Stunnaman says he could never work a regular corporate desk job because of the value he puts on individuality. Rather, he’s gone into business for himself, creating and selling a soft drink that doesn’t contain the ingredients in most sodas that give him eczema. He originally made the drink just so he could have a beverage that he could enjoy, but a friend gave him the idea to sell it. He ended up quitting his job and selling the drink, which he says he makes in the same way he used to make Kool- Aid, while also making hip-hop full-time. A public figure,
hopes that ‘Big Steppin’ will bring his hip-hop music into mainstream culture and put San Francisco on the map for its sound. He says that musicians in the Bay should not be afraid to embrace the musical trends that have been invented or taken root here. Some music critics say San Francisco hip-hop artists have been too obsessed with hyphy as a genre and that has held back their creativity. However, Stunnaman points
out that in other major cities, such as Detroit, hip-hop also tends to have a certain sound and style and the local musicians can create good music using that as a starting point. Stunnaman certainly sees talented musicians and a solid, but under- promoted and under-recognized, rap and hip-hop scene within San Francisco. The city’s rap scene is “undervalued and underrated,” he says. “I definitely give kudos to the East Bay and Oakland for holding their own, but I feel like the rap scene in San Francisco, not only has it always been prominent, but right now it’s on fire.”
businessman, and self-made musician, Stunnaman got the opportunity to play a version of himself in The Last Black Man in San Francisco . To him, acting in film is a natural outgrowth of his musical persona. “All the great rappers act,” he says. While Stunnaman has nothing against social media, he naturally prefers to connect with people in person. He says he prefers to share his music or sell products face to face as it feels like a more authentic connection. However, his ‘Big Steppin’ dance challenge took off on Instagram this summer and he completely embraced the attention.
He hopes to help bring music to the forefront of SF with his new album I Gotta Feel It , released in January 2021. Songs on the album address cultural appropriation, gentrification and Black displacement from San Francisco, and social injustice. There are also plenty of tunes about women and partying, and a song titled simply ‘Fun.’ SF Weekly says the record is full of “exuberance and yelling” which is a welcome relief after the solitude of 2020.
As the California News-Times explains in an article on Stunnaman, “Stretch your fists back and forth as if you were on a bench press, and slowly rotate your toes. Now you are a big-stepping star!” The dance has caught on with some big-name folks, including the 49ers and Mayor London Breed, who have performed the steps during sporting and civic events. The Warriors have now commissioned a special version of the song and dance for them to perform before games. Stunnaman
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