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[Andrew Korenchkin]

Yes, I'm back with another thread where we rave about our favorite musicians, this time rap producers. Keep in mind that the producers have to be involved with the creative process one way or another, though of course these folks can't do it by themselves. So Russell Simmons is not what I mean when I say "producer".

Anyway, here are mine:

J Dilla: This one is pretty obvious. Not many people I've met dislike Dilla. His ear for tasty beats is seemingly so easy, and emotionally can take Hip-Hop to some amazing places (as Donuts proves). He may be my favorite out of all of these guys, he might not. But he's undoubtedly one of my favorites, for sure.
RZA: I don't think much needs to be said. His diversity is amazing, his production is atmospheric, and he created beats like Cold World, Gold, Protect Ya Neck, Verbal Intercourse, Method Man, much more....
DJ Muggs: Not the biggest Cypress Hill fan and their material sucked overall after their third album, but those first three albums pretty much did it for me. Some of the creepiest beats put onto wax, especially on Temples of Boom.
DJ Premier: No doubt one of the undisputed kings of rap producers, and for a damn good reason. Mass Appeal and all of the material on Jeru's debut solidified him for me, though he can create some repetitive songs once in a while.
Kanye West: Not a fan of him as a rapper, but he has one of the best ears for Hip-Hop beats ever. Just Blaze and Timbaland come close, but I find their work a tad inconsistent.
Stoupe, The Enemy of Mankind: He's inconsistent, but few producers are as fucking lush and gorgeous, and they bang the fuck out of the floor, too. Nobody does it quite like him, for sure.

 

[Zantetsuken]

Madlib
Shawty Red
Organized Noize
Jay Dee
Bink
Jake One
Zaytoven



These are the producers I feel have been consistent throughout their career and are my favorites right now. They haven't let me down yet. I will try to come back with some explanations.

 

[Dereck]

Sir Froderick

Here's one that people may be more familiar with though, Madlib

Madlib had a heavy influence on J Dilla right before he died and I need not mention all of the other shit that Madlib did in the 2000s.

A little bit of Madlib bled over into Flying Lotus who bled over into the whole Brainfeeder sound around the early 2010 and so on.

 

[Data West]

Mannie Fresh. He's always got a good way to make all his music sound unique but at the same time, you know when it's a Mannie Fresh song or when someone's trying to make a Mannie Fresh song.

even Kanye knows it

 

[dankir]

Need my double Ds, DILLA AND DRE.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

DJ Premier = so fucking grimy and dirty yet crisp at the same time.
Ant Banks = The definitive Bay Area sound.
The RZA = Premier on Dust
The Dust Brothers = like the Bomb Squad, but funkier
The Bomb Squad = like the Dust Brothers, but meaner
Prince Paul = Like the Dust Brothers but more stoned
Shock G = Like Ant Banks and Prince Paul hotboxed a studio.
Erick Sermon = Like someone threw three cars worth of subwoofers at a Zapp record
Q-Tip = Drums that seemed to be actively trying to shed the samples on top of them.
Timbaland = The kitchen sink never sounded so good.
Organized Noize = Maybe as soulful as hip-hop production ever got.

 

[dsp]

Pharrell Williams / The Neptunes
DJ Premier
DJ Quik

I really like their stuff, generally more than others, that's why.

 

[bodyboarder]

The Neptune's - their discography speaks for itself.

 

[Ivan 3414]

Pharrell/Neptunes

By far

 

[JoJoShabadoo]

RZA, if only for Enter the Wu-tang.

 

[Miggytronz]

Pharrell/Neptunes

By far

As a 30yr local to Virginia Beach, VA. This everyday.

 

[HStallion]

Nujabes was taken from us far too young. Such a shame but he'll live on through his music. RIP

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5-2-jD-42Q

People might know him better as one of the people behind the Samurai Champloo soundtrack

 

[Dynomutt]

Primo
Dilla
Ye'
Dre
RZA

Surprised no one mentioned:

Ali Shaheed Muhammed
Guru
9th Wonder
Nicolay

 

[kai3345]

if young metro don't trust you

 

[Andrew Korenchkin]

Surprised no one mentioned:

Ali Shaheed Muhammed
Guru
9th Wonder

Didn't Q-Tip produce a lot of their stuff though? I could never figure this out.

