Ten years of hip-hop with Abstract Workshop

ILLUSTRATION by JOE MCGARRY

Abstract Workshop’s 10 years of hard hip-hop labor stands out as one of Orange County’s most impressive endurance tests. DJ, co-founder and producer Cocoe Tsimahidis said he’s lucky if he and the rest of his crew—DJs Scotty Coats and Josh One and MC Jud Nester—leave a show with a hundred dollars. And while devotion like that is rare, it’s why Abstract has become an institution for local hip-hop fans: “It’s not about recognition—it’s about your part,” Cocoe says. “We have to do it.”

They’re a tight-knit family of DJs, producers and MCs who have imported and exported a decade’s worth of hip-hop in and out of Orange County. And while it’s regrettable if the idea of hip-hop in Costa Mesa still isn’t taken seriously, you can’t blame that on them. Collectively, they’re responsible for a decade of solid Orange County hip-hop shows with highlights like Peanut Butter Wolf, J.Rocc, Black Sheep and Slum Village, plus an attached label that released a Billboard-charting vinyl EP in July of 2006—Abstract Workshop Collective presents: Jud Nester.

By now, the club is happily settled. The venue changed from Huntington Beach’s Tiki Bar to its current home at Detroit. “The owners are good people,” says Cocoe. “It’s the one spot I’ve been involved with and never had a problem. It’s like I can just go in there and feel it, know what I mean?”

Shows are now monthly instead of weekly. “Every week loses the special part,” says Cocoe. “Now I look forward to the last Saturday of every month.” And everyone but Cocoe now lives in Long Beach. But Abstract still thrives. “You gotta find your people,” Cocoe says. “In 10 years we’ve built stronger relationships, and now we’re better than ever.”

ABSTRACT WORKSHOP’S TENTH ANNIVERSARY WITH DARONDO, NINO MOSCHELLA AND THE PARK PLUS JUD NESTER, RHETTMATIC AND DJS COCOE AND JOSH ONE DETROIT BAR | 845 W 19TH ST | COSTA MESA 92627 | 949.642.0600 | SAT 9PM | $10 | 21+ | DETROITBAR.COM | MYSPACE.COM/ABSTRACTWORKSHOPCLUB

Tags: abstract workshop, costa mesa, detroit bar, hip hop, Long Beach, Music