James Yancey (1974-2006)
http://www.j-dilla.com/biography/

Explorer. Adventurer. Manipulator of Sound. Master of Ceremonies. Producer of Yasiin Gaye, Fela Soul, Bizarre Tribe, A Common Wonder & more.

BIO:

Forging an evolution of the "mashup" album format, producer Amerigo Gazaway's "conceptual collaboration" projects imagine studio sessions between like artist of different genres and eras. With a process the LA Times' Randall Roberts described as "drawing a different design within a similar framework," the producer/DJ deconstructs and re-orchestrates samples from his respective subjects, bridging overlapping themes of the two musician's classic catalogues. Equally influenced by his Brazilian roots and southern U.S. upbringing, the 28 year old Nashville native's work was featured in Apple's "What Will Your Verse Be" series of iPad commercials, called "brilliant" by music’s premier aficionado, Questlove, and earned praise from national/global outlets such as The Guardian, Huffington Post, The LA Times, Vulture, NPR, BBC, MTV, BET, REVOLTtv, EBONY,VIBE, XXL, THE SOURCE, OKAYPLAYER, Wax Poetic, Gizmazo and HipHopXL to name a few. 
 
The son of renowned Jazz trumpeter, Gary “El Buho” Gazaway, Amerigo’s thematic documentary-like concept albums uses found interview sound-bites, live performances, and original multi-track stems to help narrate and craft his combined artists' stories. Finding his first success with 2011's Fela Kuti/De La Soul pairing "Fela Soul," the project went on to land on several year-end "best of" lists including NPR, Soul Train, and OKAYPLAYER. Following the release in 2012 with "Bizarre Tribe: A Quest to the Pharcyde", a concept that layered vocals of The Pharcyde over re-imagined productions sourced from the original Soul, Jazz, and Funk records ATCQ utilized to create their productions, Gazaway would later collaborate with The Pharcyde on their single "Still Got Love" and perform with the legendary group at SXSW.
 
Continuing the theme of his previous work in 2014, the producer united Brooklyn rapper Yasiin Bey (FKA Mos Def) and soul legend Marvin Gaye for a dream collaboration aptly titled "Yasiin Gaye" (side one and side two.) Building the album’s foundation from deconstructed samples of Gaye’s Motown classics, Amerigo re-purposes the instrumentation into new productions with the familiar fervor of the original work. Carefully weaving Bey’s tangled raps and Gaye’s soulful vocals over his new arrangements, Gazaway delivers a quality much closer to an authentic collaboration than a lukewarm “mashup” album. Drawing nearly 20,000 downloads in its first two days of release, the “Master Modern Soul Match Maker” (Juan Vidal- Vibe Magazine) earned a perfect “5 Star” review from BET, collaborated with New York Magazine cartoonist, Drew Dernavich, for the project's side two cover art, and landed on Billboard's Best Selling Singles Chart with the album's third single, "You Are Undeniable."
 
Honing his DJ skills through tours of Europe, Brazil, and the U.S., Gazaway’s dancefloor driving live set features classic breakbeats, original blends, remixes, edits, and mashups of multiple genres including Funk, Soul, Disco, Hip-Hop, Afrobeat, and everything in-between. With presentations and lectures logged at USC, MTSU and upcoming dates at Google HQ (NYC) and SXSW 2015, the DJ/Producer continues to highlight the possibilities of sample based art and shows no signs of slowing down.

Just trying to make you feel something. 


mgmt: 
brice@proper-mgmt.com

Although he never became a household name, Rakim is near-universally acknowledged as one of the greatest MCs -- perhaps the greatest -- of all time within the hip-hop community. It isn't necessarily the substance of what he says that's helped him win numerous polls among rap fans in the know; the majority of his lyrics concern his own skills and his Islamic faith. But in terms of how he says it, Rakim is virtually unparalleled. His flow is smooth and liquid, inflected with jazz rhythms and carried off with an effortless cool that makes it sound as though he's not even breaking a sweat. He raised the bar for MC technique higher than it had ever been, helping to pioneer the use of internal rhymes -- i.e., rhymes that occurred in the middle of lines, rather than just at the end. Where many MCs of the time developed their technique through improvisational battles, Rakim was among the first to demonstrate the possibilities of sitting down and writing intricately crafted lyrics packed with clever word choices and metaphors (of course, he also had the delivery to articulate them). Even after his innovations were worshipfully absorbed and expanded upon by countless MCs who followed, Rakim's early work still sounds startlingly fresh, and his comeback recordings (beginning in the late '90s) only added to his legend. 

