DJ Premier Says Canibus Was One Of His Most Difficult Clients

One of Hip Hop's most legendary sound-makers recalls a rookie Canibus claiming Premo couldn't "hear his vision," and how while the pair has worked since, it resulted in a returned check.

Last year, Gang Starr producer/deejay DJ Premier and veteran New York emcee Canibus collaborated on C of Tranquility on the song "Golden Terra of Rap"  While the independent release may have marked the first time music was created together, it is not the first time the pair worked together.

In a recent interview with VladTV, Premo revealed that he and the Jamaican-born, New York-raised lyricist butted heads strongly in the rapper's major label days. "Me and Canibus had a lil' run-in; it was my minor," recalled the multi-platinum producer, and hit-maker for the likes of Jay-Z, Nas and Jeru The Damaja. The song, reportedly titled "Nigganometry," - a title that Canibus would still use on his 1998 debut, Can-I-Bus, was never made. Premier revealed that the musical composition he made would later become a hit single in D'Angelo's "Devil's Pie."

"[Canibus] said, 'I want some heavy, hard bass." Referring back to the beat that would become one of D'Angelo's biggest records, Premier said, "I could hear him [rapping in his own unique style on that]. [After hearing my track], he was like, 'Yo know, I just don't feel like you understand my vision of what I'm tryin' to bring out.' I was like 'Okay [grimacing].' I gave the check back to Universal [Records]. They actually sent me a letter after, that they appreciated that I took it that seriously. Again, I know how to make a record - I been makin' singles [for over 20 years]."

The VladTV interview is below: