Celebrating 30 Years of DJ Quik’s Safe + Sound
It’s hard to believe that we’re coming up on the 30th anniversary of the Safe + Sound album from DJ Quik. Yup…. February 21, 1995 marked the official release date of Quik’s 3rd album and it was a special one. Not only for DJ Quik’s catalog, but also for West Coast Rap as a whole. I remember buying the CD the day it dropped on that Tuesday back in ‘95. I picked it up at a used and new record store called Music Trader in Pacific Beach here in San Diego. I wasn’t old enough to drive but remember getting a ride there and seeing that the album had just dropped when I made my way to the New Releases section… I was a big Quik fan going back to his Quik is the Name album in 1991 and then the Way 2 Fonky album which dropped in 1992.
2/21/95 - Safe + Sound Drops in Stores
Back in February of 1995, I was 15 years old so didn’t have much cash in my pocket. But I did have enough to buy 1 CD that day and there was no doubt what I was gonna cop. I dropped that $11.99 on that new Quik CD and immediately went outside, ripped open the plastic packaging and carefully slid the CD booklet out of the jewel case. Then I opened the liner notes to see the inner artwork of the album. This was something I always did before I listed to an album so I could read up on the tracklisting, see what artists were featured, look at various photos of the artist and sometimes his town/crew/set, and then read his shoutouts to friends, family, and other rappers he was down with. I’ve forgotten a lot of things in my life but the moment I first opened the Safe + Sound CD is one I will never forget.
The Gangsta Rap Wave: 1992 - 1995
Before Safe + Sound dropped in ‘95, Quik’s name was already buzzing leading up to the album. Quik’s prior album dropped was Way 2 Fonky back in July of 1992… but let’s look at the west coast gangsta rap wave back then from the time Way 2 Fonky dropped up until Safe + Sound was released. Compton’s Most Wanted dropped Music to Driveby in September of 1992, Ice Cube dropped The Predator in 1992, Dr. Dre dropped The Chronic in December of 1992, Snoop dropped Doggystyle in November of 1993, Cube dropped Lethal Injection in December of 1993, Warren G dropped Regulate…G Funk Era in June of 1994, MC Eiht dropped We Come Strapped in July of 1994… Keep in mind, all of this was dropped out of Los Angeles and Long Beach in a 3 year stretch and I’m leaving out other gems as well. West Coast Gangsta Rap and the G-Funk Era shook up the rap world.
DJ Quik vs. MC Eiht - Compton Rap Beef
Now back to DJ Quik… During the time after Way 2 Fonky dropped, Quik’s beef with MC Eiht from Compton’s Most Wanted kept building. These rival emcees both lived in Compton and hated each other… Quik repped the red side from Tree Top Piru Bloods and MC Eiht repped the blue side with the Tragniew Park Compton Crips (TPC). Different neighborhoods not far from each other in the same town. Quik took the first subliminal shots at Eiht on Way 2 Fonky. Then Eiht held no punches back when he dropped “Def Wish 2” on Music to Drive and then again on “Def Wish III” off of Eiht’s debut solo album, We Come Strapped. Both of these songs not only came right at Quik but also were great songs with fantastic production that Compton’s Most Wanted were always known for. Just look at the video for “Def Wish III” where Eiht not only was blatantly dissing Quik but also had an actor playing Quik. Wild…
DJ Quik Finally Claps Back: “Dollaz & Sense”
Quik kept quiet this whole time while Eiht was running his mouth. Death Row Records released the Murder Was the Case soundtrack in October of 1994 and I remember first tripping out that Quik was on the tracklist for the soundtrack. Was DJ Quik on Death Row now or was he just down with the label? I had no idea but when that CD dropped, I went right to that song. DJ Quik finally addressed the disses from MC Eiht with one of the greatest diss tracks of all time. “Dollaz & Sense” was first heard in late ‘94 and it was crazy…
Quik’s production, lyrics, tone, and delivery were straight business. The whole track came at MC Eiht and when the whole rap world heard blew up with these lyrics… "E-I-H-T, now should I continue? / Yeah, you left out the G 'cause the G ain't in you!" This line was the talk of the rap fans at my junior high school. Quik won the battle with that line alone. It deaded everything said before and let everybody know that Quik was back. Here was DJ Quik performing the track from the Source Awards from 1995… Yes, at the Source Awards for the whole world to see. This rap beef will always be a top 5 rap beef for me.
DJ Quik - America’z Most Complete Artist
As the calendar flipped from ‘94 to ‘95, Quik was prepping to drop his new album, Safe + Sound. With the hype he had created with “Dollaz & Sense”, rap fans were ready to hear what Quik had to say on his new record. The first single for the album was “Safe + Sound”. It had clean production which Quik handled himself with live instrumentation and synths and a talkbox chorus paying homage to Roger Troutman and Zapp. The song and video were g-funk and west coast rap at its finest. Quik talked about his story coming up in the game and his delivery was more polished than ever.
The single set the tone for the album and it’s crazy to think that it’s been 30 years since this record dropped. How has it been 30 years since Quik released Safe + Sound? It’s one of my favorite albums of all time because the beats were so good. It was classic west coast funk and with this album, Quik started incorporating even more live instrumentation. His storytelling was on point… He had smooth laid back tracks with jazz elements but he also had the classic 90’s gangster rap vibes… The album just sounded so clean.
The album is a classic to me… I can let the whole album ride with very minimal skips. How can you not nod your head with “Get at Me” though?
“Diggin’ U Out” was another heater…
“Summer Breeze” is right up there with my favorite tracks of all time. Quik was talking about BMX bikes, water balloon fights, and just kickin it with your homies as kids. This track is so nostalgic for me as it talks about growing up in general. The chorus hits me every time as well as a kid who grew up on the west coast. It’s one of the best coming of age tracks in the history of hip hop… at least in my opinion. Just listening to this track right now makes me emotional. That’s the beauty with Quik’s music and this album… It just makes you feel a certain way.
Quik also included an instrumental track on most of his albums which honestly opened me up to beats without any lyrics. My pops always listened to jazz without any lyrics and here I was as a 15 year old groovin out to “Quik’s Groove III”… This is too smooth.
30 year anniversary of a classic album. Any of yall feel this album as much as I did back then or do now? Quik is maybe the most-well rounded artists in the rap game. Producing… Rapping… Mixing… Storytelling… Quik is a legend. Shout out to him because I never feel he gets the credit he deserves. Go bump Safe + Sound today and tell me it’s not a classic.