Cut Chemist Interview
posted on Dec 13, 2006
Oh Word: This is agent b reporting for ohword.com, I’m here with Cut Chemist (former Jurassic 5 DJ and and producer). First off I wanted to ask you, why did you leave J5 to focus on your solo album?
Cut Chemist: Haha, to focus on my solo album. That’s why. I’ve been working on it for a couple years and J5’s schedule is so rigorous, you know, when they’re not recording they’re touring and when they’re not touring they’re recording so in order to break free, in order to work on what I needed to do I just needed to leave. It wasn’t fair because during the “Power By Numbers” campaign I started to miss shows and tours and stuff because I was recording or doing stuff with DJ Shadow and I didn’t think it was fair to keep doing that since I was going to have miss bigger chunks of whole tours and so I said just out of respect, why don’t we just take a break at least for this campaign. So it’s not like an official permanent leaving, it’s more like a leave of absence.
OW: Kind of like a little vacation?
CC: Yeah, just to kind of get my album straight. Warner Brothers was knocking on my door, starting to put the pressure on. For all those reasons, it seemed to be the best thing to do. And plus the trajectory of J5’s whole campaign kind of switched, they were looking to get more outside producers and looking to expand. So it seemed to be a good point, a clean break. I hadn’t done any beats on the new record, even though I was working on some. I figured since I’m not committed to anything now I should just bounce and finish my record and we’ll meet up later. It’s cool.
OW: So does working on a solo record feel less constricting now since you get final say on everything and don’t have to think with the group?
CC: Yeah, totally. There’s no one there to tell you that something’s not working. But also that can be bad too because maybe something really isn’t working and you need someone there to quality control your shit. Numark was really good for that. He’d be like, “nah man that shit ain’t hot,” and I’d be like, “really? alright, I’m just being stupid, cool.” But yeah I’d play shit for friends or in clubs when I was working on the music, I’d just burn a CD and play it to see what was working and make sure I was in the right ball park.
OW: So what made you want to become a DJ and what were some of the first records you remember buying?
CC: Well I was buying records way before I was a DJ. I was trying to collect those KTEL comps with all the hits on them, I guess I wanted to play radio jock or something. I got into hip-hop in ‘83, I think the first records I bought were “Freakazoid” and “Rockin’ It.” Then after that I bought the Wildstyle soundtrack for some reason, well a good reason, the cover. I’d never seen the movie, I didn’t even know it was a movie. I was like “wow, who are these guys? This is kind of weird.” I wasn’t really into it, it was way too deep for me at that time. But I remember getting into it, seeing the movie, getting into this whole New York history of hip hop type thing. My whole upbringing was all about New York.
OW: As you developed your craft, who were some of your influences production and DJ’ing wise?
CC: In the 80’s it was Marley Marl and Hitman Howard Tee. He’s the first person I ever heard do the triplet swing scratch, “ticka ticka tiggeda ticka, ticka ticka tiggeda ticka,” and that was huge, I took that. And then of course Cash Money, Cash Money was probably the most influential DJ. I still bite his cuts, and I know him.
OW: What about DJ Cheese?
CC: Cheese was amazing. Cheese had those cuts ,“chik chik chik ch-ch-ch-chik,” like really fast stabs. That was huge, Cheese was dope. Cutmaster DC, if we want to really go deep, he was really dope too. Then on the West Coast you had people like Joe Cool who I got to hear on the radio everyday, that was a luxury. The list goes on. Aladdin was amazing, he took it to the next level. And then producer-wise, Marley Marl, although he was a great DJ and a great cutter too, he was also a good producer too. So I started to say, “wow, they’re making the beats and they’re cutting, that stuff’s really cool.” Large Professor was huge, Paul C. When samples came into play those were the cats that I was looking at. The Bomb Squad was probably some of the most influential production to me because they made a texture I wasn’t familiar with, it was almost like rock. When I first heard “Yo! Bumrush the Show” I hated that record. I heard it in ’87, my man played it for me and I was like “this shit is scaring me right now” It was kind of aggressive, it was like punk rock to me, it didn’t seem like rap. Of course now I love it, it’s like one of the most groundbreaking records ever. Bomb Squad is definitely up there at the top of the list.
OW: Word. On the subject of sampling, Prince Paul has recently been speaking out a lot about how sampling laws have had a detrimental effect on hip hop production. How have sampling laws affected your production and how have you adapted to them?
