HAHA, good one right here, our first track of 2009 and it looks like I’m one of the first who have this. This is the beat that Premo was talking about that 50 Cent threw away, and because everybody was talking 50 Cent isn’t street and all that he made this song. So this song is a reaction to basically us, I don’t know if he took the beat now official. If it’s going to be on his new album or if you can take this serious. I don’t think so because there ain’t no scratches by DJ Premier! But the beat is straight STREET! Listen to the lyrics close hehe:
50 Cent – Shut Ur Bloodclot Mouth
Some more Facts of Peter Rosenberg’s Interview
Here are some more facts of the big interview Peter Rosenberg did with DJ Premier, the full video will come out very soon…:
- His appetite for vinyl as a kid was so strong he used to steal records from his church; elders there referred to him as “the Martin boy” and “Chrissy Poo” (his real name is Chris Martin).
- In the early ’90s, he and Guru from Gang Starr lived in a house on my current block in Clinton Hill in a bizarre living arrangement with saxophonist Branford Marsalis and his wife and kids.
- He is a veritable encyclopedia of pornography and once produced a record for Heather Hunter.
- After moving to New York in the late ’80s, he worked as a counselor at Young People’s Day Camp: “We used to go to work at 12, drunk off Ballantines—and take care of kids.” It’s OK, though: He’s run into five of his former charges and they are all now successful businessmen.
- In an unreleased, original version of his Premier-produced hip-hop industry cautionary tale “Outta Here,” KRS-One actually called out the names of old-school rap legends he believed had “fallen off.”
- He initially rebuffed efforts by the Notorious B.I.G., his neighbor in Clinton Hill at the time, to get him to produce a track on Ready to Die due to financial reasons before giving in and producing the classic “Unbelievable” on the cheap.
HeadQcourterz Studios
Or shall I say D&D Studios? DJ Premier started producing at D&D from the beginning of his carreer, but D&D was also the home of Main Source, Afu-Ra, Da Beatminerz, QNC, … It was founded in 1984 by Douglas Grama and David Lotwin and is located in Manhatten, NY (320 west 37th Street). Most of you guys are already familiar with D&D Studios, so I will close it with some clips straight from D&D:
But in 2003 D&D closed and nobody was prepared to take it over except DJ Premier & Charles Roane, I remember him saying it was a risky choice because there was a lot of money involved. But he followed his heart and bought it, I also remember he held in 2003 a big sale because it needed renovation for HeadQcourterz Studios. He renamed the studio to a fallen friend of him, sad story. HeadQcourterz was a great person, I got a message from Hashim from Rise & Shine about HeadQcourterz:
I believe he started as the head of the street team for Payday records when Group Home was on the label. I didn’t know him during that time, but his pres
ence was seen all through out the tri-state. There were Group Home stickers everywhere thanks to HQ and his thorough street team. I didn’t meet HQ until he was head of the street team at Rawkus. He took a liking to my former group often citing us as one of the few “real” artist at the label, letting us know that we were on course to great things. He was also very influential in helping us secure the track from Preemo. I would see Preemo in the city and bug him to do a track for YEARS. Thanks to our buzz with Rawkus, HQ and a manager who believed in us we were able to secure the track with one of my favorite producers. The recording session was in D&D and HQ was there adding his always funny and witty comments while we smoked the finest green while working with one of the finest! Headqcourtez was unfortunately found murdered in cold blood one night in the Bronx a few years ago. He will be missed!, but thanks to Preem he will be remembered! Headqcourtez was an awesome guy. Very loyal and dedicated to promoting the artist he respected. The murder is till unsolved.
If you see HeadQcourterz studios you see a very beautiful looking and modern studio, a dream for every producers. But also Premo had to start with something, this is his history:
Mid 80’s
Crew: MCs in Control, Texas
Equipment: Yamaha DX7 or RX7
Late 80’s
Crew: Inner Circle Posse, Texas
Equipment: Unkown, same?
