Share a song that changed your perspective on music.

In the early 90s, hip-hop was using a lot of jazz samples. Groups like A Tribe Called Quest, Digable Planets, and De La Soul were known for this sound, bridging a warmer, more mellow feel with the grittiness of hip-hop. MCs like Guru of GangStarr were even releasing full on jazz/hip-hop fusion projects like the Jazzamatazz series, even making the cover art like those old jazz covers of the past.

Then the late great Miles Davis chose to put his stamp on things, teaming up with producer Easy Mo Bee to release Doo-Bop. It would end up being Miles’ last studio album, as he passed halfway through the making of the project. Through the magic of sampling, Easy Mo Bee created the last half using pieces of old Miles performances. I’d be shocked if anyone knew the difference in which tracks were made pre or post Miles’ passing.

This album kicked a door wide open for me, as it allowed me to feel comfortable as a young teen to explore jazz, something thought of as “old people’s music” to many my age at the time. Suddenly I was discovering the rest of Miles’ catalog, along with John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Cannonball Adderly, and many others. It’s why today I can enjoy Robert Glasper, Kamasi Washington, Ambrose Akinmusire, and Jose James. So, I thank hip-hop and Miles Davis for opening up a huge under appreciated world to me. They totally changed my listening habits.