DJ Mark The 45 King, Eminem and JAY-Z Producer, Dead at 62
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The post DJ Mark The 45 King, Eminem and JAY-Z Producer, Dead at 62 appeared first on Consequence.
DJ Mark The 45 King, best known as the producer of classic hits by Eminem, JAY-Z, and Queen Latifah, has died at 62 years old.
The news was first shared on Thursday, October 19th by DJ Premier, who posted a statement on Instagram that the Bronx native had died in the morning — just days after celebrating his birthday. No cause of death has been revealed, but Premier mentioned that The 45 King had recently been in the hospital.
Born Mark Howard James, The 45 King helped form Flavor Unit — a group of rappers and DJs from New York City and Northern New Jersey which counted Queen Latifah, Chill Rob G, Lakim Shabazz, and Apache among its members — in the late 1980s. Latifah signed to Tommy Boy Records in 1989, and featured his production heavily on her debut album, All Hail the Queen, including her breakout hit, “Ladies First.”
After battling drug addiction in the early 1990s, The 45 King resurfaced in 1996 when DJ Kool sampled his “900 Number” breakbeat on the hit “Let Me Clear My Throat,” which The 45 King then remixed. In the next several years, The 45 King produced his most well-known songs: JAY-Z’s mainstream breakout “Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)” and Eminem’s “Stan.”
“His sound was unlike any other from his heavy drums and his horns were so distinct on every production,” DJ Premier wrote in his tribute to The 45 King. “The ‘900 Number’ is a Super Classic, Queen Latifah’s ‘Wrath Of My Madness,’ ‘Ladies First’ w/ Monie Love, Chill Rob G’s ‘Court Is In Session,’ Latee ‘Cuts Got Flavor,’ the Historical Jay-Z hit ‘Hard Knock Life’ and Eminem’s ‘Stan’ to name a few of his catalog will forever ring bells. Beyond that, his vinyl releases of [breakbeats] are beyond any DJ of the 80’s/90’s Era, practically endless.”
Tributes to The 45 King have also poured in from Roc-A-Fella Records co-founder Kareem “Biggs” Burke, Diamond D, Young Guru, Mad Skillz, A-Trak, and more. Check them out below.
Damnnn RIP to Mark The 45 King. An absolute monument in music.
Not only did he make classics like 900 Number, Hard Knock Life, Stan (and a bunch of Queen Latifah joints!), to me his creativity in picking unlikely samples embodied the whole (fun!) spirit of hip hop.
— Good Bunny (@atrak) October 19, 2023
DJ Mark The 45 King, Eminem and JAY-Z Producer, Dead at 62
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