NPR Music started its Black Music Month series on June 2, 2025, with a Tiny Desk Concert with Bay Area hip-hop veteran E-40. He was a pioneer of the hyphy movement for 30 years, and this short performance gave fans a glimpse of how he has changed hip-hop culture over the years.
E-40, together with an eight-piece band, played a show that included both his older songs and his most recent chart-topping successes. This and the influence he had on fans show that he is a brilliant musician.
E-40’s Tiny Desk concert marks the start of Black Music Month: More details
E-40, whose real name is Earl Stevens, and who was born in Vallejo, California, started his solo career in the early 1990s. His big break came with the release of In a Major Way (1995), an album that cemented his position in West Coast rap and introduced his unique way of using slang.
E-40 and other Bay Area rappers like Too Short and Mac Dre had a big impact on the hyphy movement. This movement had a distinct native language, strong dancing moves, and fast beats. In the next thirty years, he put out more than twenty studio albums, worked with musicians from many other genres, and inspired a new generation of rap artists…