DJ Toomp: The Last Laugh

interview Maurice Garland | photography Zach Wolfe

From pumping bass to laying the trap, veteran producer DJ Toomp has ushered Atlanta hip-hop through the ages. Ha-ha! You can’t tell him nothin’.

Peering down from his plush new high-rise condominium, Aldrin “DJ Toomp” Davis is still watching over the city he helped build. After two decades dedicated to Atlanta’s hip-hop underground, there’s no doubt that the 37-year-old DJ-turned-hitmaker has made an indelible mark on his hometown. His tiny studio in the SWATS that served him well for so many years has been abandoned for plusher digs on the West Side, and he now calls the ritzy Buckhead district his home. But what Toomp’s clearly enjoying the most about success is the fact that he can say, “I’m the one that cranked up this hip-hop shit in Atlanta.”

Before Toomp was producing Grammy-winning tracks for T.I. (“What You Know”) or Pontiac commercials for Ludacris (“Two Miles An Hour”), he was making dance tapes for childhood friends (and future Organized Noize founders) Rico Wade and Sleepy Brown in the mid-’80s. Before he was landing Young Jeezy singles (“I Luv It”) and creating Atlanta’s trap sound, he was pushing the bass music movement with MC Shy-D, Bust Down and Luke Skyywalker. Before he had new jacks blowing up his phone for beats, Toomp was getting placements on the New Jack City soundtrack (2 Live Crew’s “In The Dust”).

Now, just like Gee Money put Nino Brown up on the new dope, Toomp plans on doing the same in the rap game. While he jump starts his own production team Zone Boy, he’s achieved what may be the biggest coup of his career yet: co-producing three tracks on Kanye West’s latest album Graduation, including the synth-loaded lead single “Can’t Tell Me Nothing.” With more heat on the way from Busta Rhymes, Slim Thug, Missy Elliott, Hot Dollar and Rick Ross, the veteran stopped for a minute to stay cool, calm and collected.

SCRATCH Your hip-hop roots pre-date being a producer. How did you get your start?

DJ Toomp I’ve been an entrepreneur since I was 14 years old. DJing, selling candy, making mixtapes. My tapes was just a lot of mixing and scratching. I was mixing stuff like “Planet Rock,” “King of the Beats,” “Captain Rock.” I was in the DJ era of ’82 to ’90. It was around ’90 when I got serious about production; I’d been producing since ’85, ’86 though.

Atlanta’s everywhere now. What was it like back when you were DJing?

We had a whole lot of dancing groups. Sleepy Brown and Rico Wade used to be in a dance group named Guess, DJ Will was in a crew called APR. Dancing groups were all over the place. Even when Beat Street came out, people wanted to wear Lee jeans and Gazelles. But we took what we saw and put our Southern flavor on it. Just being exposed to that kind of stuff, I was a smart dude and could zoom in on something and learn it. Like the first time I heard some mixing and scratching, I had to have someone put me up on it. I was just getting by on using a two track and a pause button, but still getting the job done.

You’re about to turn 38. In hip-hop, that’s O.G. status. What’s going on today that you don’t care for?

One of the things that upsets me about hip-hop is that a lot of people in the movement now don’t do their history. After a certain age, hip-hop kinda kicks you out. That’s why I say, if I wasn’t producing, I’d be breaking my neck to get an A&R position. After you’re past 32, they look at you like, Okay, you an O.G.—you gotta go. That’s why I’m glad I’m a producer.

When you’re working with younger artists, do you ever run into an age barrier?

I keep a cool bridge with all of the newer artists coming out, but I’m still selective about who I work with. I understand the young movements, but I don’t always see where I can play a part. You can’t always force two elements together. Everybody thought when you put Dr. Dre and Rakim together, it was gonna be the shit. So I’m very selective about who I work with. Because all of it ain’t talent, some of them just hit a lick.

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This is only a preview! To read the full interview with DJ TOOMP, including his reasons for not being on T.I.’s new album, pick up the SEPT/OCT issue of Scratch, on stands NOW!

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