Editing Prince Paul (producer) (section)

== Style and influences ==
Unlike the vast majority of hip-hop producers during the 1980s and early 1990s, Paul explored many genres outside of funk and soul to extract samples.<ref>{{cite news|title=Prince Paul Dives Deep Into Music History|work=The New York Times |date=November 23, 2021 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/23/arts/music/prince-paul-spotify-podcast.html |last1=Stevenson |first1=Iman }}</ref> 

[[Chris Rock]] listed the ''Buhloone Mindstate'' album at number ten on his "Top 25 Albums" list. He credited the album as helping to shape him as a comedian.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Top 25 Albums {{!}} The Official Chris Rock Site|url=http://www.chrisrock.com/category/top-25-albums|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170825090537/http://www.chrisrock.com/category/top-25-albums|archive-date=August 25, 2017|access-date=2017-09-02|website=Chrisrock.com|language=en|df=mdy-all}}</ref> In 1999, Rock appeared on Paul's ''A Prince Among Thieves.''<ref name="Huey">{{Citation|last=Huey |first=Steve |title=A Prince Among Thieves - Prince Paul {{!}} Songs, Reviews, Credits {{!}} AllMusic|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/a-prince-among-thieves-mw0000036796|language=en-us|access-date=2020-10-06}}</ref> Later in 2005, Rock's debut album was produced by Paul.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.stereogum.com/2033158/prince-paul-a-prince-among-thieves-20/reviews/the-anniversary/ | title=Prince Paul's 'A Prince Among Thieves' Turns 20 | date=February 22, 2019 }}</ref>

Paul credits [[The Bomb Squad]] and [[Public Enemy]] as being a significant influence on early De La Soul production, saying, "Early Public Enemy production used layers upon layers and layers, and their arrangements were always super duper incredible to me. We were kind of like students to what they did."<ref name=makethose>{{cite web |last1=Sorce-1 |first1=DJ |title="Make Those Records You Make"- Prince Paul Speaks on De La Soul is Dead |url=http://heavyinthestreets.blogspot.com/2013/03/make-those-records-you-make-prince-paul.html |website=Heavy in the Streets |date=March 18, 2013 |access-date=April 12, 2015}}</ref> In addition to The Bomb Squad, he also lists [[George Clinton (funk musician)|George Clinton]], [[Dr. Dre]], [[Rick Rubin]], and [[Bernie Worrell]] as his major influences.<ref name=":4" />

While Paul continues to utilize samples, he has expanded his production to include live instrumentation, including guitar, bass guitar, and several analog keyboards.<ref name="speakclout" /> To combine elements of sampling and live instrumentation, Paul now re-plays some of his samples with instruments. In a 2010 interview he described the process by saying, "I’ve gotten to the point now where I’ll re-play samples with instruments. I learned how to interpolate, change the sound, and dust it out so that when I’m re-playing certain samples, it sounds like a direct sample from a record."<ref name="speakclout" />

Paul has credited the process of working with [[Dan the Automator]] on the [[Handsome Boy Modeling School]] project as helping him learn a great deal about production.<ref name="speakclout" />