Sites you should keep your eye on part 9; Hip Hop is read

Music nerd or just looking for original samples from your favorite albums?
Hip Hop is read is the spot.
Over 400 Sample Sets Since '07.



Hip Hop Is Read Exclusives Sample Sets

The Samples of the Year 2000
The Samples of the Year 2008
The Samples of the Year 2009
Diggin' in the Crates With... Volume One: The RZA
Diggin' in the Crates With... Volume Two: Dr. Dre
Diggin' in the Crates With... Volume Three: J Dilla
Diggin' in the Crates With... Volume Four: J Dilla

#

2Pac - 2Pacalypse Now (1991)
2Pac - All Eyez on Me (1996)
2Pac - The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory (1996)
2Pac - Greatest Hits (1998)
2Pac - Me Against the World (1995)
2Pac - Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. (1993)
213 - The Hard Way (2004)
3rd Bass - The Cactus Album (1989)
3rd Bass - Derelicts of Dialect (1991)
50 Cent - Curtis (2007)
50 Cent - Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003)
50 Cent - Guess Who's Back (2002)
50 Cent - The Massacre (2005)
88-Keys - The Death of Adam (2008)
9th Wonder - Dream Merchant Vol. 1 (2005)
9th Wonder - The Dream Merchant Vol. 2 (2007)

A

A Tribe Called Quest - The Anthology (1999)
A Tribe Called Quest - Beats, Rhymes and Life (1996)
A Tribe Called Quest - The Love Movement (1998)
A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory (1991)
A Tribe Called Quest - Midnight Marauders (1993)
A Tribe Called Quest - People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm (1990)
Above the Law - Black Mafia Life (1993)
Above the Law - Livin' Like Hustlers (1990)
Above the Law - Uncle Sam's Curse (1994)
Ahmad - Ahmad (1993)
Akinyele - Put It In Your Mouth [EP] (1996)
Akinyele - Vagina Diner (1993)
Arrested Development - 3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days in the Life Of... (1992)
Artifacts - Between a Rock and a Hard Place (1994)
AZ - 9 Lives (2001)
AZ - A.W.O.L. (2005)
AZ - Aziatic (2002)
AZ - Doe or Die (1995)
AZ - Final Call (2004/2008)
AZ - The Format (2006)
AZ - Pieces of a Man (1998)
AZ - Undeniable (2008)

B

Beanie Sigel - The B. Coming (2005)
Beanie Sigel - The Reason (2001)
Beanie Sigel - The Truth (2000)
Beatnuts, The - A Musical Massacre (1999)
Beatnuts, The - The Beatnuts: Street Level (1994)
Beatnuts, The - Intoxicated Demons [EP] (1993)
Big Daddy Kane - It's a Big Daddy Thing (1989)
Big Daddy Kane - Long Live The Kane (1988)
Big Pun - Capital Punishment (1998)
Biz Markie - Goin' Off (1988)
Biz Markie - I Need a Haircut (1991)
Black Milk - Music from the Color Purple (2008)
Black Milk - Popular Demand (2007)
Black Moon - Enta da Stage (1993)
Black Sheep - A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing (1991)
Black Star (Mos Def & Talib Kweli) - Black Star (1998)
Blu & Exile- Below the Heavens (2007)
Boogie Down Productions - By All Means Necessary (1988)
Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded (1987)
Boogie Down Productions - Edutainment (1990)
Boogie Down Productions - Ghetto Music: The Blueprint of Hip Hop (1989)
Boogie Down Productions - Sex and Violence (1992)
Brand Nubian - One For All (1990)
Buckshot & 9th Wonder - Chemistry (2005)
Buckshot & 9th Wonder - The Formula (2008)

C

Cam'ron - Come Home with Me (2002)
Cam'ron - Confessions of Fire (1998)
Cam'ron - Purple Haze (2004)
Cam'ron - S.D.E. (Sports, Drugs and Entertainment) (2000)
Camp Lo - Uptown Saturday Night (1997)
Canibus - Can-I-Bus (1998)
Cannibal Ox - The Cold Vein (2001)
Capone-N-Noreaga - The War Report (1997)
Cappadonna - The Pillage (1998)
Charles Hamilton - The Pink Lavalamp (2008)
Charles Hamilton - This Perfect Life (2009)
Chaundon - Carnage (2008)
Common - BE (2005)
Common - Can I Borrow A Dollar (1992)
Common - Finding Forever (2007)
Common - Like Water for Chocolate (2000)
Common - One Day It'll All Make Sense (1997)
Common - Resurrection (1994)
Common - Thisisme Then: The Best of Common (2007)
Compton's Most Wanted - Must to Driveby (1992)
Compton's Most Wanted - Straight Checkn 'Em (1995)
Consequence - Don't Quit Your Day Job! (2007)
Cormega - The Realness (2001)
Cormega - The True Meaning (2003)
Coolio - Gangsta's Paradise (1995)
Craig Mack - Project Funk Da World (1994)
Cypress Hill - Black Sunday (1993)

D

Da Lench Mob - Guerillas in tha Mist (1992)
Das EFX - Dead Serious (1992)
David Banner - The Greatest Story Ever Told (2008)
De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising (1989)
De La Soul - Buhloone Mindstate (1993)
De La Soul - De La Soul Is Dead (1991)
De La Soul - The Grind Date (2004)
De La Soul - Stakes Is High (1996)
Def Squad - El Niño (1998)
Del tha Funkee Homosapien - I Wish My Brother George Was Here (1991)
Del tha Funkee Homosapien - No Need for Alarm (1993)
Deltron 3030 - Deltron 3030 (2000)
Deuce Maxwell - The Plushcat Sessions (2009)
Diamond D (and the Psychotic Neurotics) - Stunts, Blunts and Hip Hop (1992)
Digable Planets - Blowout Comb (1994)
Digable Planets - Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time and Space) (1993)
Digital Underground - Sex Packets (1990)
Dilated Peoples - Platform (2000)
Diplomats, The - Diplomatic Immunity (2003)
DJ Clue? - The Professional (1998)
DJ Jazzy Jeff - The Return of The Magnificent (2007)
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince - And in This Corner... (1989)
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince - Code Red (1993)
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince - He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper (1988)
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince - Homebase (1991)
DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince - Rock the House (1987)
DJ Quik - Quik Is the Name (1991)
DJ Quik - Safe + Sound (1995)
DJ Shadow - Endtroducing..... (1996)
DMX - It's Dark and Hell Is Hot (1998)
Doug E. Fresh - The World's Greatest Entertainer (1988)
Dr. Dre - 2001 (1999)
Dr. Dre - The Chronic (1992)
Drake - So Far Gone (2009)

