Over the past 6 weeks or so Pac Div has consistently bombed our blog roll with some of its dopest content. This was all leading up to today, when they released their debut album The DiV. The release was the culmination of years of hard work and keeping their noses to the grindstone. While big time artists like Wale and Drake don’t need anyone lobbying for purchasing their albums, indie Hip Hop artists can always use the help. So I’ve compiled 5 reasons why you should support the West Coast trio by purchasing The DiV, in no apparent order of importance.

They’ve Graced Our Ears with Incredibly Dope FREE Projects

While this may be their first album, Pac Div has already given us four mixtapes. 2007 saw the release of their first project as a group with Sealed For Freshness: The Blend Tape. They would follow it up with Church League Champions in 2009. “Knuckleheadz” remains my favorite off of the tape and one of my favorite tracks from the group. Don’t Mention It came next in 2010 and cemented the group as rising stars in the rising California Hip-Hop scene. Then Mania! dropped….. And low and behold Pac Div had arrived on the national scene. From start to finish Mania! goes incredibly hard and by its finish, it was easy to tell that the future had great things in store for these guys.

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Pac Div’s Progression and Evolution

Throughout their career Pac Div’s sound has changed and recently come into their own. Like, Mibbs and BeYoung came together after their high school graduation; back then they went by the name Pacific Division. Through their first four mixtapes they honed their style and sound and eventually they shortened the name to Pac Div. Now each member had their own distinct voice they’ve expanded their songs lyrical content to places they hadn’t ventured before. Their new tracks are packed full of the same braggadocio that has always been present, but now they are also adept at rhyming on the human condition and hardships in exquisitely composed songs. Mania! was a great example of this, with tracks like “Saved” and “Somethin'” sandwiched in with bangers “Anti-Freeze” and romantic tracks like “Fallin'”. The DiV sees this trend continue and the album is extremely well rounded. For a flashback to their early days check out their Freestyle In The Park they did for RubyHornet TV below.

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They’ve Experienced Industry Hell

Right before RubyHornet caught up with Pac Div for the above Freestyle they had inked a deal with a major Universal Motown Records. They then experienced what so many artists now-a-days do, industry hell. Their album Grown Kids Syndrome never made it to release and eventually they were dropped. During that time they used free mixtapes as a means to continue to release the music they loved and now they’ve finally got a record for sale. Now free, The DiV is the product of 5 years of adversity and hard work. “High Five” starts with Mibbs saying “The system is designed for you to be a part of it, declare your independence. The DiV,” wonder what that could mean?

 

“She” featuring Tiron

If you have been a longtime fan of Pac Div you might recall that a snippet of “She” was leaked nearly three years ago. Right around the time they signed their major label deal and it was then most likely buried in musical limbo. The track is about the differences in their interactions with females, specifically those super fly ones, before and after they hit their stride. While it was recorded some time ago, the track it fits great with the album and doesn’t sound dated. Props to Hypetrak for the CDQ.

Pac Div featuring TiRon – She by Hypetrak

 

The Movement

The final reason why you should purchase The DiV is to support indie hip-hop. In this modern age of Hip Hop artist collaboration is at an all time high and Pac Div has participated in their fair share of it. They’ve worked with Sir Michael Rocks, Chuck Inglish, Chip Tha Rip, Asher Roth, production team Blended Babies and defiantly share a connection to Chicago. There is a cohesive element at play here and by supporting one group, the wealth is shared between all.

In the end purchasing anything is up to the person, I mean this is America. But in a day and age when artists make nearly all of their money from touring and not album sales, your individual purchase does indeed help. The DiV is as good of an album that has dropped this year and really does deserve a listen, so the choice is up to you. If you decide to, grab the album here.