If there was a Mount Rushmore for producers, DJ Premier would surely be one of the faces etched in stone upon it. Over the last three+ decades, Premier has cultivated an impeccable resume and has done so with a wide breadth of collaborators encompassing many different genres. Undoubtedly, he is a true innovator, one who has not only created timeless music, but one that has both shaped and moved the culture forward.
In a career full of milestones, DJ Premier keeps adding new ones, as he was just nominated for a Latin Grammy Award for his collaboration (as a featured artist and producer) “Le Pido A Dios” with Feid and starred in a time-traveling, five-decade spanning commercial with Don Toliver which MTV used to segue-way into the recent VMA’s 50th Hip Hop Anniversary tribute performance.
In 2008, Premier released the first volume of Beats That Collected Dust, which over the years has become a fan favorite due to the series’ personalized nature; these aren’t random instrumentals that are culled together, these are productions that DJ Premier produced specifically for other artists that ended up not being used.
Though it’s been over a decade (Beats That Collected Dust, Vol. 2 was released in 2011) since he released a volume, DJ Premier has now surprise released Beats That Collected Dust, Vol. 3, a brand new installment of beats; each one with its own unique origin story, from who they were initially produced for, to why they ended up collecting “dust.”
“I like unique releases and Beats That Collected Dust is so unique. I also love the process of titling a project. I’ve always been responsible for titling all the projects I produce, and Beats That Collected Dust is so fitting” DJ Premier reveals. “The format is an original tool, just like talk beds, freestyles, writing verses, and just plain listening. I decide when to release these instrumental volumes when they reach the stage of collecting dust. So here we are; Beats That Collected Dust, Vol. 3 is here and vinyl has arrived. These beats are dusty, but they still bang!”