E

Eazy-E - Eazy-Duz-It (1988)
Edo G. featuring Pete Rock - My Own Worst Enemy (2004)
El-P - Fantastic Damage (2002)
Eminem - The Eminem Show (2002)
Eminem - Encore (2004)
Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)
Eminem - Recovery (2010)
Eminem - Relapse (2009)
Eminem - The Slim Shady LP (1999)
EPMD - Back in Business (1997)
EPMD - Business As Usual (1990)
EPMD - Business Never Personal (1992)
EPMD - Strictly Business (1988)
EPMD - Unfinished Business (1989)
Eric B. & Rakim - Follow the Leader (1988)
Eric B. & Rakim - Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em (1990)
Eric B. & Rakim - Paid in Full (1987)
Erick Sermon - Music (2001)
Erick Sermon - No Pressure (1993)

F

Fat Joe - The Elephant in the Room (2008)
Fat Joe - Jealous One's Envy (1995)
Fat Joe - Me, Myself & I (2006)
Fat Joe - Represent (1993)
Firm, The - The Firm: The Album (1997)
Freeway - Free At Last (2007)
Freeway - Philadelphia Freeway (2003)
Fugees, The - The Score (1996)

G

G-Unit - Beg For Mercy (2003)
The Game - Doctor's Advocate (2006)
Gang Starr - Daily Operation (1992)
Gang Starr - Full Clip: A Decade of Gang Starr (1999)
Gang Starr - Hard to Earn (1994)
Gang Starr - Moment of Truth (1998)
Gang Starr - No More Mr. Nice Guy (1989)
Gang Starr - The Ownerz (2003)
Gang Starr - Step in the Arena (1991)
Geto Boys - We Can't Be Stopped (1991)
Ghostface Killah - The Big Doe Rehab (2007)
Ghostface Killah - Bulletproof Wallets (2001)
Ghostface Killah - Fishscale (2006)
Ghostface Killah - Ghostdini: The Wizard of Poetry in Emerald City (2009)
Ghostface Killah - Ironman (1996)
Ghostface Killah - More Fish (2006)
Ghostface Killah - The Pretty Toney Album (2004)
Ghostface Killah - Supreme Clientele (2000)
Gravediggaz - 6 Feet Deep (1994)
Group Home - Livin' Proof (1995)
GZA/Genius - Liquid Swords (1995)

I

Ice Cube - AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted (1990)
Ice Cube - Death Certificate (1991)
Ice Cube - The Predator (1992)
InI - Center of Attention (1995)
Inspectah Deck - Uncontrolled Substance (1999)
Intelligent Hoodlum - Intelligent Hoodlum (1990)

J

J Dilla - Donuts (2006)
J Dilla - The Shining (2006)
Jadakiss - Kiss of Death (2004)
Jadakiss - Kiss tha Game Goodbye (2001)
Jadakiss - The Last Kiss (2009)
Jay-Z - American Gangster (2007)
Jay-Z - The Black Album (2003)
Jay-Z - Black is Back: The 9th Album (Remixed by 9th Wonder) (2003)
Jay-Z - The Blueprint (2001)
Jay-Z - The Blueprint²: The Gift & the Curse (2002)
Jay-Z - Crooklyn Gangster (Remixed by Small Professor) (2007)
Jay-Z - The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (2000)
Jay-Z - The Grey Album (Remixed by DJ Danger Mouse) (2004)
Jay-Z - In My Lifetime, Vol. 1 (1997)
Jay-Z - Kingdom Come (2006)
Jay-Z - Reasonable Doubt (1996)
Jay-Z - Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life (1998)
Jay-Z - Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter (1999)
Jay-Z - The Wright Album (Remixed by Isbjerg) (2008)
Jean Grae & 9th Wonder - Jeanius (2008)
Jedi Mind Tricks - Violent By Design (2000)
Jeru the Damaja - The Sun Rises in the East (1994)
Jeru the Damaja - Wrath of the Math (1996)
Joe Budden - Halfway House (2008)
Joe Budden - Joe Budden (2003)
Joe Budden - Mood Muzik 2: Can It Get Any Worse? (2005)
Joe Budden - Mood Muzik 3: For Better or for Worse (2007)
Juelz Santana - From Me to U (2003)
Jungle Brothers - Straight Out the Jungle (1988)
Junior M.A.F.I.A. - Conspiracy (1995)
Jurassic 5 - Feedback (2006)
Jurassic 5 - Jurassic 5 (1998)

K

Kam - Neva Again (1993)
Kanye West - 808s & Heartbreak (2008)
Kanye West - College Dropout (2004)
Kanye West - Graduation (2007)
Kanye West - Late Registration (2005)
Keith Murray - The Most Beautifullest Thing In This World (1994)
KiD CuDi - A KiD Named CuDi (2008)
KiD CuDi - Man on the Moon: The End of Day (2010)
Kid 'n Play - 2 Hype (1988)
Killah Priest - Heavy Mental (1998)
King Tee - At Your Own Risk (1990)
KMD - Black Bastards (2001)
Kool G. Rap - 4,5,6 (1995)
Kool G. Rap & DJ Polo - Road to the Riches (1989)
KRS-One - Return of the Boom Bap (1993)
Kurious - A Constipated Monkey (1994)

L

La the Darkman - Heist of the Century (1998)
Large Professor - The LP (1996/2002)
Lauryn Hill - The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998)
Leaders of the New School - A Future Without a Past (1991)
Lil Kim - Hard Core (1996)
Lil Wayne - Tha Carter II (2005)
Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III (2008)
Lily Allen - Alright, Still (2006)
Little Brother - The Chittlin Circuit 1.5 (2005)
Little Brother - Getback (2007)
Little Brother - The Listening (2003)
Little Brother - The Minstrel Show (2005)
LL Cool J - Mama Said Knock You Out (1990)
LL Cool J - Mr. Smith (1995)
LL Cool J - Radio (1985)
Lloyd Banks - The Hunger for More (2004)
Lootpack - Soundpieces: Da Antidote! (1999)
Lord Finesse & DJ Mike Smooth - Funky Technician (1990)
Lox, The - Money, Power & Respect (1998)
Ludacris - Chicken-n-Beer (2003)
Ludacris - The Red Light District (2004)
Ludacris - Release Therapy (2006)
Ludacris - Theater of the Mind (2008)
Ludacris - Word of Mouf (2001)
Lupe Fiasco - Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor (2006)
Lupe Fiasco - Lupe Fiasco's The Cool (2007)

