Peter Phillips better known by his
stage nameA stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
Pete Rock, is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
record producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, DJ and
rapperRapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
. He rose to prominence in the early 1990s as one half of the critically acclaimed group
Pete Rock & CL SmoothPete Rock & C.L. Smooth are a hip-hop duo from Mount Vernon, New York. They made their debut with their 1991 EP, All Souled Out and followed with 1992's Mecca and the Soul Brother LP.-The Golden Age :...
. After the duo went their separate ways, Rock continued with a solo career that has garnered him worldwide respect, though little in the way of mainstream success. Along with groups such as
StetsasonicStetsasonic was an American hip hop group formed in 1979 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York. It is remembered as one of the first hip hop crews to use a live band, and the group's positive, uplifting lyrics made it forerunners of alternative hip hop and jazz hip...
,
A Tribe Called QuestA Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985, and is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but rejoined in 2006...
,
The RootsThe Roots is an American hip hop/neo soul band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are famed for beginning with a jazzy, eclectic approach to hip hop which still includes live instrumentals...
and
Gang StarrGang Starr was an influential East Coast hip hop duo that consisted of the late MC Guru and DJ/producer DJ Premier. Their style combined elements of New York jazz and hip hop.-Background:...
, Rock played a major role in the merging of elements from
jazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
into hip hop music (also known as
jazz rapJazz rap is a sub-genre of hip hop which incorporates jazz influences, developed in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The lyrics are often based on political consciousness, Afrocentricity, and general positivism...
). He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongside
DJ PremierChristopher Edward Martin , better known by his stage name DJ Premier , is an American record producer and DJ, and was the instrumental half of the hip hop duo Gang Starr, together with emcee Guru...
, the RZA, and
J DillaJames Dewitt Yancey , better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan...
as one of the mainstays of 1990s
East Coast hip hopEast Coast hip hop is a regional subgenre of hip hop music that originated in New York City, USA during the 1970s. Hip hop is recognized to have originated and evolved first in the East Coast...
production. Pete Rock is also the older brother and younger cousin, respectively, of rappers
Grap LuvaGregory Phillips better known by his stage name Grap Luva is a hip-hop producer and rapper primarily active during the 1990s as a member of the group INI His first appearance was as a guest...
and the late Heavy D.
Early life
Pete Rock was born in The Bronx, New York, the sixth of seven children of
JamaicaJamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n immigrant parents. His family moved to
Mount Vernon, New YorkMount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. It lies on the border of the New York City borough of The Bronx.-Overview:...
when he was seven years old. During high school, he met his future recording partner
CL SmoothCL Smooth is an American rapper, poet, and is best known as the vocal half of the hip-hop duo Pete Rock & CL Smooth....
. According to Rock, his father was also a part-time DJ who had an impressive record collection. Rock would often accompany his father to a
cricketCricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
club called Wembley in The Bronx and watch as he spun records for the guests. His first job was as a
paperboyA paperboy is the general name for a person employed by a newspaper, They are often used around the office to run low end errands. They make copies and distribute them. Paperboys traditionally were and are still often portrayed on television and movies as preteen boys, often on a bicycle...
, in his neighborhood.
Early career
His first major exposure to the hip-hop audience was in 1987 with
Marley MarlMarlon Williams , better known as Marley Marl, is an American DJ and record producer, who is considered one of the most important and influential hip-hop producers in the history of hip hop.-Biography:...
, as a DJ on
New YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
's
WBLSWBLS is an urban adult contemporary FM radio station in New York City, operating on 107.5 MHz. WBLS is owned by Inner City Broadcasting Corporation along with sister station WLIB...
radio show "In Control With Marley Marl." The 17-year-old Phillips was recognized by the listening audience as the man "puttin' in work", as he would use double copies of each record to cut up every song he played, when most New York DJs would only use double copies on every third or fourth song. Propelled by the growth of his popularity, he began producing in the early 1990s. In 1991 he joined with CL Smooth to release the
EPAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
All Souled OutAll Souled Out is an EP by Pete Rock & CL Smooth. It was released in the summer of 1991 to rave reviews and spawned a modest hit in "The Creator"....
.
The following year saw
Mecca and the Soul BrotherMecca And The Soul Brother is the critically acclaimed 1992 debut album from the Mount Vernon duo, Pete Rock & CL Smooth. The album contains their best known song, "They Reminisce Over You ." To date, Mecca and the Soul Brother has been widely acclaimed as one of the greatest Hip hop albums of all...
, the first of two full-length albums, released to critical acclaim and hailed as a classic by many. During this period, Pete Rock began to produce songs for other acts, such as "Down With the King" for Run-DMC and "
The World Is Yours"The World Is Yours" is the third single from rapper Nas's debut album Illmatic, released a month after the album. It is considered by some music critics one of the greatest hip-hop songs ever recorded. The song was produced by Pete Rock—who also sings the song's chorus—and samples "I Love Music"...
" for
NasNasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...
