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Are These Amazing Hip-Hop Producers The Greatest Ever? Pt. 2
Welcome back good people!
When we last left off, we were discussing a mix of the greatest beatsmiths ever to sit behind the boards in hip-hop. After these pioneers are all dead and gone, their spirits will be the ghosts in your MASCHINE that powers the next generation of hip-hop super producer. They are the literal movers and shakers of the music industry. They are the composers of straight heat (no FRUITY LOOPS here). So back by popular demand, and with good REASON, we present Pt. 2 of the greatest hip-hop producers ever. And just in time too because Iâm fresh out of producer puns.
Rick Rubin
There arenât enough superlatives to describe the incomparable Rick Rubin and his contributions to hip-hop production. Def Jam Records architect and co founder (along with some guy named Russell), Rubin has laid the foundation for not just classic songs but classic careers. From the Beastie Boys to Run D.M.C to LL to Jay-Z, Rubinâs rock and roll samples overlaid onto neck snapping compressed percussion made you want to fight for your right to walk this way, that way, and any other way Rick wanted you to.
Notables: Walk This Way / 99 Problems / Fight for Your Right to Party
Pete Rock
If you like Kanye and you like Just Blaze and you like hip-hop, then youâll love Pete Rock! The original soul and jazz sample king, Pete Rock has been cranking out classic tracks and ridiculous remixes for over 25 years. Cousin to Heavy D, this mecca in the soul brother was a mainstay in East Coast 90âs era hip-hop, so when you reminisce over the golden age, you are more than likely reminiscing over Peteâs beats.
Notables; T.R.O.Y (They Reminisce Over You) / The World is Yours / Rather Unique
Just Blaze
Just Blaze is an animal. Plain and simple. He produces the type of music that makes you want to crash your brand new BMW into a brick wall. Utilizing melodic soul samples chopped to shreds, hard-ass drums and an unmatched frenetic energy, if you ever need to get yourself hyped up for anything, I highly recommend a Just Blaze joint. What Jimmy Hendrix does with an electric guitar, Just does with a soul sample. With several decades of cranking out hits for everyone from Harlem World to Rocafella Records, it would appear that you Mr. Blaze, do know what youâre doing⊠doing⊠doingâŠ
 Notables: I Really Mean It / U Donât Know / Touch the Sky
Rza
If you are a hip hop fan then I really shouldnât have to say anything other than the name Rza but you took the time to read this so Iâll write something. Rza is the Soul / Sole Sonic force behind the Wu-Tang movement. Although his discography expands way past Wu-Tang, lets just say if youâve ever liked any Wu-Tang song (and you have), Rza was more than likely the one who produced it. Heâs produced for more people and on more classic albums than we care to count. From Bounty Killer to Bjork to Biggie. From Enter The Wu to OB4QL to Supreme Clientele, only Bobby Digital can supply the kind of grungy, dark, smelly basement beats thatâll make Jeru the Damaja Come Clean (Premo produced that but you get the point). If it needs to be hard-edged and gritty then it needs to be Rza.
Notables; Protect Ya Neck / Long Kiss Goodnight / C.R.E.A.M
Dilla
Hailing from Detroit Michigan, J. Dilla was and still is one of the most influential hip-hop producers of our time. With production credits from Common, A Tribe Called Quest, The Roots, Slum Village and a host of others, his sonic youth makes up the very fabric of hip-hop music. Iâve prided myself on being able to recreate every producer’s sound and when I tried a Dilla track, I couldnât quite get the timing right. Heâs the only one Iâve been unsuccessful with. I donât think itâs a coincidence. What Timbaland does to the groove of a track, J. Dilla does to the whole damn song. The syncopated, off-beat flow is a part of that Dilla magic. Itâs more of a feeling than timing and 9/10 times it just feels right.
Notables; The Light / Stressed Out / Stakes Is High
Almost every year for the past 6 years and on the same day, Iâve posted the same pic of me in the hospital during my temporary and untimely demise in 2015. A few weeks after I was back to ânormalâ, I asked Eric âWhyâd you take the pics?â And he said, âI knew you would want to write about it if you lived.â Eric was right. Eric was often right and Eric always had my best interest at heart. I am going to miss my friend.
You ever meet someone and become friends immediately?! Well this was not the case with Eric. Before he was my manager at Morgan Stanley, I would often see this 6â4″, giant white guy walk up to the only black woman at work, say something then walk away without any hint of human emotion. Naturally I thought he was a jerk until I asked her âYo, is that dude bothering you?â She laughed and proceeded to tell me he was a great person, which I ultimately got to experience first hand. Little did I know this Italian from Staten Island was more Brooklyn than most Brooklynites.
Eric was not with the shits!! If there were ever someone who lived their life in direct, honest and no uncertain terms, that would be Eric. He would ask me questions at work like âWhy are the other consultants making more money than you?â I knew the answer to that question and so did he. Eric then proceeded to increase my salary by 15K. After arguing with all our managers that âYou need to hire Alfred!â, they eventually did 1 year prior to the 2015 incident. In the hospital, one of my friends asked me, âWhat if you didnât have health insurance when this happened?â I would be in debt for the rest of my life is the obvious answer. I still am in debt for the rest of my life but at least, it is to those who made sure I had a more enjoyable life and for that, I will gladly repay.
My mom loved to tell me the story of how she met Eric. After they told her I was going to be in the ICU for some time, she told the doctor âWell Iâm not going anywhere.â She then hears a voice from that back of the room that says âWell Iâm not going anywhere either!â That was Eric and in true form, he was at that hospital every single day until I was discharged.
Eric passed away in December 2021 of stage 4 cancer. After feeling faint on his way to my bbq, he went to get checked out and was diagnosed. During the past 5 years, Eric lost his mom, twin brother and dad. I can’t even begin to imagine what that must have felt like but I’m glad that pain he was feeling is no more.
From being my manager to my business partner, writer, book editor, artistic director, and most importantly, my friend, I am going to miss you MC Krispy E a.k.a âEnrique Pollazo!â And although you told me Enrique means Henry in Spanish and not Eric, it was too late!
Sidebar. The day I was discharged, while everyone was deciding what was best for me, no one had remembered that I would need clothes in order to leave the hospital. Eric shows up (unasked) with all the clothes I had on the day I coded, laundered and ready to go. I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve friends like this but i need to keep doing it! Sidebar complete.
Rest in Peace Eric. âBe Good.â
I had the distinct pleasure of participating in a panel discussion on writing your first book, presented by the Harlem chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. Alongside Jim St. Germain, Author – A Stone of Hope: A Memoir and Dr. Keneshia Nicole Grant, Author – The Great Migration and the Democratic Party: Black Voters and the Realignment of American Politics in the 20th Century.  We opined on pain points, benefits and strategies regarding our inaugural voyages into authorship. Feel free to watch for your self and I hope this provides some insight to all those looking to make the same voyage. Enjoy!