M

M.I.A. - Kala (2007)
M.O.P. - Warriorz (2000)
Main Source - Breaking Atoms (1991)
Marley Marl - In Control, Volume 1 (1988)
Ma$e - Harlem World (1997)
Masta Ace - A Long Hot Summer (2004)
Masta Ace - Sittin' on Chrome (1995)
Masta Ace - SlaughtaHouse (1993)
Masta Ace - Take a Look Around (1990)
Masta Killa - No Said Date (2004)
MC Lyte - Lyte As A Rock (1988)
Memphis Bleek - 534 (2005)
Memphis Bleek - Coming of Age (1999)
Memphis Bleek - M.A.D.E. (2003)
Memphis Bleek - The Understanding (2000)
Meth, Ghost & Rae - Wu-Massacre (2010)
Method Man - 4:21... The Day After (2006)
Method Man - Tical (1994)
Method Man - Tical 0: The Prequel (2004)
Method Man - Tical 2000: Judgement Day (1998)
Method Man & Redman - Blackout! (1999)
MF DOOM - MM..FOOD? (2004)
MF DOOM - Operation: Doomsday (1999)
Mobb Deep - The Infamous (1995)
Mos Def - Black on Both Sides (1999)
MURS - Murray’s Revenge (2006)
MURS - Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition (2004)
MURS - Murs for President (2008)
MURS & 9th Wonder - Sweet Lord (2008)

N

N.W.A. - 100 Miles and Runnin' (1990)
N.W.A. - efiL4zaggiN (1991)
N.W.A. - Straight Outta Compton (1988)
Nas - God's Son (2002)
Nas - God's Stepson (Remixed by 9th Wonder) (2002)
Nas - Greatest Hits (2007)
Nas - Hip Hop Is Dead (2006)
Nas - I Am... (1999)
Nas - Illmatic (1994)
Nas - Illmatic: 10th Anniversary Edition (2004)
Nas - It Was Written (1996)
Nas - The Lost Tapes (2002)
Nas - Nastradamus (1999)
Nas - Stillmatic (2001)
Nas - Street's Disciple (2004)
Nas - Untitled (2008)
Naughty By Nature - 19 Naughty III (1993)
Naughty By Nature - Naughty By Nature (1991)
Naughty By Nature - Poverty's Paradise (1995)
Noreaga - N.O.R.E. (1998)
The Notorious B.I.G. - Born Again (1999)
The Notorious B.I.G. - Duets: The Final Chapter (2005)
The Notorious B.I.G. - Ready to Die (1994)
The Notorious B.I.G. - Life After Death (1997)

O

O.C. - Jewelz (1997)
O.C. - Word...Life (1994)
Ol' Dirty Bastard - Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version (1995)
Onyx - Bacdafucup (1993)
OutKast - Aquemini (1998)
OutKast - ATLiens (1996)
OutKast - Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik (1994)

P

Pete Rock & CL Smooth - All Souled Out (1992)
Pete Rock & CL Smooth - The Main Ingredient (1994)
Pete Rock & CL Smooth - Mecca and the Soul Brother (1992)
Pete Rock - Soul Survivor (1998)
Pharcyde, The - Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde (1992)
Pharcyde, The - Labcabincalifornia (1995)
Pharoahe Monch - Internal Affairs (1999)
Pimp C - Pimpalation (2006)
Prodigy - H.N.I.C. (2000)
Prodigy - Return of the Mac (2007)
Public Enemy - Apocalypse 91… The Enemy Strikes Black (1991)
Public Enemy - Fear of a Black Planet (1990)
Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988)
Public Enemy - Yo! Bum Rush the Show (1987)
Puff Daddy - No Way Out (1997)

Q

Q-Tip - Amplified (1999)
Q-Tip - The Renaissance (2008)

R

Raekwon - Immobilarity (1999)
Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... (1995)
Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt. II (2009)
Rakim - The 18th Letter (1997)
Rapper Big Pooh - Sleepers (2004)
Redman - Dare Iz a Darkside (1994)
Redman - Doc's Da Name 2000 (1998)
Redman - Muddy Waters (1996)
Redman - Red Gone Wild... Thee Album (2007)
Redman - Whut? Thee Album (1992)
Reflection Eternal - Train of Thought (2000)
Rhymefest - Blue Collar (2006)
Rick Ross - Trilla (2008)
The Roots - Game Theory (2006)
The Roots - Rising Down (2008)
Royal Flush - Ghetto Millionaire (1997)
Run-D.M.C. - Raising Hell (1986)
Run-D.M.C. - Run-D.M.C. (1984)
Run-D.M.C. - Tougher Than Leather (1988)

S

Scarface - The Fix (2002)
Scarface - Made (2007)
Scarface - Mr. Scarface Is Back (1991)
Showbiz & A.G. - Goodfellas (1995)
Showbiz & A.G. - Runaway Slave (1992)
Shyne - Godfather Buried Alive (2004)
Shyne - Shyne (2000)
Skyzoo - The Salvation (2009)
Skyzoo & 9th Wonder - Cloud 9: The Three Day High (2006)
Slaughterhouse - Slaughterhouse (2009)
Slick Rick - The Great Adventures of Slick Rick (1988)
Slum Village - Fan-Tas-Tic Volume 1 (1997)
Slum Village - Fan-Tas-Tic Volume 2 (2000)
Smif-n-Wessun - Dah Shinin' (1995)
Snoop Dogg - Doggystyle (1993)
Snoop Dogg - Ego Trippin' (2008)
Snoop Dogg - Tha Blue Carpet Treatment (2006)
Souls of Mischief - 93 'til Infinity (1993)
Special Ed - Youngest In Charge (1989)
State Property - The Chain Gang, Vol. 2 (2003)
Styles P - A Gangster and a Gentleman (2002)

T

T.I. - King (2005)
T.I. - Paper Trail (2008)
T.I. - Trap Muzik (2003)
Talib Kweli - Ear Drum (2007)
Talib Kweli - Quality (2002)
Terminator X - The Valley of the Jeep Beats (1991)
Tha Alkaholiks - 21 & Over (1993)
Tha Alkaholiks - Coast II Coast (1995)
Turnaround, The - A Long Awaited Drama (1996)

U

UGK - Super Tight (1994)
UGK - Ridin' Dirty (1996)
UGK - Too Hard to Swallow (1992)
UGK - UnderGround Kingz (2007)
Ultramagnetic MCs - Critical Beatdown (1988)

W

Wale - Attention Deficit (2009)
Warren G - Regulate... G Funk Era (1994)
WC and the Maad Circle - Curb Servin' (1995)
Wu-Tang Clan - 8 Diagrams (2007)
Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993)
Wu-Tang Clan - The W (2000)
Wu-Tang Clan - Wu-Tang Forever (1997)

X

X-Clan - To the East, Blackwards (1990)

Y

Young Gunz - Brothers From Another (2005)
Young Gunz - Tough Luv (2004)
Young Jeezy - The Inspiration (2006)
Young Jeezy - Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101 (2005)
Young Jeezy - The Recession (2008)


Original Soundtracks

Original Soundtrack - Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2005)
Original Soundtrack - State Property (2002)
Original Soundtrack - Streets is Watching (1998)

Check their index here.