, as well remix singles for
Jeru the DamajaKendrick Jeru Davis, known as Jeru the Damaja is an American rapper and recording artist who has worked extensively with Guru and DJ Premier of Gang Starr, whom he has known since high school.-Biography:...
("You Can't Stop the Prophet"), Public Enemy ("
Shut 'em DownShut 'em Down is the fourth single from Public Enemy's Apocalypse 91...The Enemy Strikes Black.The song gained notoriety when remixed by Pete Rock in the summer of 1991. The remix incorporated elements of a horn sample which interwove prominently in and out of the mix while a filtered ascending...
"), and
The Notorious B.I.G.Christopher George Latore Wallace , best known as The Notorious B.I.G., was an American rapper. He was also known as Biggie Smalls , Big Poppa, and The Black Frank White .Wallace was raised in the Brooklyn borough...
("
Juicy"Juicy" is a song by hip hop artist The Notorious B.I.G. and his solo debut single from his 1994 debut album Ready to Die. It was produced by Poke of Trackmasters & Sean "Puffy" Combs. Its melody is sampled from Mtume's "Juicy Fruit", and has an alternative chorus sung by R&B girl group Total...
" - the original of which was allegedly based on Rock's own demo). Pete and CL followed up Mecca in 1994 with The Main Ingredient. Like its predecessor, The Main Ingredient also received wide critical acclaim. However, soon after the album's release, the duo split and went their separate ways, with Rock focusing on production work for other artists.
In 1995, he formed the group
INIINI was a hip hop group composed of Rob-O, Grap Luva, I Love H.I.M., Marco Polo , and DJ Boodakhan....
, with
Grap LuvaGregory Phillips better known by his stage name Grap Luva is a hip-hop producer and rapper primarily active during the 1990s as a member of the group INI His first appearance was as a guest...
, Rob-O, and I Love H.I.M. and released the classic 12" "Fakin' Jax". The trio recorded an album, Center of Attention(originally named The Life I Live), which was heavily bootlegged and remained unreleased until 2003, when BBE Records picked it up for distribution. The release of this album was coupled with another previously unreleased mid-'90s Pete Rock-produced album, DeDa's The Original Baby Pa.
In 1996, he appeared on the
Red Hot OrganizationRed Hot Organization is a not-for-profit, 501 3, international organization dedicated to fighting AIDS through pop culture.Since its inception in 1989, over 400 artists, producers and directors have contributed to over 15 compilation albums, related television programs and media events to raise...
's compilation CD,
America is Dying SlowlyAmerica Is Dying Slowly is a compilation album, the eighth in the Red Hot AIDS Benefit Series of recorded by the Red Hot Organization...
, alongside
Wu-Tang ClanThe Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
,
CoolioArtis Leon Ivey Jr. , better known by the stage name Coolio, is an American musician, rapper, actor and record producer.-Late 80s:He recorded two singles in the late 80s, titled "Watcha Gonna Do" and "You're Gonna Miss Me"...
, and
Fat JoeJoseph Antonio Cartagena , better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper, CEO of Terror Squad Entertainment, and member of musical groups D.I.T.C. and Terror Squad....
, among others. The CD, meant to raise awareness of the AIDS epidemic among African American men, was heralded as a masterpiece by
The SourceThe Source is a United States-based, monthly full-color magazine covering hip-hop music, politics, and culture, founded in 1988. It is the world's second longest running rap periodical, behind United Kingdom-based publication Hip Hop Connection. The Source was founded as a newsletter in 1988...
magazine.
Solo career
While working as a DJ with Marley Marl on Hot 97's Future Flavas show, Rock was able to forge a relationship with Loud Records, allowing him to release his solo album Soul Survivor in the summer of 1998. After being dropped from the Loud imprint, Rock signed with Rapster/BBE under his own label Soul Brother Recordings. His first release on the imprint was
PeteStrumentalsPeteStrumentals is an instrumental hip hop album from Hip Hop producer/rapper Pete Rock, his second solo release. The album is the second installment of BBE Records Beat Generation series, following Jay Dee's Welcome to Detroit album. The instrumental songs were originally recorded between 1990 and...
, which was mostly made up of previously unreleased Rock beats; all recorded between 1990 and 1995 but remixed and mastered for the 2001 BBE Project. The album did however feature two additional 2001 songs that featured the vocals from The UN. An expanded and revisited version of the album was released less than one year later; three instrumentals had been replaced with three new songs performed by C.L. Smooth,
Freddie FoxxxFreddie Foxxx, also known as Bumpy Knuckles, is an American rapper and music producer from Long Island, New York.- Biography :...
and
NatureNature, in the broadest sense, is equivalent to the natural world, physical world, or material world. "Nature" refers to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general...
separately.
Since then he has continued releasing solo albums including 2004's
Soul Survivor IISoul Survivor II is a 2004 album from hip hop producer Pete Rock. The album features guest appearances from a large number of hip hop artists, including Pharoahe Monch, Little Brother, Skillz, RZA, GZA, Talib Kweli, Dead Prez, Slum Village, Jay Dee and former partner CL Smooth.Pete, who dropped...
