Run This Town

Does your chain hang low? So does V-103 DJ Frank Ski’s, and he’s happy to give an insider’s tour of Atlanta’s hottest hip-hop haunts to show you where to ball with the best of them.

Atlanta’s hip-hop legacy includes superstars like OutKast, Ludacris, Cee Lo, Usher, Lil Jon, Ne-Yo and T.I., and it continues to pop out new artists on the regular, making it a veritable hip-hop hub. One Atlanta DJ rubs elbows with all of the biggest names in the biz — Frank Ski, a former hip-hop artist himself, who has co-hosted the Frank and Wanda show on V-103 — Atlanta’s (and one of the country’s) most popular hip-hop stations — for the past 14 years. He’s seen artists like Young Jeezy go from zero to hero (“when he first came on the show, he was youthful and nervous”) and has interviewed the likes of Jay-Z and Kanye West.

Because of this, he knows a thing or two about where hip-hop hangs out.

First of all, your take on Atlanta and hip-hop.
“The incredible thing about Atlanta is that we were able to do what no city outside of New York was able to do. Hip-hop had a great run in South Florida, the whole New Orleans thing with Master P, the West Coast explosion where you had Tupac and Dr. Dre and Snoop, but now nothing is happening [there]. Out of New York, if it’s not coming from Jay-Z, it’s not happening. Now look at Atlanta — all the new music is coming out of Atlanta. And it’s been like that for 10 years. This is the hub of hip-hop. Period.”

Where’s the best place to hear it?
“As far as artists performing, there’s [1] Center Stage (1374 West Peachtree St, NW; 404-885-1365; www.centerstage-atlanta. com), though I like [2] the Masquerade (695 North Ave NE; 404-577-8178; www.masqueradeatlanta. com). You get some of that underground scene and the newer upand-comers at those places.”

And where are the stars hanging out?
“For the club and lounge scene, Sunday nights at [3] Velvet Room (3358 Chamblee Tucker Rd, Chamblee; 404-874-4460; velvetatl.com ) and Saturday nights at [4] Compound (1008 Brady Ave NW; 404898-1702; www.compoundatl.com), which is only open on Saturday nights and is the stars’ spot. Tuesday and Wednesday nights are best at [5] Straits, Ludacris’ place (793 Juniper Street NE; 404-877-1283; www.straitsatl.com).”

Don't forget your new place!
“I wanted to create a place that enabled the entertainment industry to eat later. The thing with Atlanta is that the restaurants close early. Our kitchen is open until midnight during the week; on weekends, we have a latenight menu until 2 or 3am. A lot of these artists are in the studio at night, and they may break at 1am. Instead of calling for takeout, they have a place to go now, [6] Frank Ski's Restaurant and Lounge (2110 Peachtree Rd; 404-603-8344; www.frankskis.com).”

Speaking of work, do hip-hop business deals go down at any of the places you've mentioned?
“Most of the entertainers do their business in hotel bars or in private rooms at places like [7] Capital Grille (255 E Paces Ferry Rd; 404-262-1162; www.thecapitalgrille.com) or [8] Chops Lobster Bar (70 W Paces Ferry Rd; 404-262-2675; www.buckheadrestaurants.com/chops-lobster-bar). I have all my business meetings at the lounge at the [9] Four Seasons (75 14th Street; 404-881-9898; www.fourseasons.com/atlanta).”

What about just going out to eat?
“You know, the best place to see Atlanta celebrities is [10] Houston’s on Peachtree (2166 Peachtree Rd NW; 404-351-2442; www.hillstone.com). That is the A-list lunch spot. You’ll see politicians, business leaders and rappers. The up-and-coming hip-hop artists eat at [11] Spondivits (1219 Virginia Ave; 404-767-1569; www.spondivits.net) — the whole street culture loves Spondivits for seafood. On Young Jeezy’s first album, he talks about it.”

Which Atlanta artists still hang around town?
“You see Big Boi a lot. Jeezy. Ludacris still goes out. The day before a holiday is the day to see celebrities. If it’s Labor Day Weekend, that Saturday or Sunday at [12] Lenox Square is where everybody goes. You could sit in Lenox and hang by the luxury stores like Louis Vuitton and see everybody (3393 Peachtree Rd; 404-2336767; www.simon.com).”

And lastly, the wine tasting event at your house is prime for celebs. That’s where I met Jeezy, Ne-Yo and Chris Tucker.
“That is the spot! It’s going to be Sunday, December 4 and I’ve already gotten calls from celebs who are coming. (www.frankskikids.org)”