Illmind
Encyclopedia
Illmind (born Ramon Ibanga, Jr.) is a Filipino American
hip hop
producer
from Bloomfield, New Jersey
. He participated in Beat Society, competing against well-known acts like Kanye West
and Just Blaze
. Illmind has created music for underground artists such as Little Brother, Boot Camp Clik
, Akrobatik
, Supastition
, and El Da Sensei
. At Sha Money XL
's Money Management production company he has produced tracks for 50 Cent
, Eminem
, Redman, Scarface
, LL Cool J
, Talib Kweli
and others.
In 2005, Illmind collaborated with producer Symbolyc One, releasing an album entitled The Art of OneMind on the BBE
imprint. The album features Wu-Tang Clan
member Ghostface Killah
, Little Brother and several other notable artists. The single from the album was "The Broke Song", featuring Strange Fruit Project
.
In 2006, Illmind produced tracks from Boot Camp Clik
's album The Last Stand
and Kenn Starr
's Starr Status
. He was responsible for "Cardiac" from Sean Price
's 2007 album Jesus Price Superstar and produced four tracks on the 2007 Little Brother album, Getback
. In 2008 he produced on Absolute Value
by Akrobatik
.
Illmind released a mixtape project featuring some of the artists he produced for throughout 2008 entitled Blaps, Rhymes & Life. It was followed by the second volume in early 2009, the third volume in the summer, and the fourth volume in December 2009.
He has been featured in multiple publications, such as Scratch
("Top 20 Best Producers"), Mass Appeal
, The Source
, XXL
, Hiphopgame and Hiphopdx.
In 2008-2010, Illmind taught at the prestigious Tisch School of the Arts at NYU.
Filipino American
Filipino Americans are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipino Americans, often shortened to "Fil-Ams", or "Pinoy",Filipinos in what is now the United States were first documented in the 16th century, with small settlements beginning in the 18th century...
hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
from Bloomfield, New Jersey
Bloomfield, New Jersey
Bloomfield is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 47,315. It surrounds the Bloomfield Green Historic District.-History:...
. He participated in Beat Society, competing against well-known acts like Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
and Just Blaze
Just Blaze
Justin Smith, better known as Just Blaze, is an American hip hop music producer from Paterson, New Jersey. Blaze is also the CEO of Fort Knocks Entertainment. He is most well known for producing Jay-Z songs on the albums The Blueprint, The Blueprint 2, and The Black Album. He is also known for...
. Illmind has created music for underground artists such as Little Brother, Boot Camp Clik
Boot Camp Clik
Boot Camp Clik is an American hip hop supergroup from Brooklyn, New York, which is composed of Buckshot , Smif-N-Wessun, also known as Cocoa Brovaz , Heltah Skeltah and O.G.C....
, Akrobatik
Akrobatik
Akrobatik is a rapper from the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. He has collaborated numerous times with many fellow Boston rappers , and recently formed a hip hop collective named The Perceptionists with Mr. Lif and DJ Fakts One....
, Supastition
Supastition
Supastition is an underground hip hop artist from Greenville, North Carolina, now living in Charlotte. He has worked with rappers like KRS-One, Cunninlynguists, and Little Brother....
, and El Da Sensei
El Da Sensei
El Da Sensei is an American rapper from Newark, New Jersey. During the 1990s he was a member of the influential hip hop duo, Artifacts.Since then he has released several solo albums to critical acclaim.-Discography:...
. At Sha Money XL
Sha Money XL
-Dream Big Ventures:With Distribution from The Orchard, Sha Money founded a new record label, Dream Big Ventures. Quickly upon its creation, Sha Money signed close Shady/Aftermath/G-Unit affiliates DJ Whoo Kid and Stat Quo, as well as former Young Money artist, Kidd Kidd. Sha is currently trying to...
's Money Management production company he has produced tracks for 50 Cent
50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...
, Eminem
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
, Redman, Scarface
Scarface (rapper)
Brad Terrence Jordan , better known by his stage name Scarface, is an American rapper, and recording artist from Houston, Texas and a member of the Geto Boys. He is originally from South Park, Houston.-Life and career:...
, LL Cool J
LL Cool J
James Todd Smith , better known as LL Cool J , is an American rapper, entrepreneur, and actor...
, Talib Kweli
Talib Kweli
Talib Kweli Greene , better known as Talib Kweli, is an American hip-hop artist and poet from Brooklyn, New York. His first name in Arabic means "student" or "seeker" ; his in Swahili means "true"...
and others.
