Certain elite hip-hop artists have developed recognition for both their music production and rap skills. DJ Quik, J Dilla and J. Cole are just a few names that may come to mind. In the early 2000s, Fruity Loops, now known as FL Studio, made it much easier for aspiring hip-hop producers and rappers to create their own beats and record their own music. In 2007, when Soulja Boy first gained worldwide attention after he released “Crank That (Soulja Boy),” young teens across the country began downloading the music software and self-releasing their music on then-new social media networks like MySpace.
During that same time, in North Oakland, Spencer Stephens Jr., now known as Bosslife Big Spence, was one of those young teens, and had FL Studio installed by his older cousin.
“He made music, and I saw him really pushing it on MySpace,” Spence says. “And I’m like, ‘I want to do what you’re doing.’ So he put the demo on my computer.”
North Oakland Upbringing
A Bay Area-bred artist, Spence produces music and raps. His father is from East Oakland, his mom from Berkeley. The two met while attending Berkeley High. Spence’s love for music began at an early age. When in the car with his grandad or dad, he’d stick his hand near the subwoofer to feel the bass of the beat.
“It kind of gave me a different relation to each song and how the song breathes,” Spence says. “Because that’s how it felt—like it’s breathing from the back seat. So I’m feeling the air. I’m actually able to not just feel the vibration, but the air from it, too.”
As a kid, Bosslife Big Spence rapped Spice 1 and Too $hort lyrics on the playground at Chabot Elementary. A proud native of North Oakland, he describes the neighborhood as a mix of West and East Oakland combined with Berkeley.
“I feel like West Oakland gotta keep a certain energy to it,” Spence says. “East Oakland gotta keep a certain energy to it. But North Oakland has both Oakland and Berkeley’s energy.”
When it came time to enroll in high school, he chose Berkeley High in large part because of the alumni who’ve succeeded in the music industry. G-Eazy, Timex Social Club and David Diggs are just a few notable alumni.
Bay Area Lifestyle Raps
We can safely say it’s going to be a good summer when BossLife Big Spence prepares to drop a full-length project. The North Oakland rapper has released solo projects since 2017, and more recently took the classic MC approach of dropping collaborative projects with one producer. At the beginning of 2024 he released Like Water, a collaborative album with Bay Area producer Pay$ean. This served as a follow-up to their 2023 EP, PAYSPENCE.
Before the summer ends he plans on dropping a collaborative project with 10Piece Tone, which Spence describes as “feel good music.” He and 10Piece Tone recorded the project between the Bay Area and Los Angeles, and it represents his motivation to learn more about the entertainment scene and rap industry to bring resources to the Bay Area rap community.
“There’s an industry out in L.A.,” Spence says. “That’s the difference between everywhere else and the Bay. The independent hustle ain’t what it used to be.”
Bosslife Takes Center Stage
Spence credits his dad with developing him into a confident person and fostering in him a commitment to hard work. His upbringing in North Oakland, and going to Berkeley High, also prepared him to pursue interests he may not have experience in.
This past June, Spence played Notorious BIG in the play Pac and Biggie Are Dead, written by former Berkeley High Art teacher Biko Eisen-Martin, and directed by Ayodele Nzinga, Poet Laureate of Oakland. The play explores Tupac Shakur and Biggie’s time in purgatory, reflecting on their lives, their decisions, the impact they made on the world and how it led to where they are.
At the end of the summer, Spence and 10Piece Tone plan on connecting again with Too $hort for a collaborative mixtape.
Spence also plans on spending time in Atlanta to pursue more acting opportunities, and to learn from its rap scene.
Although his career pursuits and interests are beginning to take him away from the Bay, he strives to push the Bay Area hip-hop scene forward and to help its next generation of rappers.
“There’s more to learn, and there’s more opportunities elsewhere,” Spence says. “So I’m definitely going to go out there and soak up the game from the rest of the world. I want to be an example that you can accomplish all your dreams with some belief in discipline.”
