Madlib | |
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.jpg) Madlib performing in 2023 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Otis Lee Jackson, Jr. |
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| Born | (1973-10-24)October 24, 1973 (age 51) Oxnard, California, U.S. |
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| Years active | 1993–present |
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| Website | www |
Otis Lee Jackson, Jr. (born October 24, 1973), known professionally asMadlib, is an American record producer, DJ, multi-instrumentalist, and rapper. Critically acclaimed for his eclectic,sample-heavy production style, he is regarded as one of the most influential producers in modernhip-hop. His frequent collaborators includeMF DOOM (asMadvillain),J Dilla (asJaylib),Freddie Gibbs (asMadGibbs),Talib Kweli, andErykah Badu.[1][2][3]
Raised inOxnard, California, Jackson began his career in music production in the early 1990s. He gained prominence as a member of the hip hop collectiveLootpack and later formed thejazz-influenced group Yesterdays New Quintet. Jackson gained wider recognition for his collaboration with MF DOOM under the name Madvillain, producing the critically acclaimed albumMadvillainy (2004). He was also credited for his work on "The Unseen" (2000) under his alter egoQuasimoto.
As a producer, Jackson has worked on numerous critically acclaimed projects. He produced the entirety of Freddie Gibbs'Piñata (2014) andBandana (2019), both of which received widespread critical acclaim.
Madlib is the founder of the record labelMadlib Invazion. His work often incorporates elements of jazz and world music.
Jackson Jr. was born on October 24, 1973,[4] inOxnard, California,[5] to musician parents Otis Jackson, Sr. and Dora Sinesca Jackson. He sampled his first song at 11 years old, sourced from his father's collection. His younger brother is the producer and rapperMichael "Oh No" Jackson.[6] His uncle is the jazz trumpeterJon Faddis. He was raised in Oxnard, where he began his music career.
In the early 1990s, Madlib formed a loose-knit collective composed of rappers who worked with him in his Oxnard-based Crate Diggas Palace (CDP) studio.[7] This collective was composed primarily of his friends, and became known as CDP. The crew included affiliated artists such as Madlib's younger brotherOh No,Kankick,Dudley Perkins aka Declaime,M.E.D. aka Medaphoar, and others. Madlib's first commercially released music was production for the rap groupTha Alkaholiks in 1993. He went on to record music of his own with the groupLootpack. Their 12-inch EPPsyche Move was released by Madlib's father in 1995 on a label also called Crate Diggas Palace. This record caught the attention ofPeanut Butter Wolf, founder of theStones Throw Records label, who signed the group in 1998.
Lootpack's 1999 debut albumSoundpieces: Da Antidote ushered in a string of releases on Stones Throw centering on Madlib's production work which would continue for a decade. His first solo work,The Unseen, under the guise ofQuasimoto, came in 2000. The album was met with critical acclaim and named bySpin as one of the top 20 albums of the year.[8]
In 2001, Madlib moved away from hip hop music and began a series of releases from Yesterdays New Quintet, ajazz-based, hip hop andelectronic-influenced quintet made up of alter-egos or fictional musicians played by Madlib. Over the next several years, through several record releases on Stones Throw and other labels, the growing number of pseudonyms and fictional players came to be known as Yesterdays Universe.[9] Madlib was later invited to remix tracks from theBlue Note Records archive in 2003, which he released asShades of Blue. In addition to the remixes, the album contained newly recorded interpretations of Blue Note originals, many of which were credited to members of Yesterdays New Quintet. Beginning with the 2007 albumThe Funky Side of Life by Yesterdays New Quintet spin-off group Sound Directions, the Yesterdays Universe also began incorporating additional session musicians who were not pseudonyms of Madlib.
Returning to hip hop music in 2003, Madlib announced two collaborative projects. He joined hip hop producerJ Dilla in a duo known asJaylib, which releasedChampion Sound.
Madlib then collaborated with rapperMF DOOM, known together asMadvillain, for the albumMadvillainy. Though released in 2004, the album was being worked on as early as 2002. However, production was halted when the album was leaked while Madlib was on a trip to Brazil.Madvillainy was produced by using aBoss SP-303 and a turntable.Madvillainy was highly anticipated and well-received, topping many critics' year-end lists.[10][11]
The 2005 Quasimoto albumThe Further Adventures of Lord Quas met with warm reception[12] and continued the Quasimoto tradition of using vocal samples fromMelvin Van Peebles, who is credited on the album liner notes as a collaborator. Throughout the rest of the decade Madlib continued to release jazz material simultaneously with his hip hop work:Perseverance withPercee P,Liberation withTalib Kweli,Sujinho withIvan Conti ofAzymuth, his own instrumental hip hop seriesBeat Konducta,In Search of Stoney Jackson withStrong Arm Steady,O. J. Simpson withGuilty Simpson, and production work for artists such asErykah Badu andDe La Soul.