. In that same year he also produced the bulk of Edo G's My Own Worst Enemy, as well as a track for the all-girl rap group Northern State.
Pete Rock returned to greater visibility through a closer relationship with the
Wu-Tang ClanThe Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
. Their collaborations began with Soul Survivor, which featured
Inspectah DeckJason Hunter, better known by his stage name Inspectah Deck, is an American rapper, producer, and member of the Wu-Tang Clan...
,
Method ManClifford Smith , better known by his stage name Method Man is an American hip hop artist, record producer, actor and member of the hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He took his stage name from the 1979 film The Fearless Young Boxer, also known as Method Man. He is one half of the rap duo Method Man...
,
Ghostface KillahDennis Coles , better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and prominent member of the Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of Enter the Wu-Tang , the members went on to pursue solo careers to varying levels of success...
and
RaekwonCorey Woods , better known by the stage name Raekwon, is an American rapper and a member of the Wu-Tang Clan. He released his solo debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... in 1995, and has since recorded four solo albums, as well as work with Wu-Tang and an extensive amount of guest contributions with...
on various tracks as well as producing a track each for Inspectah Deck's ("Trouble Man") and
RaekwonCorey Woods , better known by the stage name Raekwon, is an American rapper and a member of the Wu-Tang Clan. He released his solo debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... in 1995, and has since recorded four solo albums, as well as work with Wu-Tang and an extensive amount of guest contributions with...
's ("Sneakers") respective 1999 albums. Rock continued to work with the Wu on
Soul Survivor IISoul Survivor II is a 2004 album from hip hop producer Pete Rock. The album features guest appearances from a large number of hip hop artists, including Pharoahe Monch, Little Brother, Skillz, RZA, GZA, Talib Kweli, Dead Prez, Slum Village, Jay Dee and former partner CL Smooth.Pete, who dropped...
which featured both
GZAGary Grice , better known by his stage names GZA and The Genius, is an American hip hop artist and founding member of the seminal hip hop group the Wu-Tang Clan. He has also appeared on his fellow clan members' solo projects and has maintained a successful solo career...
and
RZARobert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
. In 2006 he also produced three tracks for Ghostface's release
FishscaleFishScale is the fifth studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah, released March 28, 2006 on Def Jam in the United States. The album features guest appearances from every member of the Wu-Tang Clan, as well as Ghostface Killah's Theodore Unit...
, including the first single, and
Nature SoundsNature Sounds is a record label based in Brooklyn, New York, specializing in hip hop and reggae music.-Discography:*Ayatollah - Fingertips *Ayatollah - Live From The MPC 60 *Ayatollah - Cocoon...
labelmate
Masta KillaJamel Arief , better known as Masta Killa, is an American rapper and member of the Wu-Tang Clan...
's second album, Made in Brooklyn.
Pete Rock has cultivated a relationship with Brooklyn-based Nature Sounds Records. He recorded the song "The PJs", which also features Wu-Tang Clan's Raekwon and Masta Killa, released on the Nature Sounds compilation Natural Selection. He released an album entitled
NY's FinestNY's Finest is a studio album by hip hop producer and emcee Pete Rock. The album was Rock's first studio album since 2004's Soul Survivor II, and was released on February 26, 2008 through the Nature Sounds record label. The album's cover art was created by Fuse Green and inspired by the cover of...
in February 2008, featuring
RaekwonCorey Woods , better known by the stage name Raekwon, is an American rapper and a member of the Wu-Tang Clan. He released his solo debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... in 1995, and has since recorded four solo albums, as well as work with Wu-Tang and an extensive amount of guest contributions with...
, Masta Killa,
D-BlockThe d-block is the portion of the periodic table that contains the element groups 3-12. These groups correspond to the filling of the atomic d-orbital subshell, with electron configurations ranging from s2d1 to s2d10...
, Redman,
PapooseShamele Mackie , better known by his stage name Papoose , is an American rapper.-Biography:Born March 5, 1978 in Brooklyn, New York City by Sierra Leone and Native American parents, Papoose made his first attempts at rapping at the age of 7. He was given his name by his grandma Vivian because of...
,
Slum VillageSlum Village was a hip hop group from Conant Gardens, Detroit, Michigan.The group was formed by three members: rappers Baatin and T3, plus rapper and producer J Dilla . J Dilla left in 2002 to pursue a solo career with MCA Records...
and
Jim JonesJames Warren "Jim" Jones was the founder and leader of the Peoples Temple, which is best known for the November 18, 1978 mass suicide of 909 Temple members in Jonestown, Guyana along with the killings of five other people at a nearby airstrip.Jones was born in Indiana and started the Temple in...
