Best Hip-Hop Act

Anaheim’s Weapons of Mass Creation stand out as a rarity in Juice County. The six-piece band bring live instruments to the local rap scene, creating a sound reminiscent of the Roots. And they keep it all in the familia: Five members are siblings, with the lone holdout, Afro-Latino rapper Solitude, practically being kinfolk. Together, the group weave woke rhymes with relaxed grooves in creating musical conversations about police brutality, identity and feminism. Rapper Joules is another rare jewel—not just as a Chicana in a male-dominated scene, but also as someone with a dual deftness as a rhymer and crooner. More soulful than preachy, Weapons of Mass Creation craft songs of freedom adept to move OC’s musical masses in more ways than one.