Christopher E. Martin (born March 21, 1966), better known as DJ Premier (or… Read Full Bio ↴Christopher E. Martin (born March 21, 1966), better known as DJ Premier (or Primo by his fans, fellow musicians, and critics), is a prominent American hip hop producer and DJ, and the instrumental half of the duos Gang Starr and PRhyme.
Contrary to popular belief, he did not found nor even co-found Gang Starr.
He was introduced to DJing while attending school at Prairie View A&M in Houston, Texas. DJ Premier's original stage name was Waxmaster C, the "C" taken from his first name, Chris, although he had already changed it to DJ Premier at the time he joined Gang Starr.
Considered by many fans to be one of the greatest hip hop producers, DJ Premier has produced countless tracks, for many groups and solo artists since the early 1990s. These include notable tracks for artists such as Jay-Z ("D'Evils", "So Ghetto"), Big L ("The Enemy"), The Notorious B.I.G. ("Unbelievable", "Kick In The Door", "Ten Crack Commandments"), Nas ("N.Y. State of Mind", "Nas Is Like"), Pitch Black ("It's All Real"), M.O.P. ("Downtown Swinga"), Jeru the Damaja ("Come Clean", "My Mind Spray"), KRS-One ("MC's Act Like They Don't Know"), Mos Def ("Mathematics"), Non Phixion ("Rockstars"), and Royce da 5'9" ("Boom").(Full list: djpremiertrackology.8kilo.com)
Collaborations
Outside of Gang Starr, some of Premier's most lauded work is his collaborations with Jeru the Damaja and Group Home. With the former, Premier crafted one of the East Coast's landmark albums in the form of The Sun Rises in the East, released in 1994. Their follow up to this, 1996's Wrath of the Math, was regarded as a solid effort but not on par with its predecessor, although it did contain Jeru's biggest hit to date, "Ya Playin' Yaself". Group Home's Livin' Proof (1995), although greatly overlooked at the time of its release, has eventually come to be critically acclaimed.
In 1994, DJ Premier collaborated extensively with jazz musician Branford Marsalis's experimental group, Buckshot Lefonque, for their debut album. During the making of music video director, Hype Williams' 1998 film, Belly, DJ Premier collaborated with neo soul leader D'Angelo for a song called "Devil's Pie", which was originally intended only for the film's accompanying soundtrack. However D'Angelo soon changed his mind and decided to include the song on his sophomore album Voodoo (2000) In 2006 he co-produced Christina Aguilera's Back To Basics album.
Samples
DJ Premier's style of production epitomises the New York sound from his earlier peers. He is known for sampling jazz, funk, and soul artists, as well as sampling an artist's past work, when he is creating a new track for that same artist. In addition, his photographic memory of rap lyrics allows him to distinctively "speak with his hands" by scratching in lyrics from several different songs to construct new phrases [1]. Premier's non-Gang Starr collaborations are well-known for his often-imitated signature of combining short vocal samples, often from multiple artists, to create a chorus. For example, for the chorus of Mos Def's "Mathematics", Premier cuts, in quick succession:
"The Mighty Mos Def..." (from Mos Def's "Body Rock"),
"It's simple mathematics" (from Fat Joe's "John Blaze"),
"I revolve around science..." (from Ghostface Killah's verse on Raekwon's "Criminology"),
"What are we talking about here..." (unknown origin),
"Do your math.." (from Erykah Badu's "On & On"), and
"One, two, three, four" (from James Brown's "Funky Drummer")
On certain artists' work the vocal samples will all be vocal samples of the artist from the artists' past work; "Nas Is Like" and "2nd Childhood" with Nas are two well-known examples of this.
On Jeru the Damaja's "Physical Stamina," however, Premier sampled and chopped up recordings of seminal electro-acoustic music from the 1960s.
Melodies
Premier usually creates a two-bar melody that repeats itself throughout the song. The aim of this is to showcase the MC's skills by bringing focus away from the beat, while creating the song's mood and a solid backdrop. Premier often changes speeds, filters and chops his breaks and adds scope to the melody with chimes and strings.
He has also shown innovation by playing rarely-used elements into a rap song (such as the xylophones on Biggie's "Kick in the Door" or the ambient nature sounds on Nas' "Nas is Like"), and his wide range of instruments (the piano loop on Jay-Z's "D'Evils" versus the strings on Rakim's "New York (Ya Out There?") and production techniques (he played the melody backwards during the second half of Jay-Z's "A Million and One Questions (Rhyme No More)").
