Peanut Butter Wolf is a San Jose legend. As a DJ, producer, archivist and record label owner, his contributions to Bay Area hip-hop loom large — even after a move to Los Angeles to run his label, Stones Throw, which has released undisputed classics from MF Doom, J. Dilla, Madlib and many others. He’s chronicled and reissued more early San Jose rap than anyone, and his own 1998 solo opus My Vinyl Weighs a Ton still goes hard.

Here, Peanut Butter Wolf reminisces on growing up in San Jose in the ’80s and ’90s; the dedication required to discover new hip-hop in those early years; and the serendipitous circumstances of his early collaborations with South Bay rappers. This interview with San Jose’s David Ma (Needle to the Groove Records, Dad Bod Rap Pod) has been edited for length and clarity.

GET THE FUL STORY AT KQED