CC: They haven’t really. Yeah, it sucks, but it is copyrighted material. And I don’t think laws have changed, I just think they’re getting more enforced. There’s no law that says anything other than if you take a piece of music and somebody recognizes it – and that’s the key – then they got your ass. But recognize the shit I’m using, I’m calling you out. I use a lot of obscure stuff and I did clear a lot too, I cleared everything. But you can’t know everything. I’ve had people call up J5 and be like, “yeah man, we’re suing you because you used this,” and they’re naming something they don’t even own. There’s so many convoluted trails you can use to fight these laws. Say you recognize it, maybe you don’t even own it but you think you own it. Because I cleared the sample, maybe not through you but through the people who own it so break out, your beef is with homie so go get his money! Stuff like that. Somebody just needs to make a graph, you use such and such amount you owe this much money…
OW: Yeah, in terms of the length of the sample, etcetera…
CC: Yeah, you know, everybody wants to get paid and everybody should just be cool and realize it’s in their best interest to invite people to use their catalog. I know I’d want people to sample me, because it’s flattering and it’s gonna bring in money that it normally wouldn’t.
OW: Word, nowadays you got people buggin’ off a sampled snare or a single note…
CC: Oh, no. Warner Brothers isn’t even bugging out on me over drum beats and they’re the most conservative company in the world. I was like, “what about drum beats?” and they were like, “pshhh, we don’t care about drum beats,” and I was like, “cool.” So that was encouraging.
OW: So are you a vinyl-only purist when it comes to sampling or will you sample anything?
CC: I’ll sample anything. My whole vinyl-only kind of banner waving ways are dead. I think you have to embrace technology in order to grow as an artist and evolve. When I saw the CDJ I was sold. I was like, “cool, vinyl’s done,” and I was scratching on CDJ’s. Not solely, but I’m down to use it. And Serato. But you know, I sample off vinyl, I sample off a lot of cassettes, I lot of stuff I use are live recordings that maybe nobody else used. So I’ll use that and also sample live musicians.
OW: So does it bother you at all that there could be a DJ who starts today or tomorrow and never touches a record his entire life?
CC: Nah. If he makes something dope, it’s all good.
OW: Fuck it, right?
CC: Yeah I could care less. If it’s hot it’s hot.
OW: Word. So was it sentimental to finally part ways with your beard and will we ever see a return?
CC: My beard? Haha. Not as sentimental as the turntablism thing. Nah, I was just lazy. I was just an unkempt dude. And when I was finishing my album I was like, “I want a new look, man.” So me, my photographer and my manager all got on the phone and had a conference call on what to do. So they were like, “what do you think about a singer-songwriter kind of look?” and I was like, “yeah man, I can wear a blazer, kind of indie rock thing and clean it up a bit. Let’s do that, let’s go there. That’s a good look.” So I invested in some clippers to keep it nice and… I’m still gonna keep stubble though! I’m not gonna buy a straight razor and totally clean it up! There’s gotta be some bridge.
OW: On a similar note, why does DJ Numark always wear a hat and what is he hiding under there?
CC: Haha. A bald head! He’s bald as a cue ball, man! Are you kidding me? But no, I don’t think he wears the hat as much anymore. I think he’s finally coming to grips. It’s a good look for him.
OW: Ok, so now that you’re on the solo kick for a bit, can we expect more solo records from you? Who do you want to work with in the future? I know you got Mr. Lif and Edan on this one.
CC: Yeah, there’s another guy on there named Hymnal, he’s a good friend of mine, we’re gonna work on a record together. I wanna work with some people I know. I just wanna work with people I have good chemistry with. Here, it just so happened that it’s Edan, Lif and Hymnal. I obviously want to do more stuff with J5 in the future. And I actually want to do stuff separately with each member, I think that’d be dope. Me and Chali 2na have been talking about doing stuff for his solo record, plus some stuff with Numark and obviously more stuff with Shadow. If I could just keep the same friends and work with them I could live fat off that, because they’re all so talented. I don’t really need to go anywhere else.
OW: You really don’t, you have a good collective.
CC: Yeah, man. exactly. But if more comes down the pipeline, sure.
OW: Any chance of getting another “Bunky’s Pick: (split 12” record Cut Chemist did with Madlib for Stones Throw Records) ?
CC: Another “Bunky’s Pick”? That would be cool. That’s really on Egon, that whole thing came up for his Funky 16 Corners thing. He needed a mega mix so I put it together in like 30 minutes like, “here you go”. He was really into it.