Drums
Premier's drums have been known for complimenting his melodies. For example, during Nas' "NY State of Mind", two bars have a simple round of kicks and snares; in the following two, a complementing second set of drums plays out. This is repeated throughout.
Label ownership and future projects
DJ Premier currently owns two record labels. "Year Round Records" was founded in 2002 and has so far released several DJ Premier mixtapes as well as two 12" vinyl singles for NYG'z and Blaq Poet. "Works Of Mart", which is also the name of his publishing company, was founded in mid 2006 and released 12" vinyl singles for artists Tef (aka Teflon) and F.A.B.I.D. (H. Stax and Mike Rone).
Since 2001, DJ Premier mentioned several times the plan to release a solo album entitled "A Man Of Few Words", which has yet to be released. Other confirmed upcoming projects are a full-length colaboration with Nas, Blaq Poet's long delayed album "The Best That Never Did It", Tef's (aka Teflon) long announced album "Contraband" and last but not least protegés NYG'z long delayed debut album "Pros and Cons".
Contrary to popular belief, he did not found nor even co-found Gang Starr.
He was introduced to DJing while attending school at Prairie View A&M in Houston, Texas. DJ Premier's original stage name was Waxmaster C, the "C" taken from his first name, Chris, although he had already changed it to DJ Premier at the time he joined Gang Starr.
Considered by many fans to be one of the greatest hip hop producers, DJ Premier has produced countless tracks, for many groups and solo artists since the early 1990s. These include notable tracks for artists such as Jay-Z ("D'Evils", "So Ghetto"), Big L ("The Enemy"), The Notorious B.I.G. ("Unbelievable", "Kick In The Door", "Ten Crack Commandments"), Nas ("N.Y. State of Mind", "Nas Is Like"), Pitch Black ("It's All Real"), M.O.P. ("Downtown Swinga"), Jeru the Damaja ("Come Clean", "My Mind Spray"), KRS-One ("MC's Act Like They Don't Know"), Mos Def ("Mathematics"), Non Phixion ("Rockstars"), and Royce da 5'9" ("Boom").(Full list: djpremiertrackology.8kilo.com)
Collaborations
Outside of Gang Starr, some of Premier's most lauded work is his collaborations with Jeru the Damaja and Group Home. With the former, Premier crafted one of the East Coast's landmark albums in the form of The Sun Rises in the East, released in 1994. Their follow up to this, 1996's Wrath of the Math, was regarded as a solid effort but not on par with its predecessor, although it did contain Jeru's biggest hit to date, "Ya Playin' Yaself". Group Home's Livin' Proof (1995), although greatly overlooked at the time of its release, has eventually come to be critically acclaimed.
In 1994, DJ Premier collaborated extensively with jazz musician Branford Marsalis's experimental group, Buckshot Lefonque, for their debut album. During the making of music video director, Hype Williams' 1998 film, Belly, DJ Premier collaborated with neo soul leader D'Angelo for a song called "Devil's Pie", which was originally intended only for the film's accompanying soundtrack. However D'Angelo soon changed his mind and decided to include the song on his sophomore album Voodoo (2000) In 2006 he co-produced Christina Aguilera's Back To Basics album.
Samples
DJ Premier's style of production epitomises the New York sound from his earlier peers. He is known for sampling jazz, funk, and soul artists, as well as sampling an artist's past work, when he is creating a new track for that same artist. In addition, his photographic memory of rap lyrics allows him to distinctively "speak with his hands" by scratching in lyrics from several different songs to construct new phrases [1]. Premier's non-Gang Starr collaborations are well-known for his often-imitated signature of combining short vocal samples, often from multiple artists, to create a chorus. For example, for the chorus of Mos Def's "Mathematics", Premier cuts, in quick succession:
"The Mighty Mos Def..." (from Mos Def's "Body Rock"),
"It's simple mathematics" (from Fat Joe's "John Blaze"),
"I revolve around science..." (from Ghostface Killah's verse on Raekwon's "Criminology"),
"What are we talking about here..." (unknown origin),
"Do your math.." (from Erykah Badu's "On & On"), and
"One, two, three, four" (from James Brown's "Funky Drummer")
On certain artists' work the vocal samples will all be vocal samples of the artist from the artists' past work; "Nas Is Like" and "2nd Childhood" with Nas are two well-known examples of this.