, among others, also on Nature Sounds. The lead single from the album is entitled "914" and features rappers
Sheek LouchSean Divine Jacobs, better known as Sheek Louch , is an African American rapper and member of The LOX , along with Styles P and Jadakiss.-Personal life and career:...
and
Styles PDavid Styles better known by his stage name, Styles P, is an American rapper, author, and entrepreneur. He is prominently known as a member of Hip Hop group The LOX and is also a part of the Ruff Ryders hip-hop group, and in addition has released multiple albums and mixtapes as a solo...
. He is scheduled to appear on albums by
Bishop LamontPhilip Martin , better known as Bishop Lamont is an American rapper from Carson, California. He was signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment record label but left in 2010.-Biography:...
,
Cannibal OxCannibal Ox, also known as CanOx, is an abstract hip hop duo from Harlem, New York City. Its members include Vast Aire and Vordul Mega. They are often accompanied by DJ Cip-One...
,
TermanologyDaniel Carrillo , better known as Termanology is a rapper from Lawrence, Massachusetts. He first came to wide attention with the 2006 single "Watch How It Go Down". A solo album, Politics As Usual, was released in 2008...
,
Freddie FoxxxFreddie Foxxx, also known as Bumpy Knuckles, is an American rapper and music producer from Long Island, New York.- Biography :...
, Royal Flush, Verbal Threat,
LL Cool JJames Todd Smith , better known as LL Cool J , is an American rapper, entrepreneur, and actor...
, JoJo Pellegrino,
La The DarkmanAs a teenager in New York City, the Crown Heights, Brooklyn-bred emcee born Lason Jackson negotiated his first deal just as he was finishing high school...
,
CormegaCory Mckay , better known as Cormega, is an American emcee best known for his vivid and poignant narratives about inner-city life.- Early life :...
,
R.A. The Rugged ManR. A. Thorburn, better known as R.A. the Rugged Man, is an emcee from Suffolk County, Long Island, New York.-Career:At 18, R.A. signed with Jive Records and then in the mid-1990s signed with Priority Records/EMI. His contract was later absorbed by Capitol Records but he began recording...
, and others. He is also working with DJ/Rapper Doo Wop under the name Tango & Cash (taken from the
film of the same nameTango & Cash is a 1989 American buddy cop film starring Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Jack Palance and Teri Hatcher. It was directed by Andrei Konchalovsky, although Albert Magnoli took over in the later stages of filming....
).
Planet AsiaPlanet Asia aka King Medallions is an underground hip hop MC from Fresno, California who is a member of hiphop groups the Cali Agents, and Skhool Yard...
has recently claimed that later on in 2009 he will release a collaboration fully produced album with Pete Rock called "Planet Rock". On December 2009 Rock denied that, but talked about collabo projects with Tha Dogg Pound, Camp Lo, Smif-N-Wessun.
Pete Rock oversaw the production of
Jay Stay PaidJay Stay Paid is an album from the late hip hop musician J Dilla, mixed like a radio show by Pete Rock. It is a posthumous album, but is his fourth album overall. It was released June 2, 2009 on Nature Sounds...
, a posthumous album by the producer
J DillaJames Dewitt Yancey , better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan...
, released June 2, 2009, on
Nature SoundsNature Sounds is a record label based in Brooklyn, New York, specializing in hip hop and reggae music.-Discography:*Ayatollah - Fingertips *Ayatollah - Live From The MPC 60 *Ayatollah - Cocoon...
. Lately he has been in
HawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, working with
Kanye WestKanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
on the latter's fifth album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. In addition, he and
DJ PremierChristopher Edward Martin , better known by his stage name DJ Premier , is an American record producer and DJ, and was the instrumental half of the hip hop duo Gang Starr, together with emcee Guru...
have announced that they are working on a joint album together, although further details are unknown. Recently in
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
he confirmed that Big Pooh & C.L. Smooth will be on his half of the VS album and he plans on dropping 5 albums in 2011 including reuniting with C.L. Smooth for a third album & drop his 4th album on
Nature SoundsNature Sounds is a record label based in Brooklyn, New York, specializing in hip hop and reggae music.-Discography:*Ayatollah - Fingertips *Ayatollah - Live From The MPC 60 *Ayatollah - Cocoon...
. His next few collaborative albums are both due for a summer release with
Monumental-Music:* Monumental, an album by producer/rapper Pete Rock and rap duoSmif-N-Wessun** "Monumental", title track, and third single off of the album.-Other uses:* Monumental * Monumental Axis, a central avenue in Brasília's city design...
first then with
Camp LoCamp Lo is an American hip hop duo, formed in 1995, which hails from The Bronx, New York. The duo consists of rappers Sonny Cheeba and Geechi Suede , both of Muslim upbringing.-Career:...
's "80 Blocks From Tiffanys" LP. In an April 2011 interview on
Conspiracy Worldwide Radio, Pete Rock discussed his new solo work including his album with
DJ PremierChristopher Edward Martin , better known by his stage name DJ Premier , is an American record producer and DJ, and was the instrumental half of the hip hop duo Gang Starr, together with emcee Guru...
