DJ Jazzy Jeff is often celebrated for being one of the best behind the turntables, and once again he’s been on the receiving end of some praise from one of his peers.
On Wednesday (June 14), Cormega took to Instagram to call Jeff “one of the greatest DJs of all time,” noting how his time on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air alongside Will Smith may be the reason he doesn’t get enough love for his work on the ones and twos.
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“You may recognize his face from the numerous times Uncle Phil through him out the door. But beneath the surface is something true hip hop people know and knew for years,” Cormega began in his lengthy tribute. “DJ Jazzy Jeff is one of the greatest DJs of all time. At one point he was considered the best. Of course you might be too young to have known. Or you don’t pay attention to the culture because the material thing’s fascinate you more.
He added: “But if you’re a DJ and you don’t study what came before you then you can’t complain when what comes after does the same to you.”
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Cormega then recalled a time he was unable to get in a club that Jeff was playing at because he was too young, but he heard second hand at just how good his DJ skills were. “DJ Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince came to NY to do a show. I believe it was Union Square I was young I wasn’t inside the club but everyone that went in came out talking about how dope Jazzy Jeff is.”
“He did what was known as the transformer scratch that you hear people using today,” he continued, highlighting the DJ technique that Jeff pioneered. “He has many different techniques but I think the success of the show The Fresh Prince overshadowed his notoriety as a DJ. I believe if he was in a group with a rapper that was more of a lyricist and the focus was on the group he’d be more far more acknowledged for the innovator and great DJ he is. Salute to DJ Jazzy Jeff.”
“Thank you, my Brother! Truly humbled,” Jeff wrote in the comments. The following day, he reposted the tribute on his page and added prayer hands in the caption.
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Cormega has been giving his peers their flowers more often as of late. Earlier this month, the New York-bred lyricist saluted Krayzie Bone, Layzie Bone, Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone and Flesh-N-Bone, dubbing Bone Thugs-N-Harmony “one of the most unique rap groups ever.”
“Before Eazy E left this world he gave us a reminder of his savvy as a music executive. Bone Thugs N Harmony was and is one of the most unique rap groups ever,” Cormega captioned a photograph of the group minus Flesh, who was likely incarcerated at the time it was taken. “They harmonize like a choir while simultaneously lyrically staying aligned with rap group precision and verbally switching tempos perfectly.”
Cormega then turned his attention to two of the group’s biggest songs, “1st of tha Month” and “Tha Crossroads,” explaining how the emotion in the latter has never been topped by anyone to this day.
Elsewhere in the post, he pointed out how Bone Thugs are the only group to collaborate with both 2Pac and The Notorious B.I.G. prior to their deaths, before declaring the Cleveland group “future Hall Of Famers.”
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In May, Cormega expressed how he believes Gang Starr are overlooked, despite their achievements and what they’ve brought to the game.
“I have a question? How is a group with one of the most innovative lyricist and a prolific producer who is on the Mount Rushmore of production overlooked?” he asked. “I see list mention groups and exclude Gangstarr that is blasphemy. Some people’s opinion blur the lines of reality. Guru is one of a kind.”