 

[Sadsic]

Odd Nosdam
Matthewdavid
Flying Lotus
The Gaslamp Killer
Clams Casino
Prefuse 73
Daedalus

ya need to be able to deconstruct the sound to make it at all

edited to give tracks for each

 

[Booshka]

DJ Quik
Dr Dre
Terrace Martin
Ice Cube and the Bomb Squad

West Coast Funk, Jazz, R&B, Soul. Anything that is like a Chevy in quicksand or like 9 cans of shaving powder is fine by me.

 

[Dynomutt]

Didn't Q-Tip produce a lot of their stuff though? I could never figure this out.

I think it was a Mix. On Midnight Marauders it was Ali Shaheed Muhammed, Q-Tip and Large Professor. Dilla hooked it up as well.

Edit: I think Tip and Ali did a lot of the engineering as well.

 

[dsp]

Ice Cube and the Bomb Squad.

That stuff still goes hard today.

 

[torre_avenue]

Madlib is a GOAT. Even DOOM creates great beats. Hudson Mohawke does some great work on beats. Flying Lotus is one of my personal favorites when it comes to making weird beats. 40 is too good at his warping sound, possible even too good for Drake. One duo who hasn't hit the big time yet but should are Nez & Rio. I adore Man of The Year and Lord Pretty Flacko Jodye. Hopefully, they make more stuff soon.

 

[Switch Back 9]

Yes, I'm back with another thread where we rave about our favorite musicians, this time rap producers. Keep in mind that the producers have to be involved with the creative process one way or another, though of course these folks can't do it by themselves. So Russell Simmons is not what I mean when I say "producer".

Anyway, here are mine:

J Dilla: This one is pretty obvious. Not many people I've met dislike Dilla. His ear for tasty beats is seemingly so easy, and emotionally can take Hip-Hop to some amazing places (as Donuts proves). He may be my favorite out of all of these guys, he might not. But he's undoubtedly one of my favorites, for sure.
RZA: I don't think much needs to be said. His diversity is amazing, his production is atmospheric, and he created beats like Cold World, Gold, Protect Ya Neck, Verbal Intercourse, Method Man, much more....
DJ Muggs: Not the biggest Cypress Hill fan and their material sucked overall after their third album, but those first three albums pretty much did it for me. Some of the creepiest beats put onto wax, especially on Temples of Boom.
DJ Premier: No doubt one of the undisputed kings of rap producers, and for a damn good reason. Mass Appeal and all of the material on Jeru's debut solidified him for me, though he can create some repetitive songs once in a while.
Kanye West: Not a fan of him as a rapper, but he has one of the best ears for Hip-Hop beats ever. Just Blaze and Timbaland come close, but I find their work a tad inconsistent.
Stoupe, The Enemy of Mankind: He's inconsistent, but few producers are as fucking lush and gorgeous, and they bang the fuck out of the floor, too. Nobody does it quite like him, for sure.

Other than Muggs and Kanye (just not my style, he's obviously talented as hell at makin beats) you really nailed some of my top 10 right there. Premier is god-tier number 1 though.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

I knew I was forgetting someone: All the mentions of Quik make me feel dumb now.

Quik is too good.

 

[FootballFan]

Darryl "Big D" Harper
Hurt-M-Badd
Johnny J
and of course
QD3

nobody comes close

 

[Andrew Korenchkin]

I think it was a Mix. On Midnight Marauders it was Ali Shaheed Muhammed, Q-Tip and Large Professor. Dilla hooked it up as well.

Edit: I think Tip and Ali did a lot of the engineering as well.

Ah, I see. I can't believe I forgot Large Professor. Shame on me.

 

[Bread]

Right now it's Flying Lotus. His sound is just so different and perfect.

 

[Andrew Korenchkin]

Speaking of Primo, anybody a fan of The Sun Rises in the East.

