Madlib

Madlib

For the word game, see Mad Libs.

Madlib (MC And DJ Legendary Iconic Beats) (born Otis Jackson Jr. on October 24 1973 in Oxnard, California, United States) is a California-based DJ, multi-instrumentalist, rapper, and music producer. Known under a plethora of pseudonyms, he is one of the most prolific and critically acclaimed hip hop producers of the 2000s and has collaborated with myriad hip hop artists, including The Alkaholiks, Mos Def, De La Soul, Ghostface Killah, Talib Kweli, A.G., MF DOOM (as Madvillain), and the late J Dilla (as Jaylib). Madlib describes himself as a "DJ first, producer second, and MC last," and he has done several projects as a DJ, mixer, or remixer. Alongside collaborators J Dilla and MF Doom, Madlib has been an influence on an upcoming generation of producers and musicians, many of which prefer Madlib's abstract styles.

Early career

Madlib was born in Oxnard, California to musician parents Otis Jackson, Sr. and DoraSinesca Jackson. He was raised in Oxnard, and currently works in Los Angeles. He began making music with the rap group Lootpack in the early 1990s. After his father started an independent label Crate Diggas Palace (CDP) Records in 1996 to promote Madlib and his CDP crew, including younger sibling, Oh No the Disrupt, and released an EP "Ill Psyche Move", Lootpack caught the attention of Peanut Butter Wolf, founder of the Stones Throw Records label. They released two singles and a full-length album on the Stones Throw imprint in 1999. Madlib also worked with rap group Tha Alkaholiks for several albums.

Madlib's first release under the guise of Quasimoto, titled The Unseen, was in 2000. The album was met with critical acclaim and named by Spin Magazine as one of the top albums of the year. Madlib (as Quasimoto) was also named as Hip Hop Connection's Newcomer of the Year, in its annual readers poll for 2000. The distinctive high-pitched voice of Lord Quas is attained by playing the original beat at a slow speed, recording the vocals over that slow speed, then speeding the vocals along with the original beat back up to its original tempo. This can be done easily using any modern recording software. Furthermore, some of the samples that are sped up and slowed down include Madlib's own voice (primarily) and Melvin Van Peebles recordings.

In 2001, Madlib took a turn away from traditional hip hop music, releasing his first Yesterdays New Quintet LP, Angles Without Edges. Yesterdays New Quintet is a Jazz-based, hip hop and Electronic-influenced quintet made up of four fictitious characters, Ahmad Miller, Monk Hughes, Malik Flavors, Joe McDuphrey; and Madlib under his real name, Otis Jackson Jr. Madlib has continued to record other albums under the different guises of Yesterdays New Quintet members, including 2002's tribute to Stevie Wonder, Stevie, 2004's tribute to Weldon Irvine, A Tribute to Brother Weldon, Joe McDuphrey Experience, and other singles and EPs released only on vinyl. He also created the pseudonym Sound Directions to create the YNQ like Record The Funky Side of Life.

The first, released in 2002, was a collection of old dub reggae tracks from Trojan Records, and was titled Blunted in the Bomb Shelter. The second, Shades of Blue was released in 2003 and is a remix of Blue Note Records. This album features original Blue Note recordings, some remixed and resampled, and some replayed by Madlib, as well as rapping by M.E.D. aka Medaphoar.

Success

Madlib performing at All Tomorrow's Parties.

2003 heralded the first of two collaboration projects. Working with the late hip hop producer J Dilla, the duo known as Jaylib released Champion Sound. The other was Madlib's collaboration with hip-hop producer and rapper MF DOOM, known together as Madvillain. The 2004 Madvillainy album was highly anticipated, and well-received, topping many critics' year-end lists.Both albums attracted attention from the fans of the two collaborative artists, Dilla & Doom.

The 2005 Quasimoto album, The Further Adventures of Lord Quas was accepted well and continued the Quasimoto tradition of using vocal samples from Melvin Van Peebles. This was followed by a YNQ album called Sound Directions: The Funky Side of Life, marking his first collaboration with session musicians.

His first collection of original (previously unused) hip-hop instrumentals Beat Konducta Vol 1-2: Movie Scenes was released in March 2006, and on New Year's Eve, a digital release Liberation with Talib Kweli was made public for free download for the first week of 2007. In August 2007, Beat Konducta Vol 3-4: Beat Konducta in India was released, an instrumental hip hop album containing songs sampling the music of India.

Yesterdays Universe completed the cycle of releases by Yesterdays New Quintet and introduces a new collection of artist names created by Madlib: The Jazzistics, The Young Jazz Rebels, Jackson Conti, Suntouch, The Jahari Massamba Unit, Kamala Walker & The Soul Tribe, The Last Electro-Acoustic Space Jazz & Percussion Ensemble, The Yesterdays Universe All-Stars, The Otis Jackson Jr. Trio, and The Eddie Prince Fusion Band.

Percee P's first album, Perseverance, entirely produced by Madlib, was out in September 2007. Some other records are supposed to come out such as the Supreme Team album (with Karriem Riggins), as well as a solo album on BBE Records. It has been reported that Erykah Badu made some new songs over Madlib's instrumentals, and that he would work on a project with Sa-Ra. For years, rumours of Madvillainy 2 and Jaylib 2 have circulated, but no information has surfaced, besides one new Madvillain song on the Stones Throw Records compilation Chrome Children in 2006.

On October 29, 2007, Madlib made a rare public appearance on BET's Rap City, alongside collaborator Talib Kweli.

Madlib produced Erykah Badu's second single from her New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) album, "The Healer". The song formally debuted on Gilles Peterson's BBC Radio show in January 2008.

In May 2008, Ivan "Mamao" Conti of the Brazilian jazz group Azymuth and Madlib released an album as Jackson Conti entitled Sujinho.

Stones Throw announced in its newsletter that Madlib's fifth Beat Konducta Album Beat Konducta Vol. 5: Dil Cosby Suite will be released in August 2008. Beat Konducta Vol. 5: Dil Cosby Suite & Beat Konducta Vol. 6: Dil Withers Suite will be released together on CD in late '08. Madlib's BBE "Beat Generation" Album WLIB AM: King of the Wigflip will be released in late September 2008.

In September 2008 Stones Throw released a limited Box Set called Madvillainy 2: The Box, it contains the long awaited Madvillainy 2: The Madlib Remix, which contains remixes of the first Madvillainy album and the song Monkey Suite, which was originally on the Chrome Children compilation, a One Beer (Drunk Version) 7"-single, the Madvillain demo cassette, a T-shirt and a comic book.

Discography

Main article: Madlib discography

External links

• Madlib at StonesThrow.com
• Madlib RBMA video lecture session
• Template:Myspace
• Template:Myspace
• Website to Madlib's "King of the wigflip"

References

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