, as well as exploring the fact that he has had numerous beats rejected by Eminem over the years Pete Rock Uncensored Radio Interview. In a August 2011 interview, he has confirmed the completion of the
Camp LoCamp Lo is an American hip hop duo, formed in 1995, which hails from The Bronx, New York. The duo consists of rappers Sonny Cheeba and Geechi Suede , both of Muslim upbringing.-Career:...
album "80 Blocks From Tiffany's" and that he is currently working on production for
ToraeTorae is an American rapper from the Coney Island section of Brooklyn, New York.- Career :Torae gained recognition by collaborating with DJ Premier and Marco Polo. He and Polo went on to receive critical acclaim for their collaborative LP entitled Double Barrel. In 2007, Hip Hop DX featured him in...
's album,
ElzhiJason Powers is a hip-hop artist from Detroit, Michigan. Many Underground fans know him as "Detroit's Best Kept Secret". As a former member of Slum Village he now records as a solo artist...
& his own solo album "Petestrumentals II".
Proteges
Through the years, Rock has helped to jump-start the careers of several artists. His first project outside of Pete Rock & CL Smooth was the hardcore duo
YG'zThe YG'z was an American East Coast hip hop group that recorded the EP Street Nigga on 1993.The group is not to be confused with the popular hip-hop group by the same name that is more commonly known as Young Gunz....
, who released an
EPAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
called Street Nigga in 1993, with four out of the six tracks produced by Rock; however, they were quickly dropped from their deal with Reprise Records. His next venture,
INIINI was a hip hop group composed of Rob-O, Grap Luva, I Love H.I.M., Marco Polo , and DJ Boodakhan....
, was a group featuring Rock, his younger brother
Grap LuvaGregory Phillips better known by his stage name Grap Luva is a hip-hop producer and rapper primarily active during the 1990s as a member of the group INI His first appearance was as a guest...
, Rass and rapper Rob-O. They released a single, "Fakin' Jax", through
Elektra RecordsElektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
in 1995, before their debut album,
Center of AttentionLost & Found: Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics is a double-disc album featuring previously shelved albums Center of Attention by INI and The Original Baby Pa by Deda...
, was shelved by the label. The other two members continue to record solo material, albeit only sporadically. In an interview Rock elaborated on the situation:
Another mid-1990s artist, DeDa, also met the same fate with his album The Original Baby Pa, although both this and INI's album were eventually released as a double album package in 2003. Other associated artists include Meccalicious, who recorded a few songs under Pete Rock's guidance (sometime around 1997), before disappearing from the music scene altogether.
Rock has had some success, however, overseeing and jump-starting the career of hardcore underground favorites The UN, a group featuring four MCs, including former
Flipmode SquadThe Flipmode Squad is a production crew and musical group, founded and fronted by rapper Busta Rhymes. The first Flipmode album debuted in 1998 with The Imperial, Rampage and Rah Digga went on to record solo efforts...
member
Roc MarcianoRoc Marciano is an American rapper, songwriter and producer from Hempstead, Long Island. Originally a member of Busta Rhymes' crew, Flipmode Squad becoming the sixth member after the departure of Lord Have Mercy, Roc left in 2001 to form the UN , a hardcore underground hip hop group consisting of...
. Rock premiered the group on the single "Nothin' Lesser" from his PeteStrumentals album, and they went on to release the fairly successful album UN or U Out in July 2004, featuring production by Rock,
Large ProfessorLarge Professor , also known as Large Pro and Xtra P, is a New York City-based hip hop record producer and emcee. He is also best known as a founding member of the influential underground hip hop group Main Source, and as a frequent collaborator with Nas...
, and several others.
Relationship with CL Smooth
Since their split in 1995, Pete Rock's relationship with CL Smooth has been highly unpredictable. Although the pair briefly united for the reflective "Da Two" from Rock's Soul Survivor album in 1998, they avoided entertaining requests for a reunion album until 2001, when they once again teamed up for "Back on Da Block" from Rock's PeteStrumentals. In their interviews during this period, it appeared as though a new album was underway. As Rock would explain:
The pair went on a short international tour culminating in their well-received show at London's Jazz Cafe; however, soon after this they declined to comment any further on the new album, which never materialized (although Smooth did make three separate appearances on Soul Survivor II). Eventually, Smooth would confirm rumors of a rift in an interview with AllHipHop.com, in which he appeared angry and frustrated with his former partner, saying "I didn’t ask him to be a superhero" and "I’m not the problem." In an interview taken in December 2006, Rock ruled out any further collaborations with Smooth but stated that he holds no grudges against his former partner. He recently confirmed that he will be recording a third album with C.L. Smooth.
