While there are many established DJ’s whom I have the utmost respect for when it comes to technical skills (ie. cutting, juggling, etc.), there really is no comparison when it comes to DJ Premier and his signature chorus cuts. DJ Babu, Rhettmatic, DJ Spinbad (who I just found out did the cuts on Fat Joe’s “John Blaze“) are all incredibly gifted at providing ill chorus scratches. But Premo. That man is a beast on another level.
Besides having an extensive knowledge of any dusty jazz, funk or soul record, Mean Joe Preme also has an encyclopedic memory when it comes to Hip-Hop lyrics. In an interview he did some time back (I can’t remember the exact interview), I recall Preme saying that some artists will provide him with a general idea of what lyrics to use for the cuts (a la Jay Z & “D’evils”), but most times this is left entirely up to Premo, and he always delivers. In every Gang Starr album, starting with No More Mr. Nice Guy up until The Ownerz, you can hear the progression and evolution of his unique cuts. The very first time I heard Preme’s cuts was on a mixtape my DJ mentor at the time gave to me. That song being “DJ Premier In Deep Concentration” – and despite that track highlighting some very early Premo material, I was completely blown away by those scratches. And without further ado, I present to you what I personally consider Premo’s greatest chorus cuts, in no particular order:
Mos Def – Mathematics
Group Home – Supa Star
Gang Starr – Mass Appeal
KRS-One – Rappaz R. N. Dainja
Jay Z – D’evils
Buckshot LeFonque – Some Shit@78BPM (The Scratch Opera)
Non Phixion – Rock Stars
DJ Premier In Deep Concentration
AZ – The Come Up
Jeru the Damaja – Black Cowboy (Fugees Diss)
Fat Joe – The Shit Is Real (DJ Premier Remix)
Afu Ra – Mic Stance
Black Milk – The Matrix f. Pharoahe Monch & Sean Price
Kanye West x Nas x Rakim x KRS-One – Classic
Rakim – When I B On the Mic
J-Live – The Best Part
Bun B – Let Em Know
Ill Bill – Society Is Brainwashed
Nas – Nas Is Like
Gang Starr – The Militia II f. W.C. & Rakim
Honorable mention ironically is a non-DJ Premier cut and would have to go to DJ Craze A-Trak’s cuts on Obscure Disorder’s “Back To the Lab” (which not surprisingly is also an obscure record, as I’ve never been able to find a copy. Anywhere.) GREATEST chorus cut ever? Quite possibly. With that said, what are y’all favs? Premo or not.
