Talib Kweli & Pete Rock Talk C.L. Smooth, ‘Illmatic,’ J Dilla, Heavy D, Biggie | People’s Party Full

In this episode of “People’s Party With Talib Kweli,” Kweli and Jasmin Leigh sit down with the legendary producer, DJ and rapper:

Soul Brother #1, The Chocolate Boy Wonder…

PETE ROCK

Here’s what we dug into with one of the most iconic and influential producers in hip-hop history:

• Hip-hop being born in the Bronx and having its roots in the Caribbean.
• Being cousins with Heavy D and how he helped Pete get his big break.
• Marly Marl putting Pete on the air at age 13.
• How important Heavy D and his legacy are to the culture.
• His parent’s record collection and how much it impacted his ambitions.
• Meeting James Brown at age 7 and Pete’s favorite JB songs.
• The influence of Marley Marl, Howie Tee, Large Professor, and Prince Paul.
• Making the albums ‘Mecca And The Soul Brother’ and ‘Main Ingredient’.
• The process behind the creation of ‘They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)’
• Pete’s brother Grap Luva and his contributions on ‘Mecca And The Soul Brother’.
• Kanye West taking inspiration from Pete’s production on ‘I Got A Love’.
• What it was like working with Run DMC on ‘Down With The King’.
• Being inspired by the militant sound of Public Enemy’s production team The Bomb Squad.
• Getting on the roster for ‘Illmatic’ and the producers competing with each other.
• Pete producing the original mix for Biggie’s ‘Juicy’ and BIG not liking the beat initially.
• Love for Marvel’s the Hulk and comparing the Wu-Tang members to superheroes.
• Pete’s long-time friendship with producer Madlib as well as DJ Premier.
• The loss of Phife Dawg and how much it deeply affected Pete.
• How it feels to be a go-to classic producer for the younger generation of NYC hardcore emcees.
• A breakdown of the differences between the SP-1200 and the MPC.
• Why Pete feels hip-hop instrumental albums are so important.
• If we’ll be seeing another Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth album.
• Pete goes on to name off some of the projects he has in the works right now.