Kevin McKenzie (born July 25, 1971),^[1] professionally known as K-Cut, is a Canadian record producer and DJ, most notably as a member of East Coast hip hop group Main Source.

Early life and family

Born in Toronto to a Jamaican father and an Afro-Guyanese mother, Sandra McKenzie, K-Cut's family moved to Queens, New York City, when he was a child.^[2][1] He and his brother Sir Scratch (Shawn McKenzie) were both DJs and attended John Bowne High School in Flushing, Queens, where K-Cut met future group member Large Professor.^[3][4] His mother was very supportive of her sons' aspiring hip hop careers, funding their studio time and becoming the manager of their group Main Source.^[1][3]

K-Cut is the cousin of fellow producer Rashad Smith, as well as musician Eddy Grant.^[4][2] His maternal grandfather was a Toronto-based soul/disco singer in the 1970s.^[1][3]

Career

In 1989, Main Source released their first independent 12" single, "Think" b/w "Atom", under the mentorship of producer/engineer Paul C.^[1][3] On July 17, 1989, Paul C was murdered in his home; K-Cut later stated that Main Source "basically inherited Paul C's style" and strove to "carry the torch" of his sound going forward.^[2] During this period, K-Cut helped teach DJ Premier sampling techniques on the E-mu SP-1200.^[5][1][4] After self-releasing their second 12" single "Watch Roger Do His Thing" in 1990, the group signed to Wild Pitch Records.^[3]

In 1991, the group released their debut album, Breaking Atoms, which is regarded as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time.^[1][3] Although Large Professor produced the majority of the album, K-Cut was praised for his "creative, energetic scratching", particularly on the track "Peace Is Not the Word to Play", which he produced.^[6][3] Also that year, K-Cut's production appeared on Queen Latifah's album Nature of a Sista', and he produced the bulk of The Black Tie Affair, an album by Toronto rapper Maestro Fresh Wes, which was certified gold in Canada.^[7][2]

The following year, K-Cut produced the Main Source single "Fakin' the Funk", which appeared on the White Men Can't Rap soundtrack and peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart.^[3][8] In 1993, he produced the Fu-Schnickens single "What's Up Doc? (Can We Rock)", featuring Shaquille O'Neal, which peaked at number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified gold in the United States.^[9][10] That year, Large Professor left Main Source due to business differences, with K-Cut taking over as the main producer for their 1994 album Fuck What You Think.^[4][2] The album's single, "What You Need", was sampled for Madonna's 1995 worldwide hit "Human Nature", which credits K-Cut as a songwriter.^[11]

By the late 1990s, K-Cut moved back to Toronto, further contributing his production to the city's hip hop scene.^[1][2] In 1997, he produced the Infinite single "Gotta Get Mine" (featuring Divine Brown) and contributed to Citizen Kane's EP The Epic, both of which were nominated for a Juno Award for Best Rap Recording.^[2][12] He also produced two tracks for Choclair's 1999 debut Ice Cold, which won the aforementioned Juno Award.^[2][12]

In the early 2000s, K-Cut mentored a young Toronto producer named Watts.^[13]

As of 2016, he served as the touring DJ for Canadian singer Kiki Rowe.^[1]

Musical style

K-Cut drew inspiration from the reggae music in his grandparents' record collection.^[14] When producing music, he visualizes an artist performing over the beat, before presenting the beat to said artist; one such instance was when he produced "How We Roll '98" for Big Pun.^[14]

References