearthed a new batch of rare cassettes and forgotten singles from two decades ago, which they took the liberty of mixing and combining into a Milwaukee Day mixtape called Brew City Rappin’.

“We didn’t know some of this stuff existed until recently,” Dope Folks co-owner Chris Schulist says. “Some of these songs have zero information about them and they are ‘UnGoogleable.’ All of the groups are from Milwaukee and it’s mostly ’90s, except for a rare Rusty P’s track that appeared on a German 12-inch.”

Some of these songs haven’t been heard in 25 years, but thanks to Dope Folks, you now have your Milwaukee Day soundtrack. You can stream Brew City Rappin’ below. Dope Folks will also play some of these songs when they DJ at Blax’s record release show at Cactus Club tonight.

Tracklist

MC Richie Rich N $cratch Luv featuring, Sticklin, Rock La Flow, and B Day Rock: Pull the Trigger  (1991 Cassette)
E-Play Smooth: Black Czar  (1992 Cassette)
True Hustlers: I’m A Soldier Remix (1992 cassette)
Sixx-Dog And JD Love (Of The N.C.T.): So Funky (1992 Cassette)
Powerhouse: The Deadline (1995 Cassette)
Soul Food: Hands in The Sky (1997 Cassette)
The Rapper’s Time: Freezin’ Ice (1992 Cassette)
OZ (Ozmola): True Story (1994 Cassette)
Expose: Whatever  (1997 12″ single)
Rhetoric: 414 (1997 Cassette)
Wikkedness: The Huntest (1997 Demo tape)
Sixx-Dog And JD Love (Of The N.C.T.) Ruff N Tuff Ghetto (1992 Cassette)
Tha R.A.N.: Radio Banned Me (1992 Cassette)
Powerhouse: Funky Verse (1995 Cassette)
Shotemak & Pitt: Swing (1994 Cassette)
Cess Pool: Want Everything (1997 Cassette)
Rusty P’s: Keep it Locked (German 12″)
DJ Wolf D: Always Had Love For Ya (1997 Cassette)
E-Play Smooth: I-94 2 Zion (1992 Cassette)
Outro: D. Tucker & The Big Bank Brothers: Live on the set (1994 cassette)

About The Author

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Co-Founder and Editor

Before co-founding Milwaukee Record, Tyler Maas wrote for virtually every Milwaukee publication (except Wassup! Magazine). He lives in Bay View and enjoys both stuff and things.