Scott "La Rock" Sterling (March 2, 1962 – August 27, 1987) was the original DJ

Disc jockey

A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...

 of the 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...

 group Boogie Down Productions

Boogie Down Productions

Boogie Down Productions was a hip hop group that was originally composed of KRS-One, D-Nice, and DJ Scott La Rock. DJ Scott La Rock was murdered on August 27, 1987, months after the release of BDP's debut album, Criminal Minded. The name of the group, Boogie Down, derives from a nickname for the...

.
Sterling, a social worker, met rapper KRS-One

KRS-One

Lawrence Krisna Parker , better known by his stage names KRS-One , and Teacha, is an American rapper...

 in 1986 at the Franklin Men's Shelter in the Bronx where KRS lived. The pair, together with DJ D-Nice

D-Nice

D-Nice is the stage name of discjockey, beatboxer, rapper, producer and photographer who began his career in the mid-1980s with the hip hop group Boogie Down Productions.-Career:...

, formed Boogie Down Productions

Boogie Down Productions

Boogie Down Productions was a hip hop group that was originally composed of KRS-One, D-Nice, and DJ Scott La Rock. DJ Scott La Rock was murdered on August 27, 1987, months after the release of BDP's debut album, Criminal Minded. The name of the group, Boogie Down, derives from a nickname for the...

. The group's 1987 debut album, Criminal Minded

Criminal Minded

Criminal Minded by Boogie Down Productions is a highly influential hip hop album. Production on the LP is credited to 'Blastmaster' KRS-One and DJ Scott La Rock , but in interviews it has been revealed that an uncredited Ced-Gee of The Ultramagnetic MCs had a key role in crafting the sound of the...

, is considered a classic of hip-hop.
Born March 2, 1962, in South Ozone Park, Queens, Scott Monroe Sterling was raised far from the grimy scene that he would later help to mold.