1989
Crew: Gang Starr, NY
Equipment: Emu SP-12, but one year later the famous MPC.
On the first album, I didn’t really do total production. All the samples were mine, but the programming was me and my engineer Shlomo because I didn’t really know how to do a record. I knew how to do demos on a 4-track: Let the beat run, lay the next track, let the beat run, then do scratches on it. Then, I started to understand the structure of making a record and took it to the next level.
2005
Crew: Year Round Records, NY
Equipment: HeadQcourterz Studios
Recording hardware, DAWs:
Apple Mac G4 computer
Digidesign Pro Tools|HD system, 96 I/O, Control|24 control surface
HHB CD recorder
Panasonic SV3800 DAT Recorder
Samplers, drum machines:
Akai MPC60 sampling/sequencing drum machine, S950 sampler
Software, plug-ins:
Focusrite Red 2-, 4-, 6-band EQ plug-ins
Waves Renaissance plug-in
It brings you back to the old EQs from back in the day, where it’s that old more thick, straight-to-tape sound rather than that digital, thin sound. Renaissance Vox always just really crispens up the vocals where everything blends so well.
Turntables, mixers:
Technics SL-1210MK2 turntables
Technics 1200SHEX Championship Mixer
Numark DXMPro mixer
Instruments, sound modules, controllers:
E-mu Mo’Phatt, Proteus 2 modules
Korg Triton keyboard
The sounds that I do use are the ones Pharrell and them don’t.
M-Audio Oxygen8 MIDI keyboard controller
Preamps, compressors, EQs:
DigiTech VTP1 preamp/EQ
dbx 166 dual compressor/limiter/gate
Monitors:
UREI 813Cs
I gotta have those. I can track anywhere — in the bathroom, on the street — but speakers have everything to do with mixing, because you tune your mix through the speakers.
Yamaha NS10s
A word from Charles Roane:
Most sessions, Primo will be on his own to create the track. He may call me in for a time stretch or some keys. Then, for mixdown, it’s 50/50 with Premier using his HD system and I’m on his Mixplus system. At the beginning of a mix, I like to start small. Get your kick, snares and vocal level on a small monitor, like an Auratone, at low volume first. If the beats are from a keyboard or drum machine, I like the Focusrite compressor plug-in.
Source: Remix Magazine
Also peep this for info about this topic!
DJ Premier Third Best Producer of 2008
…In well respected Kevin Nottingham‘s mind. I promise you this will be the last “Top 2008” list! Damn third, this proves that DJ Premier in this century is still hot as hell and not felt off like some of the people think. We didn’t see “A Man of Few Words” or a fully produced Preem album, but still 2008 was without a doubt a busy year for premo with 27 songs (excl. “Beats That Collected Dust“)! I’m glad he still get recognized, 2009 will go hard in Brooklyn!
Rank:
10. Jake One
09. Alchemist
08. 9th Wonder
07. Khrysis
06. Illmind
05. Notzz
04. Nicolay
03. DJ Premier
It’s a little unfair to have premier here, but he’s pretty much a perennial candidate on this list every year. It’s just a matter of where he will land. 2008 has been a strong year for the legend, but a quietly strong and busy year. Handling a majority of production for the Big Shug album and dealing a lot with Blaq Poet, Preemo still found time to drop bombs on us like “That White” and “Society is Brainwashed.” His joint with Kool G Rap was long overdue and “M.V.P” with Ludacris is easily the album’s standout. He reconnected with KRS One to re-up “Criminal Minded” (for that whole Smirnoff campaign) and dropped another stand out on the remarkable Reks album. The catalog keeps growing for him, as he added two more remixes to his resume (Maroon 5, Mark Ronson).
02. Statik Selektah
01. Black Milk
You can always swap names, but you can’t swap the top 3 can you? No Pete Rock, no Kanye West!
