David Anthony Willis, known professionally as Ski Beatz, is an American
record producer
A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...
from
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...
, mainly working in hip hop.
Biography
Discovered by DJ Clark Kent,Ski Beatz Speaks: The Exclusive Interview /ref> Ski was originally known as "MC Will-Ski" in the late 1980s. He began his recording career as one third of
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia a ...
's first hip hop groups ''The Bizzie Boyz'', alongside Mixmasta "D", Darius Owens as also from NC. Fanatic and dancers Move & Groove. In the early 1990s, Ski moved to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
and was a member of the group Original Flavor, the first group managed by future recording industry executive
Damon Dash
Damon Anthony Dash (born May 3, 1971) is an American entrepreneur and record executive. Dash is best known as co-founder of Roc-A-Fella along with Jay-Z and Kareem Burke.
Early life
Born in New York City, Dash swept the floors of a local ba ...
. In the mid-90s, Ski was working on duo Camp Lo's debut album '' Uptown Saturday Night'' when Dash called him in to work on the debut album of his own artist, Jay-Z. Jay's album, ''
Reasonable Doubt
Beyond a reasonable doubt is a legal standard of proof required to validate a criminal conviction in most adversarial legal systems. It is a higher standard of proof than the balance of probabilities standard commonly used in civil cases, be ...
'', was released in 1996, marking Ski's first major production placement. Ski produced four tracks off the album, including the singles " Dead Presidents" and " Feelin' It".
After the critical success of ''Reasonable Doubt'', Ski formed Roc-A-Blok Productions in affiliation with Jay and Dame's label,
Roc-A-Fella Records
Roc-A-Fella Records was an American hip hop record label and music management company founded by record executives and entrepreneurs Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, Damon "Dame" Dash, and Kareem "Biggs" Burke in 1994.
History
1994–2000: Formation ...
, working with Camp Lo and Sporty Thievz. The producer crafted most of Camp Lo's debut, which dropped in 1997, and produced the
Fat Joe
Joseph Antonio Cartagena (born August 19, 1970), better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper from New York City. He began his music career as a member of hip hop group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.), then forged a so ...
single "John Blaze"; Ski continued to work with Jay-Z, on his second album '' In My Lifetime, Vol. 1'' as well as non-solo albums and compilation projects, until 1998, when Jay released his third project '' Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life'' without beats from any of his former producers except for
DJ Premier
Christopher Edward Martin (born March 21, 1966), known professionally as DJ Premier (also known as Preemo), is an American record producer and DJ. He is considered one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time. He was half of the hip hop du ...
.
Though Roc-A-Blok Productions had since folded, Ski stayed somewhat active in music. Relocating to his home state of
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia a ...
for a break from
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
's fast-paced lifestyle, he continued producing for artists such as
Nature
Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans ar ...
, members of the
New Jersey
New Jersey is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York (state), New York; on the ea ...
crew The Outsidaz,
Lil' Kim
Kimberly Denise Jones (born July 11, 1974), Those giving 1974 include:
*
*
*
*
* better known by her stage name Lil' Kim, is an American rapper and reality television personality. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, she lived much of he ...
Ras Kass
John R. Austin II (born September 26, 1973), better known by his stage name Ras Kass, is an American rapper. He is a member of the hip hop supergroup The HRSMN, along with Canibus, Killah Priest, and Kurupt in 2014. He is also a member of the ...
and Proof. The producer has continued to produce for Camp Lo, providing most of the production for their second album ''Let's Do it Again'', as well as their third album, ''Black Hollywood''.
Recently, Ski linked back up with Dame Dash, joining the entrepreneur's DD172 collective, subsequently nicknamed the 24-Hour Karate School. Since the foundation of the studio enclave, Ski has worked with
Mos Def
Yasiin Bey (; born Dante Terrell Smith, December 11, 1973), previously and more commonly known by his stage name Mos Def (), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. His hip hop career began in 1994, alongside his siblings in the s ...
,
Jay Electronica
Elpadaro F. Electronica Allah (born Timothy Elpadaro Thedford; September 19, 1976), known professionally as Jay Electronica (stylized as J A Y E L E C T R O N I C A), is an American rapper and record producer. Born and raised in New Orleans, he ...
,
Jean Grae
Tsidi Ibrahim (born November 26, 1976), known professionally as Jean Grae (formerly What? What?), is an American rapper from Manhattan, New York City. Jean rose in the underground hip hop scene in New York City and has built an international f ...
and others; on April 30, 2010, he announced that he will be producing upcoming albums for Jean Grae,
Joell Ortiz
Joell Christopher Ortiz (born July 6, 1980) is an American rapper and a former member of the group Slaughterhouse. Ortiz grew up in the Cooper Park Houses in the East Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York, formerly signed to Dr. Dre's Aft ...
, Ras Kass and others, and will be producing all but three songs on the rapper
Curren$y
Shante Scott Franklin (born April 4, 1981), better known by his stage name Currensy (often stylized as Curren$y), is an American rapper. In 2011, he founded the label Jet Life Recordings.
Music career
2002–2008: No Limit and Young Mone ...
's 3rd album
Pilot Talk
''Pilot Talk'' is the third studio album by rapper Curren$y. It was released under Damon Dash's DD172 record label division, BluRoc Records.
On July 14, 2012, Ski announced he has secured his own label deal, named "The Fresh Air Fund Music Group".
24 Hour Karate School 2
4 (four) is a number, numeral (linguistics), numeral and numerical digit, digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is tetraphobia, considered unlucky in many East Asian c ...
Discogs
Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...