Vallejo is home to some well-known independent hip-hop artists like Mac-Dre, E-40 and most recently LaRussell.
LaRussell is making a name for himself in the music industry, doing it his own way and building an infrastructure for success. It includes a collective of artists known as Good Compenny.
LaRussell came up with the logo and name of Good Compenny in 2016.
"Pennies are undervalued," he said. "Your whole life, you walk past pennies on the ground and you never stop to pick them up."
Nearly a decade later, Good Compenny is two buildings – a creative space where people can gather, build and feel supported.
NBC Bay Area spent a day with LaRussell as he provided a tour of the area. There's a live room where he and his team do performances, rehearsals and small live shows as well as a content facility where there are several sets for him to record music, podcasts or do interviews.
"I've created myself the ability to come downstairs and make a hundred episodes of whatever I want for free," LaRussell said.
There's also a merchandise room. At the time, a lot of shelves were empty because LaRussell said things have been selling out. Visitors will find jackets, beanies, T-shirts, vinyl records and more.
Tietta "T" Mitchell and Corey Abrams, aka "Splash," are part of Good Compenny. Both said there was an instant connection to the collective.
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In fact, Splash said it saved his life.
"I'm now an inspiration for my family to do right and just follow the right path and walk in your light," Splash said. "That was through here having LaRussell and T."
When asked how one would define Good Compenny, T thought about it and said, "It's that feeling. It's really that feeling that everybody's in search of. It's the feeling that comes after hope. You know how you hope that there's good things out there and then you find it, and then it's that feeling of 'Wow, this exists.'"
LaRussell is now looking to expand the infrastructure he already has in Vallejo to make it even bigger.
"I'm building my festivals and my shows and everything here at home so I could build the infrastructure one day that resembles a BottleRock and what that does for Napa, but it takes time," he said. "It has to be built and it has to have someone who cares to build that, and I happen to care to build that."