DJ Premier Trackology
I didn’t made a post yet for my DJ Premier Trackology so here it is, it’s a page that I made long time before this blog (three years by now) where every single release by DJ Premier is listed. I can assure you it’s the most accurate list in the world and it’s all thanks to a buncha real Preem heads I can update and publish this. If you see what Chris produced in his life you know by then why I made this blog. Nobody can’t argue that, he is a pioneer to this game! Nuff Said!
Unbelievable Remix Live ’94
Some rare footage of Biggie preforming the Unbelievable Remix live with Puffy (yes, that bastard) in ’94. The beat is produced by KRS-One originally for Mad Lion. This is a treasure!
Source: The Meaning of Dope
DJ Premier’s Top 20 of 2008
Like every year DJ Premier present to you his top 20 albums of a year on LiveFromHQ, also in 2009 he did that. Now it’s on this blog wich makes me happy offcourse, here is Premo’s top 20 of 2008 guys:
Rank:
20. Ill Bill – The Hour of Reprisal
19. 88-Keys – The Death of Adam
18. EPMD – We Mean Business
17. Craig G & Marley Marl – Operation Take Back Hip-Hop
16. Ice Cube – Raw Footage
15. Q-Tip – The Renaissance
14. Guilty Simpson – Ode to the Ghetto
13. Termanology – Politics as Usual
12. Big Shug – Otherside of the Game
11. Ludacris – Theater of the Mind
10. Heltah Skeltah – D.I.R.T. (Da Incredible Rap Team)
09. Lil’ Wayne – Tha Carter III
08. The P Brothers – The Gas
07. eMC – The Show
06. Jake One – White Van Music
05. D.I.T.C. – The Movement
04. Scarface – Emeritus
03. Statik Selektah – Stick 2 the Script
02. Evidence – The Layover EP
01. DJ Revolution – King of the Decks
Artists that DJ Premier wanted in top 20, but didn’t made it but mentioned: GZA, Reks, Devin the Dude, Large Pro, Nas, Prodigy, Trick Trick, Young Maylay, The Game, Black Milk, Torae and Vast Aire.
“Be Glad or Be Mad” -DJ Premier
And next week it’s DJ Eclipse but DJ Premier will be on the phone on LiveFromHQ!
House of Repz Video
gimantalon, January 2nd 2009 |Most Anticipated Album; VOTE!!
New year, new vote. This vote will stay 100 days online and question you what the most anticipated album is for you that need to put out today. I only gave the name of the artists because the album names couldn’t fit on the page. With every artists there comes an album behind that was mentioned by DJ Premier once or more. Every artist is signed to Year Round Records or connected with it and should have an album out with mostly Premo produced songs. The albums that are missing are the Nas collabo because offcourse most people want that but ain’t going to happen because Nas was feeling “Nigger” needed to be released first. The “Amerikkkan Black Man” album by Bumpy Knuckles because the songs on that album by DJ Premier are mostly already leaked. And the real answer on the most anticipated album on Year Round Records is “A Man Of Few Words” no doubt, so that will be also excluded because Preem will only work on it when the time is right and the reason why he isn’t talking about it anymore is because he want that journalists stop asking for it I think, so lets not push him with a pole lol. It will come out in 2011. Now for the people who don’t know, lets get a little closer to the albums:
Rave Roulette “Untitled”
This is the most forgotten one. He is an artists from Brooklyn and one of NYGz homeboys. Also known as Rave, he is featured on NYGz pretape “Welcome To G-Dom” 6 times. He is currently unsigned and that’s why an album of him in the early future is most unbelievable. Only one time I heard he was going to do an album and that was in 2003, since then nothing was mentioned again. The rumour is that he’s in jail.