Related links;
Sites you should keep your eye on part 1; GreatBates.com
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 2; Kacao77
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 3; BraskArt.com
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 4; Dash167´s Flickr
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 5; Stay KD´s Flickr
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 6; Ven´s Flickr
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 7; Caster GBA´s Flickr
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 8; Loomit UA´s iLG blog
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 9; Hip Hop is read
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 10; Great AIO/SRG
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 11; Soten SSH´s Flickr
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 12; Heavy Artillery´s Flickr
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 13; Poet aka Sear aka Kaos45 (GFA/TC5/TNB) blog
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 14; Mr. Ewok one
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 15; Hesoe (STGO/WMD)
and
Sites you should keep your eye on part 16; Phos4 (GFA/RTZ)

Devin The Dude (of Odd Squad/FaceMob) picks his: Top 5 dead or alive

AllHipHop.com:
Regarding MCs, I want to get your Top 5 Dead Or Alive.
Please, tell me who made your list and why.

Devin The Dude:
Well, you know how that is, that changes a lot.
Once you finish making your list
and you give it some thought,
you’ll think about some more artists
and MCs that you like.
You’ll think, damn, he was up there, too!
That’s always been hard for me.
I’ve been a fan of Hip Hop since the very early ‘80’s
My s*** has accumulated and sometimes I’ll forget.
I’ll give you roughly, my Top 5.

Jay-Z


With Number 5, I’ll go with Jay-Z.
At the time when he first came in the game
it was like the early ‘90’s, the early to mid-‘90’s.
He came in when there were a lot of heavy hitters out.
At that time right there, being lyrical is what you had to be.
There was no way around it!
There was no faking the funk.
You couldn’t do that half-steppin’,
and just be saying some s***.
You had to be accountable.
He came through at that time and he was good.
He didn’t let go at all.
Still to this day,
he can go in the booth and rip up some s***.
At the time, it was just a matter of holding your own.
And he was one of them MCs that could hold his own.
He’s proven that with longevity.

MC Shan


Number 4, I’ll say MC Shan.
He was one of the artists to me that made me pay attention.
He made me listen and almost see the story that he was saying.
He would tell a story like,
“Left Me Lonely,” and “Project Ho,”
and songs like that.
You could almost see the people and
the places he was talking about when he was rapping.
That always stuck with me.
He painted a vivid picture.
Back then, he was one of the people who started me wanting to rap.

Slick Rick


Number 3, I would say Slick Rick.
Wow! He continued that legacy [of storytelling].
When Slick Rick came along,
I thought it was pretty much over with.
He was brighter!
You were actually almost there with him instead of looking at him.
You know, “Children’s Story,”
and “Hey Young World,” songs like that,
it was like you were like right there with him.
If MC Shan made me start rapping,
I guess Slick Rick made me continue it.
I started wearing Kangol’s because of Slick Rick.
He came first with the fur Kangol, too
I didn’t totally bite his style;
because, I had different kinds of Kangol’s, too.
He pretty much had the fuzzy one all the time, and stuff.
But, I made sure that I didn’t get too far from it.
Slick Rick, you know, he was my guy.
I wasn’t really rapping then;
I was still kinda just deejaying and break dancing.
I was a music listener and lover then,
but I’ve always had Slick Rick around.

Nas


Number 2, I would say the homie, Nas.
Not only is he one of the great men
with the lyrics—he’s painting the picture—you can see him.
When MC Shan raps you’re there with him.
It’s like how Slick Rick did, too.
When it comes to his rhymes,
sometimes you can be there with him and
sometimes y’all can be together.
With Nas’ music and the stories that he tells,
it seems like you and him are together,
looking at something else.
It was a blessing just to be able to do song with him.
He was a part of my project, too.
That was one of the greatest things that’s
ever happened in my career, too.
I got a chance to meet him and
he was likewise appreciative of my music.
That kinda really did a whole lot for me, you what I’m saying.

Just like meeting Dre and meeting Snoop,
being involved with Scarface, Too Short, De La Soul,
artists like that; they appreciate me.
They got some nice music,
and they actually appreciate what I did.
Nas is one of those artists.
He’s not only one of my favorites,
he’s a lot of people’s favorite artist.
You know, Nas, he knows what he’s doing.
He represents to the fullest as far as Hip-Hop.
He’s done a lot for Hip Hop.
Just to be involved with Nas on any project is a wonderful thing.

T LA Rock


My number 1, I guess would be T-La Rock.
He has a song called “It’s Yours.”
He has other songs, too.
He was like, my favorite MC.
Back in the day, when the songs was pretty much like,
‘throw your hands in the air,
and wave ‘em like you just don’t care—say, ho.’
There really wasn’t that much lyrical stuff going on.
He was one of the first artists that came along
and just started coming with huge words that made sense
he also came with a rhyme pattern,
and a cadence which showed he could rap.
The way that he would say these words would be crazy!
It was crazy; hardly nobody was doing it at the time.
When he came on the scene,
he changed the whole vocabulary of rapping.
He was innovative; he changed things!
That’s what made me say, okay,
Rap is here and it’s not going nowhere for a long time.



VIA
AllHipHop.com


Related links;
AllHipHop.com's interview with T La Rock.
and
Just Blaze picks his: Top 10 dead or alive (producers)
and
Spice-1 picks his: Top 5 dead or alive
and
DJ KaySlay AKA Dezzy Dez picks his: Top 5 dead or alive
and
Pharaohe Monch picks his: Top 5 dead or alive
and
9th Wonder picks his: Top 5 dead or alive (Rappers & Producers)
and
E-40 picks his: Top 5 dead or alive
and
The D.O.C picks his: Top 5 dead or alive
and
Large Professor picks his: Top 5 dead or alive (producers)
and
Ice Cube picks his: Top 5 dead or alive (films)
and
Jeff Yankey picks his: Top 10 dead or alive (Star Wars fan films)
and
Devin The Dude (of Odd Squad/FaceMob) picks his: Top 5 dead or alive
and
Lloyd Banks picks his: Top 5 dead or alive (producers)
and
Top 5 dead or alive; Kendrick Lamar’s Top 5 Dr. Dre Beats

HipHopDX Interviews Producer's Corner: Mike Dean

VIA HipHopDX producer's corner

Producers often earn kudos for inventiveness of their beats, but any music head knows that with the wrong mixing and mastering—the process of working with the sound levels of different elements of a song before it’s released—even the best songs can be rendered useless.