On Jeru the Damaja's "Physical Stamina," however, Premier sampled and chopped up recordings of seminal electro-acoustic music from the 1960s.
Melodies
Premier usually creates a two-bar melody that repeats itself throughout the song. The aim of this is to showcase the MC's skills by bringing focus away from the beat, while creating the song's mood and a solid backdrop. Premier often changes speeds, filters and chops his breaks and adds scope to the melody with chimes and strings.
He has also shown innovation by playing rarely-used elements into a rap song (such as the xylophones on Biggie's "Kick in the Door" or the ambient nature sounds on Nas' "Nas is Like"), and his wide range of instruments (the piano loop on Jay-Z's "D'Evils" versus the strings on Rakim's "New York (Ya Out There?") and production techniques (he played the melody backwards during the second half of Jay-Z's "A Million and One Questions (Rhyme No More)").
Drums
Premier's drums have been known for complimenting his melodies. For example, during Nas' "NY State of Mind", two bars have a simple round of kicks and snares; in the following two, a complementing second set of drums plays out. This is repeated throughout.
Label ownership and future projects
DJ Premier currently owns two record labels. "Year Round Records" was founded in 2002 and has so far released several DJ Premier mixtapes as well as two 12" vinyl singles for NYG'z and Blaq Poet. "Works Of Mart", which is also the name of his publishing company, was founded in mid 2006 and released 12" vinyl singles for artists Tef (aka Teflon) and F.A.B.I.D. (H. Stax and Mike Rone).
Since 2001, DJ Premier mentioned several times the plan to release a solo album entitled "A Man Of Few Words", which has yet to be released. Other confirmed upcoming projects are a full-length colaboration with Nas, Blaq Poet's long delayed album "The Best That Never Did It", Tef's (aka Teflon) long announced album "Contraband" and last but not least protegés NYG'z long delayed debut album "Pros and Cons".
Ebonics
DJ Premier Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Ebonics' by these artists:
Big L Yo, pay attention And listen real closely how I break this…
Big L & DITC Yo, pay attention And listen real closely how I break this…
Big L feat. Mr. Cheeks Yo, pay attention And listen real closely how I break this…
D.I.T.C. Yo, pay attention And listen real closely how I break this…
D.I.T.C. Big L Yo, pay attention And listen real closely how I break this…
DJ Pooh featuring Mista Grimm [Mista Grimm] Eeeee bonics Ain't n…
DJ Pooh/Mista Grimm featuring Mista Grimm [Mista Grimm] Eeeee bonics …
DJ Pooh; Mista Grimm featuring Mista Grimm [Mista Grimm] Eeeee bonics …
Ebonics This is for the people in the hood that ain't…
We have lyrics for these tracks by DJ Premier:
100 to 1 In city shoes, Of clueless blues, Pays the views, And no-man…
2 LOVIN U I pled my case with the Gods, woman Just place your…
Beat Breaks Ayy, yo, Nas, you know what I wanna do? Let's take…
Book of Rhymes I don't smile, I don't frown, get two up or…
Change At the end of 1974, when daddy dukes went raw The…
Dear Hip Hop This shit's special DJ Khaled! And if I cry two tears for…
dj premier 19-motherfuckin' 1985, I arrived 33 years, damn, I'm gratef…
Get Down ("Get nothin' but a beat down!") Refrain 4x Punks jump…
Head Over Wheels I guess I troop, honey, what the scoop? You're kinda…
Headlines Okay (okay) Yeah You know what's up, nigga (My team) living …
Hip Hop This shit's special DJ Khaled! And if I cry two tears for…
Hold The City Down "I got to hold down the city" "Got to let you…
I Damn, here we go again Common passed on this beat I made…
Lettin' Off Steam Joey Bad and Big Preem and we lettin' off steam And…
Mortgage Free What up Preem? That nigga Statik told me start sayin' 2…
Our Streets Ferg, Ferg Check it, check it, check it Pull up, pull up,…
Premier 19-motherfuckin' 1985, I arrived 33 years, damn, I'm gratef…
Remy Rap With the def female Let's rap Remy Ma No lie, it's only…
Runway That ol' real shit, that ol' real shit, that ol'…
Sing Like Bilal [Joell Ortiz] (Sample Of Lil' Fame) Uh! Uh! Y-Y, Y-Y-Y-YAOOO…
