Sadat X f/ Diamond D "X-Man" (2000)

Producer: Diamond D

Album: The State of New York vs. Derek Murphy

Label: Relativity

Diamond D: “Dante Ross had a distribution deal with Loud Records. I remember Noah [who A&R’d the record and is also the Complex EIC], but I don’t remember if he worked with Loud or Dante. It was simple though. I played the beat for Sadat, he liked it, and we recorded it.

“When he was alive, James Brown would work with you [if you wanted to sample him] as long as he got his percentage. I never met him though. As a kid, I saw him perform at Madison Square Garden in New York. I liked his music, and my Mom took me there.”