Before becoming a go-to producer, Southern legend Mike Dean earned his chops by mixing and mastering for Rap-A-Lot Records, helping shape Houston’s signature whip-ready sound with pioneers like Scarface, Geto Boys and Devin the Dude. But work with seminal west coast artists like Tha Dogg Pound and Seagram, mixing on Kanye West’s most important solo records, and impending material with a new crew from Brooklyn called Hip-Hop Howl! prove that Dean’s sound expertise oversteps time regional boundaries. In an interview with HipHopDX Producer’s Corner, Dean recounts nuggets from his extensive discography, speaks on the importance of loyalty, and gives a couple tips on testing sounds before they hit the streets.

Mike Dean: I’m working on Scarface’s album, mixing some pop/R&B stuff and shit like that. Working on a song with Drake right now, too.

HipHopDX: How is Scarface’s album sounding?

Mike Dean: It’s sounding good. We just scored a feature from John Legend on there. I hooked him up with John, making shit happen. I don’t know what’s up with the album or a release date or anything, we’re just working on a few songs right now. For the last few albums, I haven’t had much on his albums because we haven’t been in the studio together. He’ll do music somewhere else and bring it to me, because I’m off doing shit with Kanye [West] or Common.

DX: What takes up more time, your production or engineering?

Mike Dean: Probably about equal. If I’m in a creative phase, I’ll do more tracks. But if I’m on a technical kick, I’ll do more mixing. Either way, there’s always something going on.

DX: One of the best album cuts of the last decade was Scarface and Nas’ “In Between Us” , from The Fix. Could you please talk about how that song was created from top to bottom.

Mike Dean: We were in Atlanta working. Me and Scarface and Tanya Herron were there, and Lofey was there co-producing. I started the keyboard progression, and ‘Face came in and did some drums, I think he did the bass on it. 'Face wrote the hook, and Tanya performed it with all the crazy vocals. Nas was there, too. It came out pretty fast actually, about an hour and a half or two hours.

DX: Do you think it would’ve been a single if it weren’t for label politics going on around that time?

Mike Dean: Definitely. wish it would’ve been! [Laughs] Hopefully somebody else samples it and makes a good R&B song out of it.

DX: All the emcees sounded so vulnerable, something traditional of 'Face, but not of Nas.
What do you think brought that out of him?

Mike Dean: Scarface did. Scarface did the first verse, and Nas heard that and had to follow that. Nas actually re-did his verse, I just thought about that. Three months later, he changed it because he had some people he was feuding with at the time. I think he was shooting caps at Jay-Z; I don’t know if it was Jay-Z, but it was somebody. So he changed the verse up.

DX: Like Duro and Young Guru, you're arguably one of the most recognized engineers in Rap history. Tell us about your transition from mixing to production, and what it took to get both J. Prince and the artists you were working with to recognize your amazing talent as a general behind the boards?

Mike Dean: It was a gradual transition. I started out playing guitar and bass on peoples’ records that I was mixing, and it eventually turned out to where I was doing everything on the record except the drum programming. At that point, I was given the chance to produce stuff I started doing my own drum programming and collecting drum sounds, and that’s what took me into producing. Plus, engineering for good producers for all those years, I picked up on shit from everybody.

DX: Is there anybody that you learned from that left a serious mark on you?

Mike Dean: John Bido, he did all the Geto Boys stuff. I worked with him for years and years, and he taught me a whole lot of shit. He taught me how to make beats, and he made me want to be a producer.

DX: You are one of the few active guys in Hip Hop that can tell us about Seagram. His albums today sell for hundreds of dollars on eBay in a way that ensures he was way ahead of his time. What do you think made him special as an emcee, and how do you remember those sessions and handling his music?

Mike Dean: Seagram is just a real-ass emcee. He raps about shit he did, and some shit he did, he didn’t rap about. I fucked with him, he was always really cool. We worked in his studio a lot doing pre-production on his album. I met him in L.A., Tone Capone hooked me up with him. He came back to Houston for us to do pre-production on his album Souls On Ice. He came to the studio one night, we were mixing. He had gotten his first big check from Virgin Records, his first big, legit money he made. He left to fly home to the Bay, and he got killed that fucking night, it’s crazy. [2Pac] came through and was listening to it; 'Pac was going to get on Seagram’s album, and then he got fucking murdered two weeks after that.

DX: On a related note, from Seagram to C-Bo to 3 x Krazy, you've worked almost as much with Northern California acts as you have with Texas acts. That was a critical market to Rap-A-Lot's success in the '90s. Why were you guys so drawn to Bay rappers, and how did your job transition on the work you did with those guys?

Mike Dean: Probably me starting to work with Tone Capone. I met him when I was doing the Untouchables album from ’96, I brought him in to help me produced that. In return, I did 3X Krazy’s album, Keak Da Sneak and all them. I like Northern California shit, and all west coast music pretty much. I kind of like that better than southern music. I like working with Daz [Dillinger], Kurupt, Seagram and all those guys. They make that hardcore shit, instead of rapping about the same shit over and over like rides, chains and grills and shit.

The south has gotten stagnant to me. Well let me not say that, but they need to step up their game down here a little bit. That’s why I fuck with the east coast, and a lot of Hip Hop shit. I like fucking with all types of music instead of getting bored.



DX: Usually, people who say the south needs to step up aren’t from the south, or they don’t work there. So it’s weird to hear you say that.

Mike Dean: People like Slim Thug and ‘Face are always spitting dope shit. I’m just talking about a lot of the hits that came from down here, and the singles and bullshit. I’m working with a bunch of guys from Brooklyn right now. We’re going to South By Southwest all together. HipHopHowl.com, it’s just a bunch of emcees doing their thing.

DX: How do you decide who you want to work with? You work with big names like Kanye, then smaller names like Hip Hop Howl!.

Mike Dean: I just go with the flow of what I feel at the time. It also depends on peoples’ budgets; I’ve got to make a living. [Laughs] With the guys from Brooklyn, it’d be a good look for me to sell records in New York again. With these up-and-coming cats from Brooklyn, one of them might pop up and be a big artist.

DX: Ganksta-Nip is another artist often overlooked in the mainstream media. Tell us, how was he compared to the persona we heard on these records?

Mike Dean: Totally the opposite. He’s just real calm. I think he had split personalities. Outside of the booth, he was real softspoken and very proper. But when he got in the booth, he was a psycho maniac. I saw him about a year ago, he’s still crazy and still rapping about the same shit.