Terrible 2's Run your, run your Run your, run your damn jewels Run your,…
The Life It's always about money, It's always about money because... …
The Premier 19-motherfuckin' 1985, I arrived 33 years, damn, I'm gratef…
The root of all You know this ain't a game to us My future's lookin'…
WUT U SAID Yo what's good two time? What up g'z how were you? Ain't…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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Vlad_flev
Yo, pay attention
And listen real closely how I break this slang shit down
Check it, my weed smoke is my lye
A ki of coke is a pie
When I'm lifted, I'm high
With new clothes on, I'm fly
Cars is whips and sneakers is kicks
Money is chips, movies is flicks
Also, cribs is homes, jacks is pay phones
Cocaine is nose candy, cigarettes is bones
A radio is a box, a razor blade is a ox
Fat diamonds is rocks and jakes is cop
And if you got rubbed, you got stuck
You got shot, you got bucked
And if you got double-crossed, you got fucked
Your bankroll is your poke, a choke hold is a yoke
A kite is a note, a con is a okey doke
And if you got punched that mean you got snuffed
To clean is to buff, a bull scare is a strong bluff
I know you like the way I'm freakin' it
I talk with slang and I'ma never stop speakin' it
"Speak with criminal slang"
That's just the way that I talk, yo
"Vocabulary spills, I'm ill"
"Speak with criminal slang"
That's just the way that I talk, yo
"Vocabulary spills, I'm ill"
Yo, yo
A burglary is a jook, a woof's a crook
Mobb Deep already explained the meanin' of shook
If you caught a felony, you caught a F
If you got killed, you got left
If you got the dragon, you got bad breath
If you 730, that mean you crazy
Hit me on the hip means page me
Angel dust is sherm, if you got AIDS, you got the germ
If a chick gave you a disease, then you got burned
Max mean to relax, guns and pistols is gats
Condoms is hats, critters is cracks
The food you eat is your grub
A victim's a mark
A sweat box is a small club, your tick is your heart
Your apartment is your pad
Your old man is your dad
The studio is the lab and heated is mad
I know you like the way I'm freakin' it
I talk with slang and I'ma never stop speakin' it
"Speak with criminal slang"
That's just the way that I talk, yo
"Vocabulary spills, I'm ill"
"Speak with criminal slang"
That's just the way that I talk, yo
"Vocabulary spills, I'm ill"
The iron horse is the train and champaign is bubbly
A deuce is a honey that's ugly
If your girl is fine, she's a dime
A suit is a fine, jewelry is shine
If you in love, that mean you blind
Genuine is real, a face card is a hundred dollar bill
A very hard, long stare is a grill
If you sneakin' to go see a girl, that mean you creepin'
Smilin' is cheesin', bleedin' is leakin'
Beggin is bummin, if you nuttin you comin
Takin' orders is sunnin', an ounce of coke is a onion
A hotel's a telly, a cell phone's a celly
Jealous is jelly, your food box is your belly
To guerrilla mean to use physical force
You took a L, you took a loss
To show off mean floss, uh
I know you like the way I'm freakin' it
I talk with slang and I'ma never stop speakin' it
"Speak with criminal slang"
That's just the way that I talk, yo
"Vocabulary spills, I'm ill"
"Speak with criminal slang"
That's just the way that I talk, yo
"Vocabulary spills, I'm ill"
Phillip Brown
Dj Premier is A Master hip-hop Producer. His beats are astonishing.
Jasper Abbott
Indeed he is the best, that staccato beat every time and the beats is always hard
tony starks
One of Preem's sickest beats hands down
Emmanuel Mwamukonda
I get goosebumps listening to this classic. Pure genius. Primo supplying another Hip Hop orgasm.
DroodleTech
Real rap/hip hop is NOT dead and will NEVER die as long as there are people appreciating it. And theres a lot of dope artists,a lot of music to listen to,you just gotta look around!
Robin Zahnd
What a nice joint! Much respect and peace from switzerland! Eternal classic, RIP
jascha schaub
aight Mad respect an alli swiss dudes wo dr shizzle pumpä..
Lara_Dixiedo
Haha yeah man, same here. Schönä tag 😁
gorilla401
ayyooo dayum wieso so viele schwizer do💀
StarSaber7
Why can't we have hip hop like this anymore? I mean, c'mon really?