Damizza: Doing What I Love

Damizza, the founder of Baby Ree Records, has been a fixture in the Los Angeles music scene for over a decade. He's worked with Mariah Carey and Keb' Mo, and done beats for Ice Cube and Snoop, not to mention for some time was the Program Director for the city's biggest hip-hop station, Power 106, before moving on to focus on music.

Ballerstatus.com had the chance to speak with him over the weekend and talk to him about his production company, the thrill of producing, and the ever-challenging search for the next big thing.

BallerStatus.com: Let's talk about Baby Ree Records.

Damizza: It's named after my grandma. 1997 was the first year that we started doing stuff commercially though, that's when we did Mariah Carey's "I Still Believe" with Krayzie Bone and Da Brat. That led to doing more production for everyone from Snoop Dogg to Ice Cube and West Side Connection.

It's more of a production company than a record label. There's a song out with TQ right now, who just put out "Paradise," and a song I just did with him and Lil Wayne that is going on his album. The label's an independent label that's diversified. We have the LA Blues Alliance, which has Stanley Barren, Keb' Mo -- who's the biggest name in blues. We've had twelve records at radio in 2007. There are a lot of things on the label, I mean, damn. There's no end.

BallerStatus.com: Do you come with a different psyche when you work with Snoop or Mariah or Ice Cube, than when you work with a lesser known artist?

Damizza: I come at everything the same way. I think that's what makes me who I am. I approach everyone and everything the same way. There's no difference for any of it. If I sit down with Mariah or I sit down with Young De or Kurupt, it's the same thing.

BallerStatus.com: You don't save your best stuff for them?

Damizza: I save my best stuff for everybody. I don't play that game. That's an ego game. That's not what I'm about.

BallerStatus.com: You've listed Puff Daddy as an influence. What can you offer on that?

Damizza: I take all of the showboat out of everything. I strip it down to what it is. Look at Quincy Jones, Jermaine Dupri, Dr. Dre, Puff Daddy. You look at them and you go, "Damn, they're great producers." Puffy made a niche for himself. He took a genre in 1997 that wasn't... he took a chance with the sample stuff, and taking the used hooks and adapting the sample thing, and he really helped push hip-hop to a new level with the mainstream. There's no taking away from him what Puffy has done.

He's the first guy to take it to the Hamptons. He's partying with Martha Stewart. What else can be said about it besides, "Damn, he's made it?" And if somebody does that, then all you can do is respect him and bless him for bringing something that was underground and making it accessible for that crowd. Martha Stewart and Donald Trump weren't hanging out with rappers, especially ones who were getting busted for having guns with Jennifer Lopez. God bless him.

BallerStatus.com: Anybody you'd love to work with?

Damizza: There's different phases of artists I would have loved to have worked with. When Mase was doing what he was doing in '97, I would have loved to have been doing that. Aaliyah, rest her soul, I would have loved to have worked with her. I've been blessed enough to where I've worked with just about everybody -- from Korn to Ice Cube. My dream is to work with anybody who has that spark, that lightning in a bottle. I look for that next spark. Like right now, I'm doing stuff with Young De and getting The Unreleased ready. Going through the vault and pulling out all this stuff that I'd forgotten about -- TQ and Krayzie Bone and all this stuff that I had done with them when they were in their peak. It's cool, you know? You get to hang out with legends.

BallerStatus.com: What's it like working with Korn?

Damizza: Working with an entity like that, it's a big show. Big management, you know, it's big. But when it got down to the basics of it, you know, it was awesome. Cool people, cool things. I love the song "Word Up." They flipped it, and we did something crazy with it. It's kinda like working with Disney. I did something with Disney, and it's a big machine, but it's cool people when you get down to it. Look at EA Games. I did "Madden" with Bishop [Lamont] and "NBA Live" with Butch [Cassidy]. The people over at EA are awesome. It's like a huge corporation, but a mom and pop shop at the same time.

BallerStatus.com: It's just music.

Damizza: Exactly.

BallerStatus.com: Do you have any thoughts on the polarization of West Coast hip-hop, how a city like L.A. can produce the G-Funk sound and a sound like The Pharcyde's?

Damizza: It's almost like saying, "What's the difference in the city that brought you Dr. Dre and the city that brought you Korn?" It's L.A., period. It's a melting pot. L.A. is an interesting place. It's where people go to become famous, and it grows stars. The polarization is what it is. That's what makes L.A., L.A. That's why going back to your earlier question -- there isn't any saving anything for anything. It's what walks through the door. I didn't know that Young De was one of the most talented MCs that I've ever met in my life until he walked through the door. I didn't know that Bishop Lamont was one of the most talented MCs until he walked through the door. I didn't know that with Krayzie Bone. Well, I did know that with Krayzie Bone. But until you get in the studio and see what he's about, you don't know the technique to it.

BallerStatus.com: "Girlfriend" is your latest single out, and it's driven by a guitar-fused riff. What can you make of the new trend of putting guitars in hip-hop?

Damizza: I've always used guitars. Whether it be with Nate Dogg or Mariah, they're always there -- just in different works. We were sitting at Terry Reid's (famous English rocker) house, and Jared and I are sitting there by Terry's pool. And Jared picks up one of Terry's guitars and he does the [sings riff], and I go, "what was that?" And he starts singing, "I was chillin' -- by the pool." And I was like, "Wait a minute. Hold up." We were just sitting around at Terry's house, enjoying life and being in Palm Springs, and just spending time with a legend.

BallerStatus.com: Is Nate Dogg the best hook man of all-time?

Damizza: I wouldn't say he's one of the best hook men of all-time. I'd say he's one of the best artists of all-time. Look what he's done. He did "Ain't No Fun," and it was a hit. I think he's one of the best artists in a world. Classifying artists and putting them in a box ain't my bag. I think he's a great writer and I think he's a great performer. I think he's understated when it comes to albums. The stuff that he does on his own, I think he hasn't grown into that yet. I think he is the greatest hook man of our generation. I think Bishop's there too. Now there's Akon and T-Pain, but Nate Dogg started it all. And he's a hell of a guy to work with. He's freakin' hilarious.

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