Mos def black on both sides tracklist11/14/2023 The excellent 1997 follow-up, Hatred, Passions and Infidelity, saw D continue to innovate with the boom bap sound. It gave me the confidence that I was onto something good and could really turn people’s heads.” “After I did that Ultimate Force record, Chubb Rock and Howie Tee used the same Albert King sample. “I was the first producer to make the marriage between blues and hip-hop, and show they carried the same attitude and pain as one another,” he said. Such was the case with his 1989 beat for Ultimate Force’s “I’m Not Playing,” which channeled the smoky nonchalance of blues guitar maestro Albert King’s “Cold Feet." If his peers were sampling James Brown, he’d try and find something that separated himself from the pack. Soaking up lessons from mentor Jazzy Jay, D continued to dig deep. “They were taking from all genres of music, so I knew I needed to dig even deeper into the crates.” “The early rap records were using break beats from ‘The Mexican’ by Babe Ruth, and ‘Scratching’ by Magic Disco Machine,” he recalled. When he wasn’t in class, a teenage D would sneak off to block parties, where he’d break dance and do the electric boogie, as well as study the break beats DJs used. Going to a catholic school meant D encountered a lot of discipline, even being put into detention if he was only a minute late to class. “Music kept me on the straight and narrow, shifting my focus from negative activities to positive ones,” he said. As he got older, he wanted to follow in the footsteps of hip-hop pioneers (and fellow Forest Houses natives) Grand Wizard Theodore and Lovebug Starski, as well as others like Melle Mel. From the age of six, he could be found at his grandma’s house, combing through an extensive soul, funk and jazz record collection, transfixed by all of the artwork. Raised in the Bronx’s Forest Houses projects, an early love of music kept D out of trouble. To truly understand what led to Diamond D crafting the best beat on Black On Both Sides, it’s important to retrace his own steps into the game. “I guess my beat inspired Mos Def to reflect a little on hip-hop’s journey.” “The ‘Hip Hop’ beat was a history lesson that wasn’t boring,” D said, letting out a hoarse laugh. By sampling a cross-section of rap classics from artists like Run DMC ( “Peter Piper”), The Beastie Boys (“ The New Style”), and the Wu Tang Clan (“ C.R.E.A.M”), among others, D created a living, breathing monument that echoed the essence of hip-hop itself. He’s a force of nature, moving like an apparition and warning his people of the pitfalls of late capitalism.īut while these raps reach transcendent heights, the song would be nothing without Diamond D’s pitch-perfect beat. It’s a hailing thunderstorm of intellect from Mos Def, powerfully articulating how hip-hop pulses through the dark veins of America: “We went from picking cotton to chain gang line chopping / to be-bopping, to hip-hopping.” A pledge to “bang the world into shape” with raps that carry the force of a hammer, the Black Star MC spits with the fiery clarity of a Stokely Carmichael speech. Released just over 23 years ago, “Hip Hop” sits at the epicenter of Mos Def’s classic debut, Black On Both Sides. “With ‘Hip Hop,’ I knew almost instantly we had something special. “His bass was so fucking funky,” the legendary Bronx producer and MC said during a late night phone call. Mighty Mos wanted to call the song “Hip Hop” and had even laid down a bassline. He was excited to work with Mos Defafter sending him a beat he knew the rapper would be perfect on - a belief that was confirmed when D finally arrived and saw Mos (now known as Yasiin Bey) smiling from ear-to-ear. For our latest Behind the Beat, Thomas Hobbs spoke with Diamond D, the mastermind behind the classic track.ĭiamond D headed to the Rawkus studio over on 676 Broadway.
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