DX: Yeah, that was my next question. How much are you in touch with many of the former Rap-A-Lot acts today?

Mike Dean: 3-2, from The Convicts, called me yesterday. They’ve been getting in touch with me for the past couple of months, thinking about doing something with those guys and keep ‘em straight. [Smit D of Facemob] was locked up for a long time and he just got out, I’ve been working with him some. Devin [the Dude is] not on Rap-A-Lot anymore, but he just came over the other day to do a song for Tanya’s album.

DX: A while ago, Devin the Dude talked about doing a Country album. Have you guys gotten started on that?

Mike Dean: [Laughs] Yeah, I saw that last night. That’s unbelievable. We did this hook on [Just Tryin' Ta Live], on one song ["R & B (Reefer & Beer)" [that had a Country feel]. We’re going to do a song with Willie Nelson. In this Houston music magazine, I was quoted best Hip Hop producer for ’09, and they said I had a Country Western background. But when I was a teenager, I played with Dancehall bands and Mexican bands and Country bands.

DX: Kanye West worked on some projects with you early in his career. With his budgets and stardom, he went you to mix some of his best work. Did he ever tell you what it was about your mixing that appealed to him so much?

Mike Dean: He said they were the best mixes he’d ever had. I mixed “Guess Who’s Back” from The Fix, and he really liked the mix on that, so he hit me up for his first record. He actually came to my house, and we did the first three or four mixes here before he had budgets for a big studio somewhere.

I mixed four or five records from College Dropout, but I think only two of them made it. The rest were mixtapes, like “Keep the Receipt,” the song with [Ol' Dirty Bastard]. I mastered “Through The Wire,” I mixed the “Two Words” song with Mos Def and Freeway. For [Late Registration], I pretty much did all the singles except for “Diamonds From Sierra Leone,” I didn’t do the final mix on that. For the third album, Graduation, I think I did eight or nine mixes and co-produced on “Stronger” , “Good Life” ,“Barry Bonds” , and “Drunk and Hot Girls.”

DX: Also, you reportedly worked on King Tee's tragically shelved Tha Kingdom Come LP on Aftermath. Talk to us also about the technical dialog Mike Dean and Dr. Dre share, as two pioneers of major trends in Rap.



Mike Dean: I didn’t see Dre much. When we were in the studio, I just did a couple beats…Dre was in the next room over working on 2001. But they never even paid me for that shit. Dre still owes me $12,000 or $24,000. I think I was charging $12,000 a beat back then. [Laughs] I saw Dre in a club probably a year after that, and I’m like, “Y’all took my money!” And he’s like, “Come to the office we’ll take care of it.” I got the chick that hooked it up to get me my reels back... That was a freebie. [Laughs] I didn’t even know it came out until I saw the discography on AllMusic.com. [Moe Beats Records] dropped it or something, it didn’t come out on Aftermath.

DX: Texas Rap, particularly "slab music" sounds so good in cars, when you listen to so many albums from UGK, Scarface or even Z-Ro. As the producer of so many records, do you test your work in the car? Are there certain routines you can test the durability of a record?

Mike Dean: Sometimes, but not as much as I used to. It used to be a necessity, but now I’ve got speakers in my house that are better than my car. I’ve got four 18’s and four 15’s in the small room that I mix at. There are crazy overdone subs in the studio to sound like it does in cars or the clubs. I used to have stereo contests and shit, I’m a Bass nut. But it used to be a necessity, especially when you go to different studios.

Now, I listen to it on the speakers from the laptop. That’s the equivalent of listening to it on a small speaker or on a TV back in the day, just to see what it would sound like. I’d say about 50% of people who listen to music listen to it on laptop speakers, iPhones. So you have to mix it for how they’ll hear it, too. Not everyone has big ass speakers. I used to mix everything in mono back in the day, ‘cause I’m like, “When are people going to be up on speakers?”

DX: Tell us about the loyalty and family environment that's kept you so close to Rap-A-Lot and J. Prince. Is that a missing element in Hip Hop today?

Mike Dean: Yeah, people don’t stay where they start at. That’s a lot of peoples’ demise, jumping cliques and shit. People fall during that, whether that’s the reason or that’s a coincidence. Rap-A-Lot gave me my first opportunity to work on my first real records back in the day, so why would I not continue to work with them? They pay me, shit.

Rap-A-Lot’s good for a paycheck every month; we’ve always got something going on. It was slow last year, I think they’re switching their distribution to a different label right now. I was just on the phone with J last night talking about that shit. We’re getting ready for the next Rap-A-Lot run. We’ve got Rap-A-Lot anniversary projects we’re working on, where all the big artists are remaking Rap-A-Lot songs. Three 6 Mafia did [Scarface’s] “Balls And My Word,” Ja Rule did “Snow,” we’ve got Redman doing “Mary Jane.” We’ve got people redoing the beats over. It’s going to be a really good album. Then Bun B’s album has 40-50 songs done, I heard.

DX: I interviewed Bun B a while ago, and I pointed out how his solo albums usually have tons of guest appearances. He said he wasn’t a solo artist by nature because he’s used to recording with Pimp C. On his new stuff, does he have guest appearances or does he have solo material?

Mike Dean: He has more solo stuff on this one. He’s always in the studio a lot, probably for six months every day [straight]. So he’s just doing bookoo songs. For about three weeks, I worked in the next studio over from him working on beats. I’m not sure what was used yet.


^The late Pimp C,Mike Dean & Too $hort ^

DX: Although the marketing and promotion methods have always been independent, how do you feel the Rap-A-Lot catalog stacks up against those of Death Row, Cash Money or even Tommy Boy? So many of those releases were so groundbreaking for their lyrics and production, which you played a huge role in...

Mike Dean: Well, one big difference is that we are still making records that make a difference in industry. We are the ones to follow in this shit. Controversy has always pushed our performers, and i always try to make the music classic. Combined, that's historical. It just comes naturally for me - don't follow the trends, and it's always better. You'll never see me doing a Bounce record or a "Whatever's hot in Dallas now" record. [Laughs] We don't have dances in Houston! Leave that to the Cowboys [footballl team] in Dallas.

Look out for Rap-A-Lot's 25th Anniversary CD and a load of Best Of's and Greatest Hits coming this year. I remastered the whole catalog so it's up to today's mastering levels, so everyone can re-experience the Rap-A-Lot era and prepare for our new artists' albums coming soon.

DX: What was it like to revisit those records? Did you realize anything new in those songs that you didn't remember or notice from before? Did they seem even more timeless when you were revisiting them?

Mike Dean: It was actually fun. It was an eye opener, really. You never really see your mass of work like that, and it's rare to get to re-master my own records. I get see how my mixing and mastering ability has progressed, along with Scarface, Bido, etc.

