The Legend of Mike Dean
The producer is one of the most critical yet anonymous figures/roles in not just hip hop, but music in general. Although these unsung heroes rarely get the opportunity to bask in the limelight, without their genius we wouldn't be able to enjoy the songs we all know and love. As under-heralded artists, producers make the magic happen behind the scenes and they more often than not spend most of their time in the studio. To stay relevant, record producers are challenged to find ways to make their music sound fresh and must keep up with the times with the ever-growing technology in the music industry.
The legendary Mike Dean is a hip hop record producer, audio engineer, multi-instrumentalist, and blunt connoisseur (smokes roughly 10 a day when he's working) that embodies a musical genius. The veteran producer has not only survived, but has helped innovate numerous trends and changes in tastes in hip hop. A Houston native, Dean is most popularly known today for recording and mixing songs for major artists in the hip hop industry including Kanye West, Jay-Z, 2Pac, Beyoncé, Nas, Travis Scott, 2 Chainz, Migos, and many others. As a central producer for The Geto Boys, Dean played a vital role in pioneering the sound of Dirty South rap that still resonates in the genre but has also worked on contemporary and forward leaning releases by the likes of The Weeknd and Kid Cudi. The diversity of his accomplishments and array of artists he has worked with is simply incredible.
As early as 1983, Mike Dean started collaborating with numerous Texan artists most notably Selena, for whom Dean served as musical director and producer. He worked with Selena since she was about 8 until she turned 13 and even taught Selena how to properly sing in tune. Dean first became widely known for developing the bones of the Dirty South sound in the 1990s, particularly in collaboration with artists from Rap-A-Lot Records such as Scarface and UGK. Dean went on to mix, produce, and master hip hop music for artists from all around the country.
In the 2000s, Dean became most notably known for his work with Kanye West. After initially contributing to the mixing of Kanye's albums The College Dropout (2004) and Late Registration (2005), Dean's recognition skyrocketed as he began to contribute as producer on every Kanye West album since Graduation (2007). He also co-produced, Watch the Throne (2011), the collaborative album by Jay-Z and Kanye West. Dean served as an additional producer on "Mercy" and "Higher" on GOOD Music's 2012 compilation album Cruel Summer. Dean made heavy contributions on Kanye's latest albums The Life of Pablo (2016) and Ye (2018), earning producing and writing credits on the majority of the tracklist. He has said that he and West are like a band.
What makes Mike Dean a genius producer is his master ability to implement his own instrumentation over hip hop production. Mike Dean can play guitar, bass, cello, piano, and keyboard all extremely well.
On using live instruments in production he says, "Starting with a live instrument is the key to making it work. It makes it more authentic than something made completely on a computer. There's nothing like a real piano. No fake piano will sound like a real piano. It has an emotion to it when you play it. It vibrates, it makes you feel things, as opposed to a keyboard that plugs into a computer:' He went on to say, "Find something that's really vibrating as opposed to coming from speakers on a computer:' He has served as a regular guitarist and keyboardist for both Kanye West and Travis Scott on numerous studio albums and on tour in live performances as well. Songs in which his masterful guitar solos and classical piano chords are highlighted are "Devil in a New Dress" by Kanye West, "Piss on Your Grave" by Travis Scott, and "3500" by Travis Scott.
In recent years, Dean has been a frequent collaborator with Madonna and Travis Scott respectively. Dean's production has been credited on every one of Scott's projects from Owl Pharaoh (2013) to Astroworld (2018). In 2016, Dean mastered Frank Ocean's Blonde, as well as Ocean's visual album Endless. He also wrote and produced tracks on Desiigner's mixtape New English, and produced Desiigner's hit single "Timmy Turner”.
With over 25 years of experience under his belt, in 2017 Dean launched his record label, M.W.A. On why he decided to finally launch a record label after being in the industry for many years, Dean responded, "Just a lot of new young artists that've been asking to get down with me and have me work on their projects and help them get deals. I figured I'd start a label and sign some new acts. Seems like a good time to start it. I got a studio out here in Los Angeles and I'm able to meet a lot of new artists:' M.W.A is what Dean calls himself when he DJs and has claimed that it stands for Mexican Wrestling Association. On what M.W.A means to him, Dean said, "It's something that I've done with the merch, so I just figured I'd keep the name going:' The first artist he signed to M.W.A. was Dice Soho, a budding Houston rapper Dean believes will be the next wave out of Houston.