Production
Pete Rock builds his beats from samples, the majority of which are taken from obscure
R&BRhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
, funk, and jazz records. Early on in his career he would also sample drum breaks such as
Black HeatBlack Heat was a 1970s funk band founded by King Raymond Green and discovered by Phillip Guilbeau. Their albums include Black Heat , No Time To Burn and Keep On Runnin. The group had one hit single, "No Time to Burn", which reached #46 on the U.S. Billboard Black Singles chart...
's "Zimba Ku" for
Heavy D & The BoyzDwight Arrington Myers , better known as Heavy D, was a Jamaican-born American actor, rapper, record producer, singer and former leader of Heavy D & the Boyz, a hip hop group which included G-Whiz , "Trouble" T. Roy , and Eddie F...
's "Letter To The Future". Pete Rock heavily used the
E-mu SP-1200E-mu SP-1200 is a classic drum machine and sampler released in August 1987 by E-mu Systems, Inc. as an update of the SP-12, which was originally created for dance music producers...
as well as the
AKAIAkai is a consumer electronics brand, founded by Saburo Akai as , a Japanese manufacturer in 1929. It is now headquartered in Singapore as a subsidiary of Grande Holdings, a Hong Kong-based conglomerate, which also owns the formerly Japanese brands Nakamichi and Sansui. The Akai brand is now used...
[S950]—later moving onto using the MPC—for his productions. Pete Rock tends to use the samples as palettes for his beats, chopping (cutting the sample into smaller parts), filtering (altering the frequencies of the sample), and layering several samples, often within the same song. While this technique was applied long before Rock (on
De La SoulDe La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
's Three Feet High and Rising or the work of
The Bomb SquadThe Bomb Squad is an American hip hop production team, known for their work with the rap group Public Enemy. The Bomb Squad are noted for their dense, distinct, innovative production style, often utilizing dozens of samples on just one track...
for example), Rock's work is distinctive for the way in which he uses samples to achieve a hazy, droning effect. He is also noted for his resonant basslines, horn samples, and gritty sounding drums. His beats often sound as though they were being played from an old
vinylA gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
record; he samples many of his sounds straight off these records.
Another trait of his, more so in the earlier part of his career, is the way he uses horn samples to supplement his grooves. With perhaps the most famous example being "
They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)"They Reminisce Over You " is a song by Pete Rock and CL Smooth, inspired by the death of their close friend Troy Dixon in 1990. The song was the lead single off their debut album, Mecca and the Soul Brother, released in 1992, and later became a staple of classic early 90s hip hop...
" (on which he uses a horn sample from
Tom ScottTom Scott is an American saxophonist, composer, arranger, conductor and bandleader of the west coast jazz/jazz fusion ensemble The L.A. Express.-Biography:Scott was born in Los Angeles, California...
's "Today"), Rock has also used horns on several other productions such as "Straighten It Out", Public Enemy's "Shut 'Em Down",
Rah DiggaRah Digga is an American rapper. Well known as a long time member of the Flipmode Squad, a hip hop group led by Busta Rhymes, she parted ways amicably with the group in 2007. She has been called "one of rap's most prominent women MCs" by Allmusic and "one of hip-hop's most skilled female MCs" in...
's "What They Call Me", and A.D.O.R.'s "Let It All Hang Out".
Along with
Gang StarrGang Starr was an influential East Coast hip hop duo that consisted of the late MC Guru and DJ/producer DJ Premier. Their style combined elements of New York jazz and hip hop.-Background:...
, The Roots and
A Tribe Called QuestA Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985, and is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but rejoined in 2006...
, Pete Rock played a large role in the fusing of jazz and funk music into Hip hop. The aforementioned "Reminisce..." withstanding, Rock used many jazz samples on his album Mecca and The Soul Brother, such as Cannonball Adderley's "Country Preacher", for the song "Return of the Mecca", or "Capricorn" for the song "In the House" from The Main Ingredient. Pete Rock's heavy use of intro and outro beats has also been widely influential. To introduce feature songs, he often plays a short instrumental excerpt, completely different from the rest of the song. Aside from their role as transitions, these are widely regarded as a way of displaying his large collection and as a challenge to other hip-hop producers to identify the records that the
breaksIn popular music, a break is an instrumental or percussion section or interlude during a song derived from or related to stop-time – being a "break" from the main parts of the song or piece....
come from. Mecca & the Soul Brother and The Main Ingredient use intro/outro beats on nearly every track to great effect, and the tradition continues to the present on Rock's recent releases.
Remixes
"Another Pete Rock Remix" is Pete Rock's trademark catchphrase, heard on countless singles which he has
remixA remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
ed. In addition to Hip-hop artists he has done remix work for artists from other genres such as his 1995 remix of "
Before You Walk Out Of My Life"Before You Walk out of My Life" is a song by American R&B singer Monica. It was written by Andrea Martin and Soulshock & Karlin, and it was produced by Soulshock & Karlin for her debut studio album, Miss Thang...
" for R&B singer
MonicaMonica Denise Brown , and professionally known as Monica, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, Monica began performing as a child and became part of a traveling gospel choir, by the time she was ten...