In 2005, Illmind collaborated with producer Symbolyc One, releasing an album entitled The Art of OneMind on the BBE
Barely Breaking Even
Barely Breaking Even is a British record label started by two DJs, Peter Adarkwah and Ben Jolly. The name BBE comes from The Universal Robot Band's 1982 track `Barely Breaking Even'. It has two sublabels: Deep Funk, and Urban Theory...
imprint. The album features Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
member Ghostface Killah
Ghostface Killah
Dennis Coles , better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and prominent member of the Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of Enter the Wu-Tang , the members went on to pursue solo careers to varying levels of success...
, Little Brother and several other notable artists. The single from the album was "The Broke Song", featuring Strange Fruit Project
Strange Fruit Project
Strange Fruit Project is an underground hip hop group from Waco, Texas, which consists of producer and emcee Symbolyc One , his cousin emcee Myth and emcee Myone...
.
In 2006, Illmind produced tracks from Boot Camp Clik
Boot Camp Clik
Boot Camp Clik is an American hip hop supergroup from Brooklyn, New York, which is composed of Buckshot , Smif-N-Wessun, also known as Cocoa Brovaz , Heltah Skeltah and O.G.C....
's album The Last Stand
The Last Stand
The Last Stand is the third group album from Hip Hop collective Boot Camp Clik, released on July 18, 2006. The group consists of Black Moon's Buckshot, Smif-N-Wessun's Tek and Steele, Heltah Skeltah's Rock and Sean Price, and O.G.C.'s Starang Wondah, Louieville Sluggah and Top Dog. The album marks...
and Kenn Starr
Kenn Starr
Kenn Starr may refer to:*Kenneth Starr, American lawyer*Kenn Starr , American rapper...
's Starr Status
Starr Status
Starr Status is the debut album by rapper Kenn Starr, released August 29, 2006 on Halftooth Records. The album features production from Starr's fellow Low Budget Crew members Kev Brown and Oddisee, as well as Illmind, Khrysis and DJ Roddy Rod. Album guests include Talib Kweli, Asheru, Supastition,...
. He was responsible for "Cardiac" from Sean Price
Sean Price
Sean Price is an American rapper and member of the hip hop supergroups Boot Camp Clik and Random Axe. He came to fame as one-half of the duo Heltah Skeltah, performing under the name Ruckus, or in short Ruck, along with partner Rock. He also is featured in the video game NBA 2K11 as a playable...
's 2007 album Jesus Price Superstar and produced four tracks on the 2007 Little Brother album, Getback
Getback
Getback is the third studio album from Little Brother, released on October 23, 2007. On October 12, Phonte leaked the album himself to Okayplayer.com-Details:...
. In 2008 he produced on Absolute Value
Absolute Value (album)
Absolute Value is the second full-length album by Boston rapper Akrobatik. It was released on February 19, 2008 by Fat Beats Records. The album features guest appearances by hip-hop luminaries such as Talib Kweli, Chuck D, and B-Real, as well as production by the likes of 9th Wonder, Illmind, J...
by Akrobatik
Akrobatik
Akrobatik is a rapper from the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. He has collaborated numerous times with many fellow Boston rappers , and recently formed a hip hop collective named The Perceptionists with Mr. Lif and DJ Fakts One....
.
Illmind released a mixtape project featuring some of the artists he produced for throughout 2008 entitled Blaps, Rhymes & Life. It was followed by the second volume in early 2009, the third volume in the summer, and the fourth volume in December 2009.
He has been featured in multiple publications, such as Scratch
Scratch (magazine)
Scratch was a magazine about the art of creating hip-hop. It featured articles regarding producers, musicians and DJs that make beats for rap records, and details the secret methods, stories, partnerships, philosophies and equipment behind the music...
("Top 20 Best Producers"), Mass Appeal
Mass Appeal Magazine
Mass Appeal was a Brooklyn based bi-monthly urban lifestyle magazine. The magazine began as a graffiti fan zine in 1996 and grew to become a sprawling urban trendsetter mag covering a wide variety of topics ranging from graffiti culture, hip hop music, and streetwear to skateboarding, video games,...
, The Source
The Source (magazine)
The Source is a United States-based, monthly full-color magazine covering hip-hop music, politics, and culture, founded in 1988. It is the world's second longest running rap periodical, behind United Kingdom-based publication Hip Hop Connection. The Source was founded as a newsletter in 1988...
, XXL
XXL (magazine)
XXL is a Hip-Hop magazine, published by Harris Publications.In 1997, XXL was founded by former Source staffers as well as other Harris Publication employees, who wanted to create their own magazine about the hip-hop music and culture using the model developed by the founders of The Source...
, Hiphopgame and Hiphopdx.
In 2008-2010, Illmind taught at the prestigious Tisch School of the Arts at NYU.
Sources
- Illmind in Scheme
- Illmind in prefixmag
- Illmind in the NYT
- Illmind in Akrobatik review in Seattle Post Intelligencer blog