Common & Pete Rock

Episode notes

(Photo by Rebecca Sapp/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

Common and Pete Rock are two heroes of hip-hop. Common is one of the most famous Chicago rappers of all time and Pete Rock is a producer with hundreds of credits to his name: with C.L. Smooth, Run DMC, Public Enemy, Biggie. The list goes on!

These two icons have known each other for a long time, but apart from a diss track back in 96, they never really worked together. Until now! Pete Rock and Common just released The Auditorium Vol. 1. The album is a 15 track epic from the two hip-hop heavyweights featuring the vocals of Bilal and Jennifer Hudson.

We get into the album with Common and Pete Rock, discussing the divine influence of producer J Dilla in their collaboration. We also talk about the time Bullseye host Jesse Thorn boo’d Common at a live show in Santa Cruz. Plus, does Common still do windmills at his concerts? Break into the episode to find out more.

You can stream The Auditorium Vol. 1 now.

In this episode...

Jesse Thorn

Host

Kevin Ferguson

Senior Producer

Jesus Ambrosio

Producer

Richard Robey

Maximum Fun Producer

Daniel Huecias

Maximum Fun Production Fellow

Daniel Arón Speer

Video Editor

Guests

Common
Pete Rock

About the show

Bullseye is a celebration of the best of arts and culture in public radio form. Host Jesse Thorn sifts the wheat from the chaff to bring you in-depth interviews with the most revered and revolutionary minds in our culture.

Bullseye has been featured in Time, The New York Times, GQ and McSweeney’s, which called it “the kind of show people listen to in a more perfect world.” Since April 2013, the show has been distributed by NPR.

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