. In 1992 he collaborated with
Mary J. BligeMary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
on the
What's the 411?What's the 411? is the debut album by American recording artist Mary J. Blige, released July 28, 1992. Upon being signed to Uptown Records, she began working with record producer Puff Daddy. The album spawned six singles, including "You Remind Me" and "Real Love".What's the 411? peaked at number...
single "Reminisce", which utililized the same sample from his own single "T.R.O.Y. (They Reminisce Over You)". Rock claims to have done several high profile remixes which remain unreleased including one of
MadonnaMadonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
's "
Secret"Secret" is a song by Madonna, released as the first single from her 1994 album Bedtime Stories. It was released in September 1994 and became a top ten hit around the world, including reaching number three in the United States and five in the UK...
". He also claims to have produced the original beat for
The Notorious B.I.G.Christopher George Latore Wallace , best known as The Notorious B.I.G., was an American rapper. He was also known as Biggie Smalls , Big Poppa, and The Black Frank White .Wallace was raised in the Brooklyn borough...
's "
Juicy"Juicy" is a song by hip hop artist The Notorious B.I.G. and his solo debut single from his 1994 debut album Ready to Die. It was produced by Poke of Trackmasters & Sean "Puffy" Combs. Its melody is sampled from Mtume's "Juicy Fruit", and has an alternative chorus sung by R&B girl group Total...
", and that it was recreated by P. Diddy and Poke (of Tone & Poke fame), without consent. However, he was invited to produce the remix, which utilizes the same sample as the original -
MtumeMtume was a funk and soul group that had several R&B hits in the 1980s. Its founder, percussionist James Mtume, previously played with Miles Davis in the 1970s. Other members of the group included Reggie Lucas and Tawatha Agee.-History:...
's "Juicyfruit". Although he received no official producer credit, he made the original demo beat for
A Tribe Called QuestA Tribe Called Quest is an American hip hop group, formed in 1985, and is composed of rapper/producer Q-Tip , rapper Phife Dawg , and DJ/producer Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A fourth member, rapper Jarobi White, left the group after their first album but rejoined in 2006...
's "
Jazz (We've Got)"Jazz " is the second single from A Tribe Called Quest's second album The Low End Theory. A segment of the track "Buggin' Out" appeared in the music video. The sequences from "Jazz " are in black and white, while the "Buggin' Out" sequences are in full color...
", which was then recreated by the group for the album The Low End Theory. He remixed Public Enemy's "Shut 'em Down" and "Nighttrain", in the same day, starting at 12pm and finishing at 12am.
Up until 2003, he created all of his productions on the
E-muE-mu Systems, Inc. is a synthesizer maker and pioneer in samplers and low-cost digital sampling music workstations.-History:Founded in 1971 by Scott Wedge and Dave Rossum, E-mu began making modular synthesizers...
SP1200E-mu SP-1200 is a classic drum machine and sampler released in August 1987 by E-mu Systems, Inc. as an update of the SP-12, which was originally created for dance music producers...
, thereafter using the
AKAIAkai is a consumer electronics brand, founded by Saburo Akai as , a Japanese manufacturer in 1929. It is now headquartered in Singapore as a subsidiary of Grande Holdings, a Hong Kong-based conglomerate, which also owns the formerly Japanese brands Nakamichi and Sansui. The Akai brand is now used...
MPC2000XL. He also has a collection of about 90,000 records and looks for records at least once a week. Pete Rock was one of 9 artists who participated in
thetruth.comTheTruth.com is an anti-smoking campaign in the United States. The campaign is run by the American Legacy Foundation, which was founded under the terms of the Master Settlement Agreement, between the US tobacco companies and 46 US states and 5 territories...
’s Remix Project, where he remixed the Sunny Side song “Magical Amount”.
In 2010, Pete Rock remixed indie rockers,
Yo La TengoYo La Tengo, sometimes abbreviated as YLT, is an American alternative rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan , Georgia Hubley , and James McNew .Despite achieving limited mainstream success, Yo La Tengo has been called "the quintessential...
's single, Here To Fall for the Here To Fall Remixes EP which included remixes by
De La SoulDe La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
and
RJD2RJD2 is an American music producer, singer and musician. RJD2 was born in Eugene, Oregon, and raised in Columbus, Ohio. He currently resides in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was signed to the Definitive Jux label where he released two largely instrumental hip hop albums and has produced tracks...
.
Influence
Pete Rock has had a considerable impact on a number of record producers who have emerged in the hip hop scene since the late 1990s. Many critics have compared newcomers to him, generally favorably. Perhaps most notable among these comparisons are the late Detroit producer
J DillaJames Dewitt Yancey , better known by the stage names J Dilla and Jay Dee, was an American record producer who emerged from the mid-1990s underground hip hop scene in Detroit, Michigan...
, and
North CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
's
9th WonderPatrick Douthit , better known as 9th Wonder is a hip hop record producer, record executive, DJ, professor, and lyricist from Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.A. He began his career as the main producer for the hip hop group Little Brother, and has also worked with Mary J...