NYGz “Pros N Cons”
Ooow yeah, this is actually the first group on Year Round Records that had a full tape. Well, it was a pretape but still. With help from Traffic Entertainment Group they got lifted late 2007 and now getting ready for their real album. A fully lenght LP with songs on it nothing else produced then by DJ Premier! I know people are really waiting on this one, because DJ Premier is talking about it every 6 months I guess, it was going to be released in 2003/2004 but now it’s set to release in 2009. I say late 2009/2010. The good news is we have already a leaked song of the album, called “Policy” and we also got some tracktitles and featured artists. They were even trying to get Rise Against Machine on it!
Khaleel “My MC Name Is…”
Yes, that’s the title of the album some time ago. It could be changed by now, but their is a reason why we think the album could be released this year. He is actually released from prison some months ago and recorded tracks with DJ Premier! We first heard of him in 2004/2005 with a DJ Premier produced track that was called “You Can’t Tell Me Shit”, now the track title is “Hot Flames” and will be the first single of his upcoming debut album. Also on Year Round Records, he is unique because he’s from Texas and DJ Premier is also from Texas like we all know. Also this LP will be fully produced by DJ Premier and is set to release this summer!
Nick Javas “Destination Unknown”
Another unique artist! He is the first white dude signed on Year Round Records. Till this day we didn’t heard any solo track of him with DJ Premier, only a promo freestyle for LiveFromHQ. Went late in the game with DJ Premier. I think 2006. He is featured on one track of DJ Premier, but is named more then once. He also did studio sessions with DJ Premier for his debut album. Also this LP is set to release this year. Coming from New Jersey with style!
Boy Big “Untitled”
Just like Rave this album is only mentioned once in 2003 after he was featured on the Gang Starr LP “The Ownerz”. Last we heard of him was in 2006 on the DJ Premier produced track “Proper Dosage” by F.A.B.I.D. So we heard him two times on Preem tracks. The rumour is that he is in prison. This is the only RnB album in the list. He is from Kansas City.
Teflon “Contraband”
Maaaaan, Teflon people, Teflon!! It’s been so long time ago that we almost don’t remember how nice he sounded on a DJ Premier banger! First solo appearance with DJ Premier in 1999 with the 12inch single F-U, then 7 years later released another single with DJ Premier named “Showtime” and in that same year three leaked songs for “Contraband”. How does he managed not to release this album?! Don’t expect this to be dropped soon…
F.A.B.I.D. “Smash City”
Mike Rone and H. Stax are F.A.B.I.D. Released a single in 2006 and a mixtape with PF Cuttin’. After the single in 2006 they were getting ready to release their debut album that we never saw, knowing their are unreleased DJ Premier records on this world. H. Stax most known from his featuring on Gang Starr single “Same Team, No Games” is known for his hardcore rhymes that would make this group a succes. This is my vote!
Blaq Poet “The Best That Never Dun It”
Blaq Poet… my favourite artist on Year Round Records, one of the best in Hip Hop today! Killed many people in his rhymes before and just like NYGz getting ready now to release his first pretape called “Tha Blaqprint” that will be released 75% sure in february 2009! But when his first real solo album will drop isn’t known yet. They speak of the album since 2006 when the pretape “Rewind: Deja Screw” was released, back then the pretape for “The Best That Never Dun It”. So you know they like to drop pretapes, don’t bother me, as long they drop beats, not bombs (haha Dann). Blaq Poet counts now 7 leaked songs that didn’t been released yet, but in a week the first single for his pretape will be released. Expect this album in 2010 maybe.
Enough writing! Sorry if I say it again, but the reason I really do this is because of the positve comments I get of you guys. It really gives me energy to write things down. And some people should know I’m from Belgium where people speak Dutch, so sorry for the spelling mistakes. As long as you understand the message it’s good, if not, go outside and play. I know this isn’t the best vote, if you can choose between Rave Roulette that isn’t known at all or Blaq Poet that just rips a premo track one month ago so any requests for a better vote are ok. Big up to Year Round Records, Gordon Franklin and DJ Premier. Thanks for voting!