DX: So did you hear any of those old mixes and get pissed like "Damn, I could've had this bumpin' even more when I put it out!"

Mike Dean: Most definitely. On "Let Me Roll," the hat was so loud in the mix. It was one of the first that me and 'Face did alone.

VIA
HipHopDX

Related;
Scarface New Album News!

Scarface picks his: Top 5 dead or alive (Extended Edition)

When legends put their Top 5,
Scarface is on there.
What does the man have an affinity for?

Hip Hop has come to mean
different things to different people.
It originated as an authentic form of expression,
one that 'Face has utilized to the fullest.
Through powerful, reflective,
and uplifting lyrics Hip Hop defied
the odds and embraced the years as it
has became a widely appreciated
and celebrated genre of music.
Hip Hop at its best carries our aspirations,
our struggles, our bliss and our betrayals.

In a perfect world we entrust our MCs
to demonstrate a level of awareness of our community.
Candid lyricism in conjunction with tangible
real life experiences is part of
the amalgamation that is Scarface. Scarface,
a man who needs no introduction,
is one of our living lyrical icons.

In an unbridled interview,
he reveals his extended edition of
AllHipHop.com’s
Top 5 Dead Or Alive,
Top 5 Southern MCs and
Top 5 of Right Now.



RAKIM


Scarface:
The way that Rakim put words together is like no other.

AllHipHop.com:
For the younger generation who may be unfamiliar with Rakim;
which track do they really need to listen to?
Do you remember what made you first gravitate towards him?

Scarface:
Listen to [Eric B. & Rakim’s] “Follow The Leader.”
The main said,
“…A furified freestyle,
lyrics of fury/ my third eye makes me shine like jewelry…
[chuckles]
goddam! N****s talk about chains;
the man said his third eye makes him shine like jewelry!



KRS-ONE


AllHipHop.com:
What about KRS makes him stand out amongst others?

Scarface:
“Criminal Minded.”
To me KRS-ONE had that pause—it picks back
up—he had a swagger from that “Criminal Minded” album.
You know, that was really our star.



KOOL G RAP


AllHipHop.com:
What about Kool G Rap earned your respect?

Scarface:
…He had a song called “Truly Yours”—
and that’s really the best girl diss that I ever heard.


AllHipHop.com:
[laughs]

Scarface:
He dissed somebody and I was like, damn.
[starts emceeing]
“This I dedicate to the girl I hate…”
[mimics the DJ Polo beat, uh uh uh uh uh uh]
“This I dedicate to the girl I hate…”
Man, that is a fantastic come line—


AllHipHop.com:
You think it’s been timeless?

Scarface:
It’s timeless. Yes, “Truly Yours”


ICE CUBE


AllHipHop.com:
What made you become an Ice Cube fan?

Scarface:
[starts reciting a verse from Cube’s “A Bird in the Hand”]
“Fresh out of school I was a high school grad/
had to get a job because I was a high school dad…/
but there was no SC for this youngster/
I didn’t have no money/
so I had to punch the clock…”
That boy Cube is cold;
that boy Ice Cube is sick!


AllHipHop.com:
Which MC is your last pick?

Scarface:
I really have to think about that last one.
S***, of all time, you got to say LL Cool J, dawg.



AllHipHop.com:
LL?


LL COOL J




Scarface:
Yep!
Top five of all time,
you got to put LL in that top five of all time.


AllHipHop.com:
Now, if there were a top 6:



NAS


Scarface:
Nas.
I think Nas is a bad motherf***er.


AllHipHop.com:
What do you think about his evolution as an MC?
Does he still possess the same hunger he had with Illmatic?
Is he more lyrically potent now or
has he grown complacent as his wealth has increased?



Scarface:
I like Nas as an MC.
I like Nas period.
It don’t matter.



AllHipHop.com:
You know I have to go here;
it’s interesting that you didn’t name any Southern MCs.
Why didn’t any of those make the list?



Scarface:
Of all time,
there’s not a greatest Southern MC
of all time that could be in there, in my opinion.



AllHipHop.com:
I love you’re being real even
though you’re from the South.



Scarface:
I mean of all time
—If I did one for [the] South MCs
I would say — Top five of all time, it’s 3000



ANDRE 3000


Scarface:
I really like Andre 300, right now.
Because his word usage, his word play.



JUVENILE


Scarface:
Let’s see, Juvie said,
“The District Attorney don’t give a fuck about y’all/
she got to run again for office again in the fall…”
That boy Juvenile was a damn fool!



BUN B


Scarface:
…Did I say Bun B?
S**t, Bun, Juvie,
Who am I forgetting?


AllHipHop.com:
It’s hard. I’m thinking.
Z-RO got lyrics; but, to consider him at the top.
I dunno.
That’s a big distinction.



Scarface:
Cee-Lo Green



AllHipHop.com:
Check you out.
So, we’re traveling to Georgia with that Dungeon Family.
Do you like Cee-Lo with Goodie Mob or with Gnarls Barkley?


Scarface:
Both.

Scarface:
[snatches Cee-Lo’s voice]
“You got to get up, get out/
cut that bulls*** out/
ain’t you sick and tired or have to get up and get out..”
That boy is cold.



DEVIN THE DUDE



AllHipHop.com:
Devin, I love Devin.
But why is he so slept on;
what about Mr. Copeland is overlooked?


Scarface:
That’s the fucking Bill Withers of Southern Hip-Hop.
Devin can put a wash in a n**** from our day.


AllHipHop.com:
What I love about Devin is
the ease that he can go from a party song like
“Don’t Get Me Wrong” with the Coughee Brothaz
to crazy lyricism like on “Write & Wrong.”
I absolutely love Devin as
a lyricist and as a man;
he’s good people.


Scarface:
That motherfucker says,
“When you’re wrong/
motherfuckers want to talk about you/
when you’re wrong/
motherfuckers want to criticize you…”


AllHipHop.com:
Any more lists?

Scarface:
My top five of Right Now
(Rappers presently active, in no particular order).


JAY-Z


Scarface:
I like Jay-Z right now

AllHipHop.com:
Do you think that
the Blueprint 3 is going to live up to the hype?


Scarface:
I dunno, man.
You said, ‘will the Blueprint 3 live up to the hype,’
I think it will to answer your question.
I need to talk to him.
I just want to talk to him and
let him know where we’re at [MCs in the game] right now.
You know what I mean?
Jay-Z is serious though.
I like Jay-Z.
Now the Blueprint 3—I need to talk to him bad, man.



AllHipHop.com:
Let him know if he’s still looking
for features he can holla at me.
Or you can call him on three way.


