Las Vegas has a handful of famous rappers who call the city home. You might catch Flavor Flav or Tash of Tha Alkaholiks out on the scene, and if you drive deep enough into Green Valley you might find Declaime hanging at Madlib’s dad’s house. Yet, among rappers from the City of Sin, few have become as well known as Dizzy Wright, who plays a hometown set at this weekend’s Las Vegas Hempfest.
What records shaped your early experience as a hip-hop fan, before you started rapping? I grew up on Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. I was into a lot of harmonizing and the slower stuff. I really like how they mixed the streets with being spiritual. As I got older, the things that started resonating with me were Tupac, Snoop Dogg and Nas.
The track “Zoovie” on your new EP is about nightlife and clubbing. Where’s your favorite spot in Vegas to witness a “Zoovie”? To be honest, I don’t really like to go anywhere where I can’t smoke weed (laughs). So I just like to chill at the crib.
You’re performing at Hempfest Saturday. Are there particular strains of marijuana you’re fond of? Gelato is really good, and Gorilla Glue is one of my favorites right now. But my favorite strain would be my strain, Dizzy O.G. I’m working on it with a [Vegas] dispensary called Medizin. We’ve just worked out some deals with the growers so we can get the Dizzy O.G. legally grown in Las Vegas. It will be exclusively sold at their dispensary. I’m hoping it goes recreational in Vegas, so we can blow it up.
What can we expect from your performance? A lot of energy. I’ll have the full band. They’re allowing me to run the main stage, calling it the Dizzy Wright Stage. We’re going to pick a couple of local artists that have a following, and we’re also bringing in Mod Sun, Jarren Benton, Too $hort and a few other artists.
Who tops your wish list among possible future collaborators? I’d really like to work with Snoop, but I don’t want to send a song over email to him. I’d really love to sit in the studio with him, smoke a blunt and create something real fly. Hopefully one day that can happen.
Dizzy Wright at Hempfest June 4, 10 a.m.-2 a.m., $50-$200. Craig Ranch Park, lasvegashempfest.com.
