I started DJing for Kanye in 2004, and by 2005 I was spending most of my time on the road with him and his boys, seeing them more than my own family and friends. That was the year of the Touch The Sky tour, a sort of golden era in the history of Kanye touring. GLC and I became good friends pretty quickly, mostly on the strength of jokes and eventually discovering a common love for Project Pat album cuts. When it came to his own music, he was very driven, often recording freestyles in hotel rooms with his own mic and MBox. He just needed a bit of guidance, like most budding artists. We decided to work on a mixtape together. I would go to LA during downtime between tours (he moved there from Chicago) and after a couple of trips we had enough material to for this CD.

I still have fond memories of those trips. This was my first real experience coaching a rapper and doing artist development, which would turn into valuable lessons for my work with Kid Sister and Fool’s Gold down the line. We recorded a grip of songs and freestyles, and I remember Kanye gave me advice on which ones to scrap. But what makes this mixtape unique, in my opinion, is the skits. GLC is hysterical and I never stopped cracking up while recording those prank calls (they’re real) and the notorious “Ain’t It Mayne” competition. In fact once you listen you’ll probably want to start following Tator Chip on twitter: @TatorChipPimps.

The kitchen was also an important theme in those recording sessions, for two reasons. First, GLC cooked a lot and although his cooking technique was different than, say, my mom’s (butter in a spray, Foreman grill), the results were tasty. The second reason is that when we weren’t eating I had my turntables set up on the kitchen counters and that’s where I recorded all the scratches.

Once the music was wrapped we did a photo shoot on a tour stop in Detroit, and by the time the artwork was done and the CDs were pressed up it was early 2006.

Now, 4 years later, here it is for your listening pleasure. Download here or in the “Downloads” section.

Tracklist after the jump.

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