Waajeed

Waajeed
Waajeed performing with PPP at Mighty in San Francisco, March 2009.
Background information
Birth name	Robert O'Bryant
Origin	Detroit, Michigan
Genres	Hip-Hop, Detroit Techno
Occupation(s)	Record producer
Instruments	Keyboard Sampler Drum Machine
Years active	2000-present
Labels	Bling47, Dirt Tech Reck
Associated acts	Platinum Pied Pipers, Slum Village, J Dilla, Tiny Hearts, Dabrye, Dwele, Tiombe Lockhart, DEDE (American Band)
Website	http://www.bling47.com

Waajeed (born Robert O'Bryant) is a Detroit-born music producer, and one half of the hip hop and R&B group Platinum Pied Pipers, and a founding member of Tiny Hearts.^[1] He formed the Bling47 record label in 2002, which has released projects by J Dilla, Waajeed himself, and others. Since 2013, he has preferred the name Jeedo.^[2]

The name "Waajeed" means "finder" or "seeker" in Arabic.

Biography

Background

Before he began producing records, Waajeed was studying art and DJing in and around the Detroit music circuit. He was a prominent photographer in the local hip-hop scene and designed the cover for both Slum Village's "Fan-Tas-Tic (Vol. 1)" and Fantastic, Vol. 2, among others.

Waajeed was an executive producer on Dwele's pre-debut project, Rize, which ultimately led to Dwele getting signed to Virgin Records shortly thereafter. He has been a close friend of Slum Village since its earliest days, DJ'ing for them on their earliest tours, convincing the group to release their first album/demo, Fan-Tas-Tic (Vol. 1), choosing the group's name, and introducing them to fourth member Elzhi.

Since his earlier records, Waajeed has made a shift towards a "darker" sound which he explains in a 2013 interview. "People often ask me what my music is about and they see it as dark or bleak and yes, I do think it’s dark, but it’s also hopeful and optimistic. I make dark music to be a better person. I make dark music so I don’t go out in a temper and take a son from a mother. You have to camouflage yourself. You have to lay in the cut…. My music is dark because it’s a reflection of the times too. These are serious times we live in so even at its brightest moments there’s a taint to my work. What’s going on with all the gunplay – this is not a time for happy sing-along shit." ^[3]

Career

As a producer, Waajeed began comparatively late (2000), but before long had landed a handful of tracks on his longtime friends, Slum Village's Trinity (Past, Present and Future) album. According to Waajeed, his first MPC had previously belonged to J Dilla. After the hardware was broken by Questlove, J Dilla said that Waajeed could keep it if he could fix it. His first beats were made on that very same MPC after managing to correct the problem.

Waajeed's productions have led to him working with some of the industry's most respected artists such as Cee Lo Green,^[4] John Legend, Mayer Hawthorne^[5] and more.

In 2007 he released an album called The War LP which included solo instrumentals as well as new production for Invincible, Tiombe Lockhart, TaRaach, and the late J Dilla.^[6]

Waajeed has been a featured guest on many international radio shows, including KCRW,^[7] BBC Radio 1, and more.

In 2010, he released preview of his remix of DEDE (American Band)'s "Phantom" on Soundcloud.^[8]

In 2011, he joined and co-founded music group Tiny Hearts with producer Tim K and vocalist Dede Reynolds of DEDE.^[1]

In 2012, he established his second independent label, Dirt Tech Reck.^[9]

He is currently working on new solo material, as well as a collaborative album with Invincible.

Discography

B.P.M. - Waajeed (2002, Bling 47)
Triple P - Platinum Pied Pipers (2005, Ubiquity)
The War LP - Waajeed (2007, Fat City)
Abundance - PPP (2009, Ubiquity)

References