Legendary producer Ski Beatz is responsible for some of the most influential and instantly recognizable hip-hop beats of all time. As part of our ongoing Off the Record series, we caught up with the storied beatsmith to discuss a variety of topics – ranging from his early days as an emcee with Original Flavor – to the fateful introduction to Jay-Z which was a moment that would inevitably shift the North Carolina native from double duty to strictly a producer of classics.

via LRG