With 'Ready to Die,' that was some of the most honest rhymes of all-time. There's some real dark material on there that Biggie was going through.
— Statik Selektah
I learned so much from listening to Jay-Z, M.O.P. and Gang Starr.
I started radio, actually, when I was 13. I started DJing when I was 13, but later in that year, I started a high school station at Phillips Academy. I didn't actually go there, but it was in the town I went to high school in. So literally, within six months of DJing, they started mailing me records; it was crazy.
I grew up in a city - it's called Lawrence, Massachusetts. It's about half an hour north of Boston. When my parents got divorced, I moved to New Hampshire because my father worked up there.
When I made 'Detroit vs. Everybody,' I knew. I knew this for Eminem.
I've always been like the No. 1 Boston hip-hop fan.
You got to have the right lawyer and good management. I went years and years without management and even a good lawyer; I used to handle contracts on my own, and it was definitely corners that they would cut. It wouldn't have happened if I had a good lawyer behind me.
Especially in hip-hop, no one takes responsibility for their actions.
Some artists send their verses, and others record in my studio. Depends. I prefer them being there.
Brooklyn just got that energy to me that's so hip-hop and so New York City. You know, New York City is the grittiest city in the world.
I want to do more R&B, more reggae, everything.
My mother used to stop me from going to DJ battles. I'd, like, cry, get really upset.
Sampling is very important for me. It's the backbone of hip-hop.
I had completely changed from being a mixtape DJ to being a producer and working with Nas and stuff like that.
Every record I make, I want people to feel what I used to feel when I used to crack open a CD and press play.
Life imitates art and back around.
You can't just say jazz is dead.
I don't do albums for album sales. I just do it as a conversation piece and a business card.
Gang Starr was like the blueprint of my career.
I grew up looking up to DJ Premier, who would have the illest hip-hop joint on everybody's album.
I kinda gave my childhood to hip-hop, literally. I didn't go to parties in high school. All I did - well, I was DJing parties in high school.
I come from a traditional hip-hop background.
I get mad if I'm not presented as an actual artist on tour. I don't want to be seen as just some DJ that plays between sets. I have a bigger brand than that.
Every person I meet is a rapper, DJ, or makes beats.
When I went to AI New England in Boston, I used to do my mixtapes, and honestly, if you look back at any of my mixtapes, every single mixtape tells a story.
I definitely try to go above and beyond with live mixing and scratching.