In 2010, Madlib announced his ownimprint calledMadlib Invazion, formed to release a music series calledMadlib Medicine Show.[13] The series would ultimately take over two years to complete, culminating with 13 album releases and several vinyl-only EPs spanning hip hop, jazz, remixes, and multi-genre DJ mixtapes. The label has continued to release records outside of the original series. In 2011, Madlib composed thefilm score for theA Tribe Called Quest documentary filmBeats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest.[14] Madlib also produced "Cadillacs" withSnoop Dogg for his mixtapeThat's My Work Volume 3, released on February 27, 2014.[15]
Freddie Gibbs and Madlib announced plans for a collaboration album late in 2011 with the release of an EP titledThuggin, which was followed by a second EP titledShame on June 22, 2012, and a third EP titledDeeper on September 24, 2013. The duo's full-length collaboration albumPiñata was released on March 18, 2014, to widespread critical acclaim. The pair, later known asMadGibbs, released a follow-up album titledBandana on June 28, 2019.
In a 2010 interview withLA Weekly, Madlib stated thatKanye West put five of his beats on hold for the album he was working on at the time.[16] While none of the beats were used, Madlib did take part in the recording sessions for the album, which evolved fromGood Ass Job toMy Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.[17] He was also rumored to be involved in West's collaboration album withJay-Z entitledWatch the Throne, but ultimately was not.[18] West was interviewed as part of the 2014 Stones Throw documentary filmOur Vinyl Weighs A Ton, in which he opens up about working with Madlib and wanting more of his beats for future projects.[19]
On January 18, 2016, West released the Madlib-produced "No More Parties in L.A." featuringKendrick Lamar onSoundCloud as part of hisGOOD Fridays series.[20] According to reports, the track originated from the recording sessions forMy Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy in 2010.[21] West also recited a few lines from the track in theOur Vinyl Weighs A Ton interview.[19] "No More Parties in LA" appears on his seventh album, which underwent several name changes:So Help Me God,SWISH, andWaves, before finally being released asThe Life of Pablo on February 12, 2016. West also hinted at the possibility of future collaborations with Madlib viaTwitter thanking him for sending over six beat CDs.[22]
FollowingMac Miller's death, Chicago producer Thelonious Martin claimed on February 20, 2019, that Mac Miller and Madlib were reportedly working on an album together, called MacLib.[23][24] Madlib addressed this statement on March 19, 2019, stating that he had recorded an EP with Mac Miller between 2015 and 2017, but that there were no plans of releasing the EP.[25] However, Madlib added during an interview on June 3, 2019, that if Mac Miller's estate gives him the right to, he will release the EP.[26] On February 8, 2020, a MacLib song was leaked.[27] On March 28, 2023, Madlib revealed in an interview onSway in the Morning that he was "finishing up" his collaborative effort with the late Miller, and that the rapper's estate was on board with a release.[28]
In January 2021, in an interview with The Guardian, Madlib revealed he missed the opportunity to join forces with Kendrick Lamar on his 2015 album,To Pimp a Butterfly.[29]
On April 23, 2021, fellow rapperLogic released "Mars Only pt. 3," a collaboration between him and Madlib, on his YouTube channel under the name Madgic.[30]
Madlib's beatmaking style makes extensive use ofsamples from various musical sources, both obscure and well-known.Uncut called him a master of the "lost art" ofsampledelia.[31] During an interview onChrome Children, Madlib stated that his most significant musical influences includeMiles Davis,Sun Ra, andDavid Axelrod.
On his song "Jazz Cats, Part 1" from his albumThe Unseen (2000), he gave an extensive overview of his jazz influences. Aside from Davis and Ra who are noted earlier, he namedGeorge Benson,Hampton Hawes,Steve Kuhn,George Cables,Cedar Walton,Herbie Hancock,Gene Harris andthe Three Sounds,Bobby Hutcherson,Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers,Horace Silver,Bill Evans,Terry Gibbs,Gary Burton,Donald Byrd,George Duke,Lee Morgan,Shirley Scott,Groove Holmes,Jimmy Smith,Gene Russell,the Art Ensemble of Chicago,Michael White,Cal Tjader,Weather Report,Max Roach,Freddie Hubbard,Cannonball Adderley,Eddie Harris,Milt Jackson,Ron Carter,Rahsaan Roland Kirk,William Fisher,John Coltrane,Gary Bartz,Kool & the Gang,Modern Jazz Quartet,Johnny Hammond,Carl Saunders,Paul Bley,Thelonious Monk,Norman Connors,Albert Ayler,McCoy Tyner, &Dizzy Gillespie.[32]
Some of his hip hop influences areLarge Professor,Marley Marl,Paul C,DJ Pooh, andDr. Dre.[citation needed]
In January 2025, it was reported that Madlib's home inLos Angeles was burned down during thewildfires affecting the area, with the producer losing "decades of music and equipment" in the process; aDonorboxcrowdfunding campaign was subsequently started to help him and his family.[33][34]
Just these little box machines, like the (Roland SP) 606 and the (Boss SP) 303. I like the 606, 'cause it has a gang of effects on it. I like an MPC too, but these are so easy to just turn on and use... I like to move quickly, and these little boxes are easy to use. I can be up in my hotel room in a different city, and just hook up beats right there. I don't like to spend more than 10 minutes at a time on a beat. I get bored and have to move on to the next thing.
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