Main Source

Extremely significant for 1991's Breaking Atoms alone, Main Source's effect on hip-hop is nearly impossible to gauge, especially when considering <a href="spotify:artist:01nVIuD8YZsnFH6x6Cc9rX">Large Professor</a> and K-Cut's contributions outside of the group. Consisting of MC/producer <a href="spotify:artist:01nVIuD8YZsnFH6x6Cc9rX">Large Professor</a> (born <a href="spotify:artist:01nVIuD8YZsnFH6x6Cc9rX">Paul Mitchell</a>) and twin DJs/producers K-Cut (born Kevin McKenzie) and <a href="spotify:artist:5rvP5KtLM6n8xOUDqhmq4i">Sir Scratch</a>, the New York group came together in 1989 and debuted on Wild Pitch with Breaking Atoms -- an undeniably classic album, regardless of its field -- two years later. The group's production work, combined with <a href="spotify:artist:01nVIuD8YZsnFH6x6Cc9rX">Large Professor</a>'s masterful wordplay (from the brilliant baseball analogies drawn throughout the police brutality-themed "Just a Friendly Game of Baseball," to the disheartening romantic strife depicted in "Looking at the Front Door"), set a standard. While <a href="spotify:artist:5cMgGlA1xGyeAB2ctYlRdZ">Gang Starr</a>'s <a href="spotify:artist:6GEykX11lQqp92UVOQQCC7">DJ Premier</a> is commonly heralded as a groundbreaking sampler and beatmaker, it was <a href="spotify:artist:01nVIuD8YZsnFH6x6Cc9rX">Large Professor</a> and K-Cut who schooled him on how to master the SP1200. Not only that, but Breaking Atoms' "Live at the Barbeque" helped establish the careers of both <a href="spotify:artist:3P8PFi9LRirEf3JiEDOHZM">Akinyele</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:20qISvAhX20dpIbOOzGK3q">Nas</a>.

<a href="spotify:artist:01nVIuD8YZsnFH6x6Cc9rX">Large Professor</a> left the group due to financial issues and began to concentrate on production work. K-Cut and <a href="spotify:artist:5rvP5KtLM6n8xOUDqhmq4i">Sir Scratch</a> continued the group and installed MC Mikey D. for 1994's F*ck What You Think. Though it hardly holds a candle to Breaking Atoms (to be fair, it would've been tough to build on that record, even with <a href="spotify:artist:01nVIuD8YZsnFH6x6Cc9rX">Large Professor</a>'s presence), the album was hardly an artistic failure, but it came and went without much notice. Without their greatest weapon, the group's second go-round wasn't given much of a chance. It didn't help that it took three years to reach fruition. Meanwhile, <a href="spotify:artist:01nVIuD8YZsnFH6x6Cc9rX">Large Professor</a> was racking up production credits for <a href="spotify:artist:6jHG1YQkqgojdEzerwvrVv">Eric B. & Rakim</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:3P8PFi9LRirEf3JiEDOHZM">Akinyele</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6O2zJ0tId7g07yzHtX0yap">Mobb Deep</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:20qISvAhX20dpIbOOzGK3q">Nas</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:3fJ60AcIgLzQkVitEvA7uq">Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth</a>. He didn't make his proper solo debut until 2002, with the disappointing 1st Class. ~ Andy Kellman, Rovi