CHATSWORTH : Ex-Gangbanger Raps to a Somber Crowd

Even for an ex-gangbanger-turned-rapper it was a tough crowd.

The group, about 70 teen-agers from Los Angeles group homes and placement centers for foster children and probationers, sat somberly through a charity concert given in their honor by rapper MC Boulevard in Chatsworth on Wednesday.

As Boulevard sauntered back and forth, alternately rapping and delivering his anti-drug, anti-violence message, rows of tattooed and cropped-haired teen-agers in baggy pants leaned back in their chairs with impassive faces, clapping politely between numbers.

Boulevard, also known as Robert Hijar, a self-described former gangbanger from Highland Park, said he was “a guest of the county” in his teen-age years, shuttling between juvenile detention camps and the streets.

Boulevard, who now writes and performs music that attempts to show that there is life beyond gangbanging, was performing for free at Heartworld, a nonprofit art gallery for troubled youth. Heartworld may soon close because its lease is up and it has no money for a new one.

Boulevard was accompanied by fellow performers Joyce Gonzales, rapper D. Serious and Phillip Munoz, youth coordinator for Project You-Turn, a gang intervention program in South El Monte.

Munoz, a former gang member who is now in a wheelchair, described how he crashed his motorcycle in a drug-induced haze at the age of 16 and lost the use of his legs. “I started doing marijuana and PCP when I was 9 years old,” he said. “Little did I know that one joint was going to be a black cloud over my whole life. . . .

“It’s never too late to make the change,” he added.

Boulevard’s performance drew favorable reviews from the teen-agers, despite their reserved response. But the harrowing warnings about drugs and gangs left few shaken.

“I’ve heard it all before,” said a ponytailed 14-year-old named Melody, who said she was a member of the White Fence gang of East Los Angeles and didn’t regret it.

A slight 15-year-old named Ernie agreed with friends that the show might do some good for some kids, but added in the next breath that he had a drug problem and planned to continue using crack once he gets out of placement.

“I like drugs,” he explained. “It’s like food to me.”