Stockton promoted by local rappers

This article talks about how rap is often tied to location. True to their roots:

"Stockton artist Andre 'Drizay' Hillery, 32, said claiming a hometown also gives a rapper an identity.

"'If you don't represent where you're from, you're nobody,' Hillery said.

"The best example of regional sounds in rap are the West and East Coast sounds that developed in the early 1990s. West Coast artists such as 2Pac rapped about their region's superiority over funk-based tracks, while East Coast rappers such as the Notorious B.I.G. chose a different musical path and emphasized the supremacy of their area.

"Record companies have found that consumers are willing to buy music based on these regional identities, said [Marc Lamont Hill, a hip-hop scholar and assistant professor of urban education at Philadelphia's Temple University]."