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Music

Best of You Need To Hear This 2013: Evolution Of...

This year saw us put on our serious face and break albums down to their molecules, charting the evolution of iconic, important, and influential artists.
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This year saw us pally up with Phillips in order to bring you You Need To Hear This. Our new sister platform allowed us to adorn our serious face breaking down albums to their molecules, charting the evolution of artists and visiting untouched music scenes from around the continents. YNTHT was also home to our weekly Touching Bass series, inviting some new and experienced DJs to make us a mix. Here's the best from our Evolution Of… series

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THE EVOLUTION OF… THE NEPTUNES

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Illustration by Dan Evans

Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams have transformed the careers of so many artists that it’s impossible to know what pop music would sound like today if they hadn’t been born. Without their production sorcery, there would have been no “Like I Love You” or “Hot In Herre” and the musical evolution of Jay Z and Britney would have been severely stunted. They have turned just about every modern genre inside out, spearheading the most revolutionary change in the sound of pop since Motown. At one point they could command as much as $150,000 per song.

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THE EVOLUTION OF… J DILLA

Illustration by Dan Evans

It's been seven years since the death of James Dewett Yancey, one of the most revered music producers of the last twenty years. The importance of the man known to his fans and peers as J Dilla has remained steadfast since his passing in 2006; his music and its impact on the work of others untouchable. Dilla's work with artists such as Madlib, Erykah Badu and The Pharcyde (to name but a few) led to his becoming one of the most sought after and well-respected hip-hop producers of all time.

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THE EVOLUTION OF… MF DOOM

MF DOOM is the most inimitable figure in hip-hop. As prolific as he is elusive, London-born and New York-bred Daniel Dumile owned artist anonymity long before SBTRKT donned his feathers and Daft Punk were still wearing bags on their heads. From behind the privacy of a metal mask, DOOM has painstakingly crafted a world of his own that's invited a cult following of fans like no other rap artist. It's a world drenched in sci-fi and comic book references, built through multiple personas, inseparable visuals and, of course, laboriously constructed bodies of music. Whether it be a concept album or left-field collaborations DOOM's world is one of a kind.

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THE EVOLUTION OF… CLIPSE

Bronx born and Virginia raised duo, Clipse, otherwise known as brothers Gene "No Malice" Thornton and Terrence "Pusha T" Thornton, put coke rap on the map. Working with childhood friends The Neptunes, who were to become one of the most lauded production teams in modern music, they made their mark on the rap game using the bare bones of Neptunes' signature style, delivering devastatingly cold stories of life dealing drugs in America.

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