Did The Dayton Family Influence 2Pac?
Did The Dayton Family influence 2Pac? I think Kidd Tha Producer has a point. In a recent clip he traced Pac’s early sound back to Flint and argued that 2Pac’s cadence, style, and whole thug persona were influenced by the Dayton Family — specifically Bootleg and Shoestring. He even put their album F.B.I. over N.W.A’s Straight Outta Compton, calling it harder, better produced, and more impactful, but that’s for another article.
If you know the history of 2Pac, he spent a lot of time with MC Breed, and Breed’s lil homies were the Dayton Family — similar to how 2Pac had the Outlawz.
MC Breed, Flint, and the 1993 Connection
MC Breed brought 2Pac to Flint, and in 1993 they were doing a concert. The MC asked the crowd who they wanted to see, and the whole crowd said the Dayton Family. Here’s a clip of the Dayton Family performing “Dope Dayton Ave” at the MC Breed and 2Pac show in 1993.
Shoestring from the Dayton Family even spoke on it in a Facebook post:
“This is The Dayton Family performing with 2 pac at the Breed show..we wasn’t even in the show, but when the Mc asked the crowd who they wanted to hear… the whole crowd said The Dayton Family… then we jumped on stage and rocked that boy…and I know my boy Bootleg remember this… when we got thru performing 2 pac asked Breed who we was I will never forget he walked out 2 us shook our hands and said The Dayton Family is hard as hell on GOD that’s what he told Boot and Shoe….and as you can see my boy Robbie and Phonz our dancers is on stage with us turning that bitch out…R.I.P Robbie”
Here’s another clip of MC Breed and 2Pac performing “Gotta Get Mine.”
How The Dayton Family Influenced 2Pac’s Early Sound
Here’s where I land. The timeline backs Kidd up more than people realize. Pac was a sponge he soaked up the energy of whoever was around him and in ’93 the people around him in Flint were MC Breed and the Dayton Family. They already had that dark, grim, survival-first street sound synonymous with Flint, and Pac was leaning harder into that exact lane right around the same time. You telling me he stood on that stage, watched the whole crowd pick them over the headliners, shook their hands and told them they were hard as hell — and walked away with none of that rubbing off on him? I don’t buy it. Influence don’t always mean a writing credit. Sometimes it’s just what’s in the rear view.
What do you think — did The Dayton Family influence 2Pac? Let me know in the comments.
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Thomas Dishaw is the creator of Rap Therapy and a lifelong Hip Hop fan with deep roots in the culture. He previously worked at Heaven Studios, where he interviewed many of Detroit’s most influential voices.