, both of whom have worked with Rock during their recording careers. Several of the comparisons stem from the fact that these producers have created the bulk of their productions out of samples, as well as the warm, mellow, and exuberant undertones apparent in their work. Pete Rock himself has added validation to the comparisons with J Dilla by stating "he's the only producer in this game that was just as serious [as me]."
Many other producers, including Kev Brown and
Kanye WestKanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
, have also found themselves compared to Pete Rock, with the latter glowingly referring to himself as "the new version of Pete Rock" on
Slum VillageSlum Village was a hip hop group from Conant Gardens, Detroit, Michigan.The group was formed by three members: rappers Baatin and T3, plus rapper and producer J Dilla . J Dilla left in 2002 to pursue a solo career with MCA Records...
's "Selfish" from the group's 2004 album
Detroit Deli (A Taste of Detroit)Detroit Deli is Slum Village's fourth album, released on June 29, 2004. It was released shortly after Baatin left the group, leaving only T3 and Elzhi.- Overview :...
. Pete Rock has acknowledged his relevance to these artists, releasing an instrumental record with 9th Wonder (Class Is in Session), as well as recording his own remix of West's "
Heard 'Em Say"Heard 'Em Say" is a song by American hip hop artist Kanye West. It was released on November 8, 2005 as the third single for his second studio album, Late Registration. The song features Maroon 5 lead vocalist Adam Levine, who sings its chorus and bridge. Co-produced by Jon Brion, the song contains...
". Rock himself has named his main musical influences as being influential hip hop producer and close friend
Marley MarlMarlon Williams , better known as Marley Marl, is an American DJ and record producer, who is considered one of the most important and influential hip-hop producers in the history of hip hop.-Biography:...
and legendary soul musician
James BrownJames Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
.
Discography
Studio albums
- Soul Survivor (1998)
- PeteStrumentals
PeteStrumentals is an instrumental hip hop album from Hip Hop producer/rapper Pete Rock, his second solo release. The album is the second installment of BBE Records Beat Generation series, following Jay Dee's Welcome to Detroit album. The instrumental songs were originally recorded between 1990 and...
(2001)
- Lost & Found: Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics
Lost & Found: Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics is a double-disc album featuring previously shelved albums Center of Attention by INI and The Original Baby Pa by Deda...
(2003)
- My Own Worst Enemy
My Own Worst Enemy is an album by Ed O.G. mostly produced by Pete Rock. It was released in late 2004. The album consists of 10 songs, 7 of them are produced by Pete Rock with additional production from Diamond D and DJ Revolution. Guests include Jaysaun, Masta Ace, Diamond D, and also features Pete...
(with Ed O.G.Edward Anderson is a hip-hop artist from Boston, Massachusetts, United States, better known by his stage names Edo G and Ed O.G.. Although not widely known in the mainstream, Edo G has a cult following in Boston, and an international fanbase.-Career:Born in Roxbury—a rough, predominantly black...
) (2004)
- Soul Survivor II
Soul Survivor II is a 2004 album from hip hop producer Pete Rock. The album features guest appearances from a large number of hip hop artists, including Pharoahe Monch, Little Brother, Skillz, RZA, GZA, Talib Kweli, Dead Prez, Slum Village, Jay Dee and former partner CL Smooth.Pete, who dropped...
(2004)
- The Surviving Elements: From Soul Survivor II Sessions
The Surviving Elements: From Soul Survivor II Sessions is the second instrumental album from Hip Hop producer Pete Rock. The album features leftover beats that were created during the recording of Pete's 2004 album Soul Survivor II. According to Pete Rock himself, BBE released this album without...
(2005)
- NY's Finest
NY's Finest is a studio album by hip hop producer and emcee Pete Rock. The album was Rock's first studio album since 2004's Soul Survivor II, and was released on February 26, 2008 through the Nature Sounds record label. The album's cover art was created by Fuse Green and inspired by the cover of...
(2008)
- Monumental (with Smif-N-Wessun)
Monumental, is a collaborative studio album by American rap group Smif-N-Wessun and producer/rapper Pete Rock, released on June 28, 2011. On April 1, 2011, Duck Down Records, the album's responsible record label, released a trailer through their official YouTube account. The album has received...
(2011)
- 80 Block's From Tiffany's (with Camp Lo
Camp Lo is an American hip hop duo, formed in 1995, which hails from The Bronx, New York. The duo consists of rappers Sonny Cheeba and Geechi Suede , both of Muslim upbringing.-Career:...
) (2011)
- Petestrumentals II (2011)
External links
- Pete Rock — official website
- Pete Rock discography at Discogs
Discogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- Pete Rock at MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
- Pete Rock Interview - February 2008
- Pete Rock Interview Part 1
- Pete Rock Interview Part 2
- Riot Sound, Hip-Hop, Rap & Urban Culture - Pete Rock Interview
- Interview with Pete Rock