Ali Shaheed Muhammad
Ali Shaheed Muhammad is a world-renowned producer, songwriter and musician, and a founding member of A Tribe Called Quest, Lucy Pearl and production group The Ummah. He cowrote D'Angelo's "Brown Sugar" and has worked with John Legend, Maxwell, Mint Condition, Angie Stone, Mos Def and Gil Scott-Heron among many others.
He's the co-host of the Microphone Check podcast with Frannie Kelley.
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The Oakland group most widely known for the ageless "93 'til Infinity" has made a new concept album based on a true story. To make it, they went old school.
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"Now is the time that I'm actually thinking of myself as a musician," says Issa. "Things are hitting me like, 'Oh, damn, you have this responsibility.'"
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The New York rapper on the music industry — from sitting on the shelf, to refusing deals, posthumous releases to sales expectations — music journalism and taking risks, personal and professional.
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The Los Angeles rapper tells Microphone Check the true stories behind his debut album and the rise of his partner, DJ Mustard.
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"I met James Brown as a kid. I was seven years old," says the renowned producer. "I wasn't the same since."
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The most philosophical member of Top Dawg Entertainment in a Microphone Check conversation about Ab's high expectations of his audience and what he's trying to make for them.
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At the close of Microphone Check's onstage conversation with the producer and DJ, he took to the decks to demonstrate what he meant when he said, "When I want you to understand something, I remix it."
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This week the hip-hop magazine revealed its annual cover highlighting new acts, which prompted the usual avalanche of debate over the artists featured, those absent and the state of the genre.
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The rapper from Gary, Ind., moved to L.A. 10 years ago, where he met Madlib, a producer revered for his collaborations. The two of them have now made an album Gibbs thinks can't be touched.
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The Bay Area legend is widely known for creating slang, flouting the rules and knowing everybody from everywhere. He speaks about his long career, Master P, Lil Jon, T-Pain, Tupac and Too Short.