Exclusive: L.A. Rapper Mestizo Name-Checks Elliott Smith in Vid for 'Truth Be Told,' via Alpha Pup

Mestizo of Machina Muerte name-checks Elliott Smith on his Alpha Pup debut, "Elecholo"

One of the songs on the album--whose title is a portmanteau of "electro" and "cholo," two cultures that've had a vital effect on Los Angeles music--is "Truth Be Told," which lyrically traverses Mestizo's nomadic upbringing.

As he shared with L.A. Weekly for an upcoming feature, he grew up splitting time between parents on opposite sides of the country and, for a period of years, living out of a van with his father.

But the portion of said song he shares a capella in the below video, filmed at Echo Park Lake by Alpha Pup/Low End Theory head Daddy Kev, includes a choice reference to an unfortunate act that happened within the neighborhood of the shoot location: the death of Elliott Smith.

It's only a brief mention, but also a fitting display of Mestizo's ability to intertwine classic rap braggadocio with harrowing reality and emotive introspection.

Get a taste of that in the clip below, and consider catching him in action at Low End Wednesday. Word is his Tuscon-based partner-in-rhyme Isaiah Toothtaker may join Mestizo on stage.