P-Lo Steps ‘Out The Box,’
Complementing his speaker-knocking production with earworm hooks and infectious flexes, P-Lo‘s music can jumpstart any function. The Pinole, CA native delivers Out The Box, his new album, a testament to his unimpeachable work ethic and exalted status in the West Coast rap scene. Inspired by the historic sounds of the East Bay cities he calls home, P-Lo’s sound is defined by rubbery 808s, singable basslines, and thumping percussion that listeners feel before they hear. Out The Box finds the bassmaster in rare form, refining his bounce to a science, sprinkling in references and samples from Bay Area classics to ground the project in his hometown soil.
Announced earlier this summer with a cinematic trailer featuring NFL legend Marshawn Lynch, who gets a shout out on uptempo opening track “AWW YEAH,” the new album is home to recent singles, including “Dumblr,” a collaboration with E-40 and Kreayshawn, the high-octane, minimalist “Run It Back,” and the triumphant and percussive “Out The Box.” The artist-producer piles on a bevy of new highlights, including the simmering solo tracks “Got It” and the soul-sampling “WTD,” and establishes P-Lo as one of the most versatile and chameleonic collaborators in the rap game.
P-Lo rolls out the red carpet for icons of Bay Area rap from all generations. In addition to the aforementioned E-40 and Kreayshawn on “Dumblr,” P-Lo welcomes Clyde Carson, Ezale, and his longtime collaborator and fellow HBK artist Iamsu! on “BAY BOYZ 4EVER,” brings fellow Filipino-American Bay Area artist Karri to bless the romantic “10 OUTTA 10,” and collects two of the region’s most legendary crews, 1 Umbrella and SOB x RBE, to join forces on the ultimate posse cut “HUH ALRIGHT.” True to its title, Out The Box broadens his horizons of his collaborators, welcoming Grammy-winning legend Killer Mike to preach on “FXCKIN HATER,” adding Toronto-born multi-hyphenate Sadboi to spice up “TRISOM3,” and goes toe-to-toe with L.A.-born hitmaker Bobby Brackins on “Either.” Featuring additional guest spots from Nueve Lio and 3Lise, Out The Box is available on all platforms via Everywhere Like Air / EMPIRE.
Along with the album, P-Lo shares the video for album highlight, “HUH ALRIGHT,” a collaboration with both 1 Umbrella and SOB x RBE. Built around a subsonic, hard-hitting 808 bassline, “HUH ALRIGHT” is a blistering posse cut, featuring contributions for members from both collectives (Lil Bean and Lil Yee from 1 Umbrella, DaBoii and Yhung T.O. from SOB x RBE), packing them into a crisp party anthem. In the video, the five emcees go dumb in a bank vault as they await their next payday,
Out The Box arrives as P-Lo rides the wave from his contribution to the year’s biggest hip-hop album, collaborating with “2 Hard 4 The Radio,” a highlight from Iceman. Paying tribute to the legendary Mac Dre, interpolating lyrics and flow from the late Vallejo artist’s 1989 classic “”Too Hard For the F@#kin’ Radio,” 5he new song continueD P-Lo’s mission to infuse his sound and the sound of the Bay Area into hip-hop’s mainstream, and continues to establish the artist as one of his region’s contemporary icons. “2 Hard 4 The Radio” became one of the album’s most popular tracks, racking up over 55 million Spotify streams, and peaking at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it currently sits at #78.
Since emerging as the sonic architect of the East Bay’s HBK Gang in the 2010s, P-Lo has been a force in hip-hop, redefining the West Coast sound without losing his strong focus on uplifting his local community. Born and raised in Pinole, CA, P-Lo has crafted hits like the Platinum-selling “Act Right” for Yo Gotti and “Always” for Chris Brown, and has collaborated with artists like Kehlani, Wiz Khalifa, and YG. As an artist, he released iconic anthems like “Put Me On Somethin'” ft. E-40 and “Same Squad,” and guested on Denise Julia’s smash hit “B.A.D.” (85 million Spotify streams). The artist is known for pushing the sound of the Bay Area forward, with acclaimed albums like More Than Anything, SHINE, and STUNNA, and the high-profile collaborative album Majorly Independent w/ LaRussell. In 2025, P-Lo made history with For The Soil, a landmark collaborative album released by Golden State Entertainment and EMPIRE, the first-ever hip-hop album released in partnership by a local rapper and an NBA franchise, the Golden State Warriors.