Scarface:
[laughs]


YOUNG JEEZY


AllHipHop.com:
What about Young Jeezy do you like?


Scarface:
I like Young Jeezy, man.
I like him a lot.


AllHipHop.com:
What do you say to the critics
who question his dope boy motif?
How long can you rhyme about work?


Scarface:
They’re just critics, man.
They can’t rap a f***ing lick.
They don’t know the game at all.
They don’t know s*** about it.


AllHipHop.com:
So you feel as long as people can
identify with Jeezy he’ll be appreciated?



Scarface:
S***, I appreciate him.
I love Young Jeezy.
[adopts Jeezy’s cadence]
“I’m young by the way…”
[starts singing hook from “Get Allot”]
“I get a lot of that/
put your hands in the air if you get a lot of that…”


AllHipHop.com:
That says a lot coming from you.
That beat by Nicco is incredible.


Scarface:
Yeah I like it.


LIL WAYNE


AllHipHop.com:
What about Lil Wayne;
is it just his word play?


Scarface:
Wayne can play.
Young Moula [laughs].
His rhyming is very nice.


AllHipHop.com:
What do you think about him
challenging the boundaries of Hip-Hop?


Scarface:
I like it; I like that s***, man.
He went there.



BEANIE SIGEL


Scarface:
I like Beanie Sigel; he’s nice.
Who else is bad?



EMINEM


Scarface:
Yeah, Elvis, put Elvis in there.
Elvis has left the building, f****ing Elvis, man.
That goddam Elvis [whistles], whoa.
Eminem is awesome; he’s outside of the box.
We’ve never collaborated; but, I like that dude, man.
You know, we’ve kicked it a few times.
Eminem sent me a few beats.



The Sidebar

A malevolent force is possessing Hip Hop.
Afflicted by parasitic corporate greed,
an art form that was once celebrated
and galvanized by community spirit,
has been abducted by killer clowns from outer space.
These malignant jesters offer mere pence as
they greedily extract Hip Hop’s incredible essence.
A catastrophic rouge paints the mouth of these callous clowns;
creativity drips from the edges of its disposal.
The constant pillaging of Hip Hop has it on life support.
Hip Hop lay in ruins;
it’s a putrid abyss of what it once was.
What do we do when our most respected MCs grow
so disheartened that they prematurely resign?


VIA
AllHipHop.com


Related links;
Scarface; Dopeman Music
and
ThisIsFaceMob (Scarface´s official site)
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Lloyd Banks picks his: Top 5 dead or alive (producers)
and
Top 5 dead or alive; Kendrick Lamar’s Top 5 Dr. Dre Beats

DJ KaySlay AKA Dezzy Dez picks his: Top 5 dead or alive

AllHipHop.com caught up with Hot 97's
Dezzy Dez AKA DJ Kay Slay to see who
his Top 5 rap artists of all time were.
Dezzy Dez AKA DJ Kay Slay, who has seen many rappers come and go as a 30-year-veteran,might surprise you with his list.
Maybe not, he is known as "The Drama King."

DJ KaySlay's new album More Than Just A DJ is due in stores now.


1. Grandmaster Melle Mel
Hands down.
He touched on topics in the late 70’s and early 80’s that’s still relevant right now.
You listen to “The Message,” and “Beat Street Breakdown”
(from the Beat Street movie soundtrack.)
Back then he mentioned “don’t be a slave to no computer.”
Man n***as didn’t even know about
computers in the 70’s and 80’s man!
N***as didn’t have Macs!
He talked about
“The cheats the lies/The alibis/Man’s foolish attempt to conquer the skies/Lost in space/What is it worth/The president just forgot about earth.”
That’s why they f**king with the moon and all that s**t now!
They are trying to see if they can survive up that motherf**ker long enough to destroy this motherfucking planet and come back down here and start their own motherf**king nation of robots.
Having n***as with barcodes on the back of their head.
The s**t he talked about on that record made me say “this is the greatest rapper of all time.”
I aint saying he’s just one, n***a he’s number 1 on my list.
You disagreeing with me?




2. Grandmaster Caz
You saying “of all time.”
This is my era, son.
Grandmaster Caz them n***as right there The Cold Crush Brothers, man they was the ones who started harmonizing and
routines in Hip Hop.
Singing, fashion, the leather outfits,
the belts dangling, the leather suits.
Grandmaster Caz, he even wrote one of the biggest hip-hop records of all time,
Rapper’s Delight.” I gotta give it Grandmaster Caz second.



3. Nas
Nas is just like such a deep brother.
Whether he lives the s**t he speaks or not,
he’s real intelligent brother.
He knows how to put them songs together
to make you sit back and think.
I am lyrical type cat, so I like to hear stories.
And of course, his classic diss record, “Ether.”
“Takeover” by Jay-Z was nice, but it wasn’t geared all towards Nas.
Nas dismantled that whole crew on that record dog.
Please don’t make me repeat the lyrics.
But you know and I know, that record was so nasty when it came out,
Jay-Z did not come back with a response to touch that.




4. Jay-Z
Jay been lyrical from day one.
He came up with one of the greatest lyricists,
Jaz-O and he took the s**t to another level.
What made me bug out now is despite whatever discrepancy I might have had with him, man his verse on the Snoop’s remix to “I Wanna Rock” is nuts.
How he breaks down everyone’s name through each verse.
Made me say, “ok Jay, that n***a is nice.”
And I aint with none of that dumb illuminati s**t.
I believe the black man is the true living god, I am a 5 Percenter.
I’m God Cipher Diving.
I don’t believe in Christianity, Catholics and that other s**t, but that’s for another day.
He aint no illuminati.
He knows how to cause controversy and it’s real evident he’s working on album.
And it’s good when n***as are talking about you in any kind of light,
you can turn a negative into a positive.
He’s smart and he’s doing what he’s supposed to do.
This is Hip Hop and it’s part of the business of entertaining people.



5. Bun B
Bun B, a lot of brothers figure that Southern artists aren’t really lyricists up North. Fortunately, I know better.
8 Ball & MJG, spit. Ludacris spits. T.I. spits.
Lots of brothers out there that spit.
But Bun B and Pimp C. been spitting hard, RIP Pimp, for along time.
Bun B has done freestyles on New York tracks.
When I hear a brother go off a New York track, I know where they are at lyrically.
Bun B is one of them dudes, he can rhyme on anything.
I never game him a beat and he said “that’s a little to this.
Can you send me something else?”
It’s like that what’s you want n***a this what I’ma give you.
Let’s go, and flip it.
Bun B is spectacular can’t leave him out of that.




VIA
AllHipHop.Com


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