Though Milwaukee producer Klassik makes hip-hop, those 10 years he spent studying jazz (some of them under saxophonist Berkley Fudge) haven't gone to waste. Variegated jazz chord progressions run through Klassik's compositions, which he works out on piano before converting to MIDI beats.
“To this day, I still think that pure jazz is the best music, because that's what I spent most of my life listening to,” Klassik says. “More and more we're hearing its influence in mainstream R&B and hip-hop. Nobody wants straight, simple beats anymore; they're using more creative chord progressions.”
With his fluid, lustrous beats, the Milwaukee High School of the Arts graduate has emerged as one of the city's most distinct young producers. He composed the bold, start-stop groove for Frankie Flower's single “Koolness,” as well as the entirety of this spring's promising debut EP from rapper¡OYE!.
On Klassik's own debut EP, Death of a Beatmaker, he branches out beyond producing, showcasing himself as a rapper and singer, a transition he knows invites comparisons to Kanye West. Klassik raps in a similar range as West, and shares West's recent fascination with electronic music (he cites Daft Punk, Mark Ronson and Chromeo as influences), though unlike West his beats are built from scratch, sans sampling.
Death of a Beatmaker is brief but memorable, updating the smooth tones of '90s hip-hop with digital textures and brainy compositional twists. It is available for free streaming and download at Klassik's Bandcamp site.