Rakim was born William Griffin, Jr. on January 28, 1968, in the Long Island suburb of Wyandanch. The nephew of '50s R&B legend Ruth Brown, Griffin was surrounded by music from day one, and was interested in rap almost from its inception. At age 16, he converted to Islam, adopting the Muslim name Rakim Allah. In 1985, he met Queens DJ Eric B., whose intricately constructed soundscapes made an excellent match for Rakim's more cerebral presence on the mike. With the release of their debut single, "Eric B. Is President," in 1986, Eric B. & Rakim became a sensation in the hip-hop community, and their reputation kept growing as they issued classic tracks like "I Ain't No Joke" and "Paid in Full." Their first two full-length albums, 1987's Paid in Full and 1988's Follow the Leader, are still regarded as all-time hip-hop classics; Rakim's work set out a blueprint for other, similarly progressive-minded MCs to follow, and helped ensure that even after the rise of other fertile scenes around the country, East Coast rap would maintain a reputation as the center of innovative lyrical technique. The last two Eric B. & Rakim albums, 1990's Let the Rhythm Hit 'Em and 1992's Don't Sweat the Technique, weren't quite as consistent as their predecessors, but still had plenty of fine moments. 

Unfortunately, their legacy stopped at four albums. Both Eric B. and Rakim expressed interest in recording solo albums to one another, but the former, fearful of being abandoned by his partner when their contract was up, refused to sign the release. That led to their breakup in 1992, and Rakim spent a substantial amount of time in the courts, handling the legal fallout between himself, his ex-partner, and their ex-label, MCA. His only solo output for a number of years was the track "Heat It Up," featured on the 1993 soundtrack to the Mario Van Peebles film Gunmen. Moreover, a reshuffling at MCA effectively shut down production on Rakim's solo debut, after he'd recorded some preliminary demos. Finally, Rakim got a new contract with Universal, and toward the end of 1997 he released his first solo record, The 18th Letter (early editions contained the bonus disc Book of Life, a fine Eric B. & Rakim retrospective). Anticipation for The 18th Letter turned out to be surprisingly high, especially for a veteran rapper whose roots extended so far back into hip-hop history; yet thanks to Rakim's legendary reputation, it entered the album charts at number four, and received mostly complimentary reviews. His follow-up, The Master, was released in 1999 and failed to duplicate its predecessor's commercial success, barely debuting in the Top 75. Moreover, while The Master received positive reviews in some quarters, others seemed disappointed that Rakim's comeback material wasn't reinventing the wheel the way his early work had, and bemoaned the lack of unity among his array of different producers. 

Seeking to rectify the latter situation, Rakim signed with Dr. Dre's Aftermath label in 2001, and the two began recording a new album early the next year, to be titled Oh My God. In the meantime, to help heighten anticipation for the summit between two legends, Rakim guested on the single "Addictive" by female R&B singer and Aftermath labelmate Truth Hurts; "Addictive" hit the Top Ten in the summer of 2002, marking the first time Rakim had visited that territory since he and Eric B. appeared on Jody Watley's "Friends" in 1989. Disagreements between Dre and Ra, however, prevented the album from coming out, though the rapper was able to retain the tracks he had made with the producer. For the next couple of years, Rakim continued to talk about the record, since retitled The Seventh Seal, even going so far as to promise a release on July 7, 2007. The date came and went however, without any signs of a full length, though, in early 2008, The Archive: Live, Lost & Found, a mostly live album that also contained four new previously unreleased songs, hit shelves. Rakim's latest solo work, The Seventh Seal, was released in 2009.

PRODUCER  ✿  DJ  
Management/Booking:
Kokie@objectivelygood.com

Hailed as a “music guru” by Rolling Stone and cited among the “world’s Top DJ’s” by The New York Times, J.PERIOD is a master of his craft: a musical storyteller whose work bridges cultures, generations and styles.

As a DJ & Producer, J.PERIOD's resume boasts collaborations with GRAMMY® winners Nas, Kanye West, Common, John Legend, The Roots, Q-Tip, Lauryn Hill, Mary J. Blige and Pulitzer Prize-winning Playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda on the Billboard #1 album, The Hamilton Mixtape.

His extensive roster of collaborators, combined with a visionary approach to musical storytelling, have earned comparisons to both DJ Khaled and Ken Burns and most recently, a prestigious post as a founding member of The Kennedy Center's Hip Hop Culture Council. “Make no mistake,” says DJ Booth, “as to the power of J.PERIOD’s impact and influence on hip hop culture.”  Music icon Questlove (The Roots, The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon) calls J.PERIOD “the most creative mixtape producer of all-time.”

J.PERIOD’s work has also been featured in film and TV (American Gangster, NBA Inside Stuff, The Doctor), earning an EMMY®.  His groundbreaking work as Music Supervisor for the Brooklyn Nets’ debut Barclays Center was lauded as “the new standard” for music in the NBA arena.

For more: http://JPERIOD.com

Cop my single "Don't Let Me Down" on iTunes - -

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/dont-let-me-down-feat.-iamsu/id885274896

Inquiries - jeni.suk@gmail.com

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