Diamond D
{{Short description|American hip hop producer (born 1968)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}} {{Use American English|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| image = Jmil_and_Diamond_D_at_A3C_in_Atlanta-cropped.jpg
| caption = Diamond D at A3C in Atlanta
| birth_place = The Bronx, New York City, U.S.{{cite book|title=The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Music|editor=Colin Larkin|editor-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|publisher=Virgin Books|date=2000|edition=First|isbn=0-7535-0427-8|pages=121/2}}
| alias = Diamond D
| birth_name = Joseph Kirkland
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1968|4|5}}
| genre = Hip hop
| occupation = {{hlist|Record producer|rapper}}
| years_active = 1987–present
| label = {{hlist|Chemistry|Mercury|PolyGram|Diamond Mine|Babygrande}}
| past_member_of = D.I.T.C.
}}
Joseph Kirkland (born April 5, 1968), better known by his stage name Diamond D (or simply Diamond), is an American hip hop MC and record producer from The Bronx, New York City, and one of the founding members of the Diggin' in the Crates Crew, abbreviated as D.I.T.C.{{cite web|author=John Bush |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/diamond-d-mn0000821219 |title=Diamond D | Biography |website=AllMusic |access-date=May 22, 2015}}
Early years
Growing up in Forest Houses in The Bronx, Diamond D was influenced by local DJs, DJ Hutch and DJ Supreme. During his youth the two DJs would let him perform on their turntables.{{Cite web|last=Isenberg|first=Daniel|date=July 14, 2011|title=Diamond D Tells All: The Stories Behind His Classic Records|website=Complex Networks|url=https://www.complex.com/music/2011/07/interview-diamond-d/|access-date=August 14, 2020}} At the beginning of his career as a producer, Diamond spent many hours at Jazzy Jay's studio on Allerton Avenue in The Bronx. He credits Jay for inspiring him to buy a sampler and teaching him various production techniques. In a 2017 interview he said, "I learned about 95% of my production skills from him. And he was ahead of his time."{{Cite web|last=Ducker|first=Jesse|date=December 29, 2017|title=INTERVIEW: The Enduring Duality & Dynamism of Hip-Hop Legend Diamond D|url=https://www.albumism.com/interviews/the-enduring-duality-and-dynamism-of-hip-hop-legend-diamond-d|access-date=August 14, 2020|website=Albumism}}
Career
In addition to Jazzy Jay's teachings, Diamond credited Brand Nubian member Grand Puba as his inspiration to start rapping.{{Cite journal|last=Garcia|first=Bobbito|date=June–July 1995|title=Sound Check: Bobbito Garcia plays the tracks; Diamond D states the facts|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0CsEAAAAMBAJ&q=%22diamond+d%22+vibe&pg=PA12|journal=Vibe|pages=35|via=Google Books}}{{Dead link|date=January 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} An early guest appearance on A Tribe Called Quest's The Low End Theory track "Show Business" helped make people more aware of him as an artist.
The following year he released his debut record Stunts, Blunts and Hip Hop. In a 2017 interview Diamond described the album as, "just a collection of beats and records I was just setting aside. It was more about, 'One day I want to do something with this' ideas. And about 80% of that album I got from those records."
Diamond's favorite experience from making Stunts, Blunts, and Hip Hop was recording the vocals for the song "Check One, Two." He credits producer The 45 King with clearing the samples for that beat. It took him 30 minutes to construct the beat for one of the album's best-known tracks, "Sally Got A One Track Mind".
