HIP HOP / RNB 29
7
guestlist.net
Issue 55 / 2013
ND
GE
LE
Pete Rock
Rising to fame during hip hop's golden era in the '90s with rhyming partner CL Smooth, Pete Rock's signature jazzy production landed him work
with big names like Nas, Notorious B.I.G. and A Tribe Called Quest. Even if you haven't heard his name, you've definitely heard his music.
Pete started out in 1987 as a DJ on New York's
WBLS radio station, where his meticulous
method of using two records to cut up each
tune he played earned him the - pretty cool title of 'the man puttin' in work'. Encouraged
by his popularity, Pete began producing in
the early 90s and hip hop has never been the
same since.
He was among the first to experiment with
jazz samples in hip hop tunes, the method
for which involves chopping drum loops and
bass lines from different songs then combining them at the same tempo to create
something new. Check out his tune 'They
Reminisce Over You' -it features a really tasty
saxophone riff and bass line lifted from an
older Tom Scott tune, dropped on a 70s funk
drum sample – it just works and sounds dope.
Since his dramatic entrance into hip hop in
the 90s, Pete Rock has worked on a huge
amount of music, with a long list of fellow
producers and MCs that may suspiciously
resemble your iTunes' "top 25 most played".
He oversaw the production of J Dilla's posthumous Jay Stay Paid, produced Common's
infamous diss track 'The Bitch In Yoo', worked
alongside Kanye on MBDTF, and has produced for every single member of The Wu
Tang Clan - and he's still going. Pete's follow
up to 2001's legendary Petestrumentals album (which you should totally check out if
you haven't already) is rumoured to be on the
way and you can guarantee, once the date's
released, that it's going to be marked BIG on
our calendars.
SEPTEMBER RELEASES
JUICY J
Stay Trippy
THE WEEKND
Kiss Land
BIG SEAN
Hall of Fame
EARL SWEATSHIRT
Doris
JONWAYNE
The Marion Morrison Mixtape
A$AP FERG
Trap Lord
DRAKE
Nothing Was The Same
JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
The 20/20 Experience: Part 2 of 2
KREPT AND KONAN
Young Kingz
DANNY BROWN
Old
JANELLE MONAE
The Electric Lady
KILLER MIKE & EL-P
Run the jewels