 

[Essay]

Dilla: Needs no explaination
Pete Rock: Smooth and catchy beats like no other
DJ Primo: Meshed perfectly with Guru in my favourite hip-hop pairing of all time
Oh No: Shares a lot with his talented brother Madlib, but has a better ear for detail and finishing imo

 

[bobbychalkers]

The Neptunes: I was born in 91 so by the time I started to become more musically aware, I noticed a common sound among my favorite songs on the radio. Coincidentally, I also grew up in VA so the Neptunes sound was everywhere. Time to time, I pull up some playlist on youtube of their early work and jam the fuck out for hours. Something about that era of their signature guitar, coupled with synthesized drum kits and wavy melodies does it for me.
Girls Dem Sugar
Get Along With You
Best U Can
Cross The Border

Just Blaze: You know shit is about to get real once a Just Blaze beat pops up on a record. You don't take these beats likely. Full of energy and impact, its hard not to get a screwface when listening to one.
Come On Baby
Show Me What You Got
I Really Mean It
Exhibit A

 

[Booshka]

The Neptunes: I was born in 91 so by the time I started to become more musically aware, I noticed a common sound among my favorite songs on the radio. Coincidentally, I also grew up in VA so the Neptunes sound was everywhere. Time to time, I pull up some playlist on youtube of their early work and jam the fuck out for hours. Something about that era of their signature guitar, coupled with synthesized drum kits and wavy melodies does it for me.
Girls Dem Sugar
Get Along With You
Best U Can
Cross The Border

Just Blaze: You know shit is about to get real once a Just Blaze beat pops up on a record. You don't take these beats likely. Full of energy and impact, its hard not to get a screwface when listening to one.
Come On Baby
Show Me What You Got
I Really Mean It
Exhibit A

Forgot about this one, dem drums. Just Blaze is amazing.

 

[Zantetsuken]

I knew I was forgetting someone: All the mentions of Quik make me feel dumb now.

Quik is too good.

I'm mad at myself at this one also. And I was just listening to his EP on Spotify yesterday. It's great. Definitely in the Top 10 for me.

 

[Booshka]

Also, for all the Flying Lotus, J-Dilla, Thundercat and etc fans.

Enjoy

 

[x24hrs2livex]

Swizz Beats: His beats are always weird but in a good way.

Kanye: He did Takeover...nuff said.

Eminem: I can hear The Doc's influence in his beats but he adds his own little twist to make them stand apart from Dre.

Dr. Dre: His body of work speaks for itself.

Just Blaze: He didn't do Takeover but he launched his career off of The Blueprint.

Alchemist: His work with Mobb Deep Got me to notice him and his work with LOX and Eminem kept me checking for him.

Puff Daddy/Hitmen: Bad Boy was huge back in the 90s thanks to Daddy's House/The Hitmen.

 

[Brinbe]

The usual suspects

PREEEEMO!

Kanye
Just Blaze
Dre
Timbo
Neptunes
RZA
Pete Rock
Large Professor
9th Wonder
Nujabes

 

[Swimmer9800]

Kanye
Madlib
Dilla
Dre
DOOM

 

[harSon]

Pete Rock not mentioned until post 28, and only mentioned a total of two times in the thread?

smh

How about Damu the Fudgemunk

 

[Kelsdesu]

Premier
Neptunes
Pete Rock
BattleCat
Sledero
Harry Fraud
9th wonder
Doom
Dj mitsu
Kanye (oldkanye not the NEW kanye)

 

[Hip Hop]

Just Blaze
Jake One
Black Milk
The Alchemist
AraabMuzik
Havoc

 

[Dr. Giggles]

Dr. Dre.
IMO he's the greatest producer of all time bar none. The man brings the BEST out of every musician/ producer he's taken under his wing like Kendrick, 50, Game,Scott Storch. Dre's shit always sounds so crisp and clean. He's godlike with the mixing/mastering.

then: no particular order
Just Blaze
Oddisee
Kanye(2001-2007)
Hi-Tek
Nujabes
DJ Khalil
Jake One
Premier
9th Wonder
Timbo

 

[dafinezt]

Neptunes.

Their sound just does it for me.

 

[ActWan]

Madlib just fits himself perfectly to any rapper with amazing beats
DOOM uses crazy original samples that I would never think work with a beat

 

[solomon]

Last couple years clams casino but currently icy twat (everyone already listed the popular answers so went with something different)

 

[Pndomo]

Fki
Partynextdoor

 

[tabs2002]

Dr Dre
90s RZA
Premo
The Neptunes