Marlon Williams (born September 30, 1962 in Queens, New York City), better known as Marley Marl, is an influential hip-hop producer. He was the house producer of The Juice Crew, which, in addition to Marley Marl himself, included: Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Roxanne Shanté, Kool G Rap, MC Shan (his cousin) and Masta Ace, and produced songs for outside artists including King Tee and LL Cool J.
He was also an important figure in the careers of Eric B. & Rakim, as he engineered & mixed their first hits, “My Melody” and “Eric B Is President”. Marley Marl was one of the pioneers of sampling in hip-hop. He debuted as an electro producer, but his records became more sample-heavy, as can be seen by comparing the MC Shan LPs Down By Law (1987) and Born To Be Wild (1988). The rhythms became less electronic, with drum machines becoming less prominent. Marl started his career working for Tuff City Records. He debuted with his own track called “DJ Cuttin” in 1985, released under the pseudonym NYC Cutter. In 1994, Marley Marl was referenced on Biggie Smalls’ track “Juicy” as being one of his early influences. |
