By the mid-80s, rap music production had fully completed its evolution from being a music based on session musicians replaying grooves from popular disco records to original compositions made by a single producer/DJ. During this time, the drum machine was king and heavyweights like Larry Smith, Rick Rubin, Marley Marl ruled with their explosive, speaker-rattling beats.

In an era when rap music was evolving at breakneck speed, Kingston-born, producer/DJ, Kurtis Mantronik (born Graham Curtis el Khaleel) was the genre’s most fearless experimenter. His production for the group Mantronix as well as Just-Ice and T-La Rock brought a futuristic edge to hip-hop while his revelatory work with the singer Joyce Sims dovetailed with the burgeoning Latin Freestyle movement.

After a long hiatus from the music business, Mantronik reemerged in late 90s with a slew of remixes and an ambitious full-length, I Sing The Body Electro. Today, Mantronik lives and works in South Africa bringing his penchant for experimentation to the realm of electronic dance music. We sat and spoke with him about the techniques and beats that made him a legend.

KEEP GOING OVER AT REVERB