It had to because, as a rapper, Rick Ross was unimpressive to say the least. “Hustlin’” rode hard on its screwed hook. Then, in 2005, following the success of Houston rap artists like Mike Jones and Paul Wall, the techniques of “Chopping and Screwing” became unexpectedly commercial-meaning, in 2006, the rap audience was prepped for a song like “Hustlin’,” which was almost painfully slow, built upon the ceaseless repetition of the phrase “Everyday I’m hustlin’.” They were also a perfect musical accompaniment to partying with “purple drank,” a beverage consisting mostly of cough syrup loaded with codeine. In Houston in the late 90s, those languid remixes played over car stereos during slow drives around the neighborhood. Its production nods towards the work of the late Houston producer DJ Screw, who popularized a technique of slowing down rap tracks to between 60 and 70 beats per minute, while chopping up the breaks with scratching, skipping beats, and occasionally stopping time altogether. When Ross and his partner cross a set of railroad tracks, the video switches from Technicolor to sepia tones, and the music kicks off in earnest. We watch him get into the car and drive into the city. He’s six foot with some impressive girth. He sports sunglasses and a red, collared shirt over a tank-top undershirt and a simple gold chain. The camera zooms out to reveal our protagonist, Rick Ross, leaning on the driver’s side, smoking a cigar and watching the girls go by. The picture jumps to someone sitting shotgun in a BMW 745, counting money. It all takes place in vibrant color: bright greens, stunning reds and ocean blues. Guys on motorcycles wave at the camera and bikini-clad Latin girls stroll down the boardwalk while Cuban music plays. The video for “Hustlin’” begins with routine shots of Ocean Drive, Miami. Then, in the middle of a particularly brutal summer, Rick Ross strolled onto the scene with his debut single, “Hustlin’.” In March, Ghostface Killah released Fishscale (named for a notoriously pure grade of cocaine), which features “Kilo,” a song with a chorus that turns a recording of school kids learning the metric system into a rubric for measuring powder. Young Jeezy was still riding on the success of 2005’s Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101, a loosely themed concept album that pitches Jeezy as a motivational speaker for crack dealers. The Double Hustle of Rick Ross by marty brownĢ006 was a banner year for coke rap.

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