As we brace ourselves for whatever Pete Rock and Kanye West could be cooking up for the next frontier in the Chicago rapper’s career, the internets have liberated a pair of PR’s most coveted works to stream for the first time ever.
By 1995, Pete Rock was one of hip-hop’s most in-demand producers. His success with CL Smooth and (at the time) a fairly recent placement on Nas‘ undisputable classic Illmatic (along with cuts for cousin Heavy D, The Main Source, Redman and the gamut of beloved emcees from the nineties’ aughts) landed him with his own imprint. Two albums produced entirely by Pete Rock, InI‘s Center of Attention and Deda‘s The Original Baby Pa, were initially slated for release via Soul Brother Records, but were shelved after a distribution deal with Elektra fell through.
Later they’d be officially released (though, apparently without the producer’s blessing) on Lost & Found: Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics in 2003. Now they’re available to hear in the cloud and feed your nostalgic hunger. Stream both down below and jump back to hear Pete Rock’s collaborative record with Smoke DZA, Don’t Smoke Rock.
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