OW: That track you used on there, “Can We Rap?”, I finally found that on 45. You killed that shit.
CC: Oh really? You found the original?
OW: Yup.
CC: No way, no you didn’t.
OW: Yeah, in Brooklyn.
CC: No you didn’t. What color is the label?
OW: Green. It might be a repress.
CC: Really? That’s a fucking bitchin’ song, man.
OW: Word, I found it on 5th ave in Flatbush.
CC: What’s that, a record store?
OW: Nah, it’s just this one guy who always has records out on the sidewalk.
CC: Man, you gotta show me. I’d love to authenticate it because that’s rare as fuck man. I don’t even have it. Dope.
OW: Okay, art question. What are some of your favorite album covers of all time?
CC: Umm, shit man, I wish I had some time to prepare (laughs). Umm…you know, Basquiat’s “Beat Bop” is good. Give me a minute, I’m gonna come up with some bangers. There’s this one album, it’s Italian, The Feedback. It’s a really weird cover with these mechanical birds, it almost reminds me of the DJ Shadow Private Press record. It’s got these birds on it and they’re all hooked into this mechanical assembly line or something. It’s really ill. That one’s cool. Oh there’s this one called…nah, I’m not gonna give that one away.
OW: Well, speaking of Shadow, you, Steinski and Shadow all contributed to The Lessons. If you were to pass the torch to somebody to create future lessons, who would it be?
CC: Well, I would say DJ Format but he kind of already did. He did “The English Lesson” so he’s already in there. Probably this kid out in L.A. named Willow, he’s in this crew called “Machines Have Emotions.” I’d probably hand it off to him. He reminds me of me when I was younger.
OW: Do you feel that the popularity of turntablism is on a decline compared to the 90’s and if so, why do you think that is?
CC: I think it’s because the main people that were promoting it were the Scratch Piklz, on the West Coast at least. And when they disbanded it kind of died. I saw the X-Ecutioners still touring and still wrecking it. But the Piklz just seemed to be the ones who were the main group kind of holding it down. So when they had ScratchCon Party it was kind of like the “farewell to turntablism” party. That’s when me and Shadow and Stein all did our thing. It was really sad. It was celebrating but it was also like, “this is it.” And the next day it was like turntablism was over. It’s like we couldn’t pack these big clubs like we used to. And everything started turning to mash-ups. People were saying, “oh forgot turntablism, let’s do mash-ups.”
OW: Yeah, like Muggs is doing on the West Coast with his whole mash-up radio thing.
CC: Yeah, yeah. So is turntablism dead? I don’t think anything dies. Things just get trendy and hit the public and then hide back underground. There’s still turntablism out there. I know the X-Ecutioners keep evolving their style. Will it come back around? Yeah, it will eventually, and we’re still out there. I’m glad we’re still doing it.
Comments for "Cut Chemist Interview"
First!
This needs some comment love.
— Rafi Dec 15, 05:59 PM
You interview a million times better than I draw.
— Rafi Dec 15, 06:00 PM
Found a pretty interesting post on Beat Bop: http://lastdaysofman.blogspot.com/2006/06/rammelzee-vs-k-rob-beat-bop.html
Any idea what album Chemist is talking about when he mentions The Feedback? I couldn’t find anything about it online.
— fresh Dec 15, 08:24 PM
I didn’t find anything by searching for the feedback either.
Beat Bop is a treasure.
— Rafi Dec 16, 12:35 AM
Excellent interview. Nice work getting background details. Damn Surprised WB dont care about beat samples. That explains the short-ass liner note list of cleared tunes.
— Ed Dec 16, 02:11 AM
feedback is J5’s new album
— Eric Dec 16, 05:17 PM
Eric, not in the context above.. asked about his favorite album covers:
— Rafi Dec 16, 05:52 PM
I’m now determined to track that record down.
Really good interview, by the way.
— fresh Dec 16, 06:42 PM
thanks fresh. this didn’t even feel like an interview, more like a conversation between two vinyl nerds who respect the same frame. cut is a humble cat who loves what he does and makes dope beats. remember when a mindstae like that was a staple of this whole rap shit?
— agent b Dec 17, 12:39 AM
he is da shit!
and his music is pure LOVE!
he’s the one, luv his scratchs and rare-RARE samples!
t8 and keep it up CUT CHEMIST!
— jOsSse Oct 23, 09:44 PM