In 1996, Diamond won a Grammy Award for his production on the title track from The Fugees' The Score album. He later described the experience as "just a bad memory" and declined to talk about it in an interview.{{Cite web|last=Ettelson|first=Robbie|date=February 12, 2014|title=Diamond D – The Unkut Interview|url=https://www.unkut.com/2014/02/diamond-d-the-unkut-interview/|access-date=August 14, 2020|website=Unkut}}
To promote his 1997 album Hatred, Passions and Infidelity, Mercury Records compiled a promotional vinyl called Diamond Jewels that included the Stunts, Blunts, and Hip Hop songs "Best Kept Secret', "*!*! What U Heard", and "Sally Got A One Track Mind".{{Cite magazine|last=Nelson|first=Havelock|date=August 2, 1997|title=Diamond D's Hip-Hop 'Hiatus' Ends with 'Hatred' on Mercury|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_AkEAAAAMBAJ&q=diamond+d+%22the+hiatus%22&pg=PA27|magazine=Billboard|pages=27 and 32|via=Google Books}}
Discography
{{Main|Diamond D production discography}}
=Albums=
| class="wikitable" |
| style="text-align:left; width:650px;"|Album information |
|---|
align="left"|Stunts, Blunts and Hip Hop
|
| align="left"|Hatred, Passions and Infidelity
|
| align="left"|Grown Man Talk
|
| align="left"|The Diamond Mine
|
| align="left"|I'm Not Playin' (with Master Rob as Ultimate Force)
|
| align="left"|The Huge Hefner Chronicles
|
| align="left"|The Diam Piece
|
| align="left"|The Diam Piece 2
|
| align="left"|Gotham (with Talib Kweli)
|
| align="left"|The Rear View
|
= As featured artist =
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+ List of singles, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:19em;" | Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Year ! scope="col" colspan="3" | Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Album |
| style="width:3em; font-size:90%"|US
!style="width:3em; font-size:90%"|US !style="width:3em; font-size:90%"|US |
|---|
| scope="row"|"One for the Money" (Royce da 5'9" featuring Skillz and Diamond D) | 2012 | — || — || — | Non-album single |
= As featured =
| class="wikitable"
|+ !Song !Year !Artist ! |
| Show Business
|1991 |ATCQ, Sadat X, Lord Jamar | |
| Diggin' in the Crates
| rowspan="3" |1992 |Show & A.G., Lord Finesse | |
| Punks Jump Up to Get Beat Down (Remix)
|Brand Nubian | |
| Still Diggin'
|Show & A.G. | |
| CrumbSnatcher
| rowspan="4" |1993 |Illegal | |
| Watch the Sound!
|Fat Joe, Grand Puba | |
| I Can't Take No More
|Class A Felony | |
| Slappin' Suckas Silly Remix
|Yaggfu Front | |
| Keep It Real
| rowspan="4" |1994 |A.D.O.R. | |
| Word Iz Bond
|House of Pain | |
| I Got Planz
|Scientifik | |
| Ya Don't Stop
|Dana Barros & Cedric Ceballos, A.G., Sadat X, Grand Puba | |
| The Next Level
| rowspan="4" |1995 |The Alkaholiks | |
| You Want It
|Show & A.G. | |
| How They Want It
|Big Red | |
| What I Wanna Do....
|Veronica, Sadat X | |
| Speak Ya Piece
| rowspan="4" |1996 |Lord Finesse, marquee, A.G. | |
| Diamond's Are a Girl's Best Friend
|DJ Polo | |
| The Score
|The Fugees | |
| When the Ship Goes Down (Diamond's Seafaring Remix)
|Cypress Hill | |
| Hot This Year
| rowspan="2" |1998 |Kid Capri, Brand Nubian | |
| Time to Get This Money; Put It in Your System
|Show & A.G. | |
| Nowhere to Go
| rowspan="2" |1999 |A.G. | |
| When It Rains It Pours
|Diamond D | |
| Got Dat?; Live Shit
| rowspan="3" |2000 |El da Sensei | |
| X-Man
|Sadat X | |
| Lyrical Talents
|Muro, O.C. | |
| Best at That
|2001 |Da Beatminerz | |
| The Omen
| rowspan="2" |2002 |Aim | |
| Welcome to the World of Joni Rewind
|Joni Rewind, Lord Finesse | |
| Feedback
|2003 |Akrobatik | |
| Pressure
|2005 |Med | |
| CD Only Bonus Track
|2022 |Open Mike Eagle, Aesop Rock | |
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Diamond D}}
{{Diggin' in the Crates Crew}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diamond D}}
Category:African-American record producers
Category:American hip-hop record producers
Category:African-American male rappers
Category:21st-century American male rappers
Category:20th-century American male rappers
Category:Rappers from the Bronx
Category:Diggin' in the Crates Crew members
Category:Mercury Records artists
Category:East Coast hip-hop musicians
Category:20th-century American rappers
Category:21st-century American rappers