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On this episode of People's Party, Talib Kweli and Jasmin Leigh sit down Grammy-winning producer, rapper, and very close friend of Kweli -- 88-Keys. In this comprehensive discussion, we get to hear the timeline of how 88 carved out his niche in the game, becoming one of the most sought after hip-hop producers in the industry. The trio discusses 88's upbringing in the Bronx, New York, and move to Long Island, where he attended high school. The producer/rapper details the huge influence that the Native Tongues movement had on him with groups like A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul deeply inspiring his love for hip-hop culture. He talks about how he met record dealer John Carrero, who gave him his first job cleaning records, and eventually became the ear to find all the best beats for sampling -- which John would then market at record shows to legends like Q-Tip, Pete Rock, Large Professor, and others. This would lead to 88 meeting Q-Tip who showed him how to work a beat machine. 88 also gets into the difference between looping and chopping when making beats, his production on Black Star's 'Thieves In The Night', his methods and motivations for sending his works out as demos, and the importance of trusting your ears.

Later, 88 speaks on his long-time friendship with Kanye West, how they met and started hanging out on a daily basis. Talib and 88 also discuss their shared unflinching loyalty to Kanye, despite all the controversy that surrounds him, and perspectives on how much his intentions should matter. 88 also touches on the concept for his album 'The Death of Adam,' as well as his love of Ralph Lauren clothing and his habit of leaving the house geared up with Polo from head to toe for decades. In closing, 88 reflects on his friendship with Mac Miller, details how they met, and Talib asks 88 for his take on the most important drum machine to master for the producers of tomorrow who aspire to put their own stamps on the culture.

TIME STAMPS:

2:50 -- 88 talks about his parents originally being from Cameroon, and growing up in the 80's in the Bronx, New York, then moving to Long Island. He speaks on hiding his African ancestry to not be targeted by bullies, until he learned to embrace it, hating being forced to go to Catholic school mainly due to the uniform he had to wear, and begging his parents to let him go to public school. He also talks about his love of dancing, basically whenever, wherever he hears a beat.

12:08 -- The trio discuss how Long Island has always been under-represented in hip hop, regardless of all the legends that hailed from there. 88 gives his take on why Long island never gets its due props as one of the epicenters of hip hop. They discuss how De La Soul really went out of their way to put the Long Island lifestyle on display. 88 talks about getting made fun of for being such a huge fan of their alternative style, and also talks about meeting the group KMD.

19:02 -- 88 lays out all the stepping stones that took him into the music business. At 14 listening to the radio when Roy Ayer's 'Everybody Loves The Sunshine' came on, being the song that Brand Nubian sampled for their song 'Wake Up'. He tells the story of how he hunted down a sealed original copy, buying from John Carrero who would give him his first job cleaning records, then later assisting as the ear to find the best records for sampling, that John would end up selling at record shows to all-time greats like Q-Tip, Pete Rock and Large Professor.

28:35 -- 88 details when he first really found his love for hip hop through the Native Tongues movement with groups like De La Soul and Tribe Called Quest using diverse sampling techniques, colorful imagery, and focus on Afrocentricity. He tells the story of how he met Q-Tip at John Carrero's house helping him find records, which then led to John buying a ton of sampling equipment that he gave 88 access to for his beat making journey that made history.

35:00 -- 88 talks about the difference between looping and chopping when making beats, which leads 88-Keys and Kweli to reflect back on creating the classic Black Star song "Thieves In The Night" and the process behind that beat. The story itself, and 88's idea that Kweli and Yasiin were balling, is a funny moment that has to be heard from the Golden Era of hip-hop.

44:38 -- Jasmin asks how 88 demos his beats to potential buyers. He talks about discontinuing the process of shopping beats in the traditional sense, since he's become an established name in the industry. Letting people with open minds be able to approach him based on trust of his abilities to make something great.

48:36 -- Talib brings up Mos Def's ultra-classic album 'Black on Both Sides', which 88 put his fingerprints on with the production of several tracks. They bring up how 88's 'Speed Law' was originally intended to be the lead single until Jermaine Dupree had some harsh words about it, which then led to Rawkus using 'Ms. Fat Booty' as the album's flagship song. They also discuss 88 hanging out at Talib's recording sessions of his album 'Train Of Thought'.

55:32 -- 88-Keys speaks on his long-time friendship with Kanye West, the funny story of how they met in New York, how Kanye introduced himself as a future star, how they became day-in-day-out friends for four years, meeting Donda West (R.I.P.), and how he's one of the few old school friends who's still in daily contact with Yeezy.

1:14:15 -- Talib asks 88 about him sticking by Kanye's side despite all the controversy that surrounds him. 88 explains that Kayne is completely misunderstood, and has always been the same guy since day one. The two also discuss their shared loyalty to Kanye despite all the controversy that surrounds him, and touch on how much his intentions should matter. They also discuss 88's album 'The Death Of Adam' and tells the story of how the concept came about with people's perception of his mixed-race marriage.

1:26:30 -- 88 speaks on his affinity for Polo clothing that he's had since the early 90's. He outlines early on going to the mall and eyeballing all the designer brands but always landing on Ralph Lauren. He also talks about actually getting called in for doing a photo shoot for Polo in 2006 due to his well known 'Lo-Head' status. From that point on he became immersed in the company's catalog and still follows every collection released.

1:39:16 -- 88 reflects on his friendship with Mac Miller, and details the story of how they met, Mac already knowing well who 88 was, being a huge fan of his resume of works. This led to them collaborating on 5 songs together. Talib asks 88 for his take on the most important drum machine to master for all the aspiring producers out there.

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