Editing Marley Marl

{{short description|American DJ, record producer and rapper (born 1962)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2022}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name              = Marley Marl
| image             = Marlon Williams aka Dj Marley Marl.jpg
| alt               = 
| caption           = Marley Marl in 1999
| birth_name        = Marlon Lu'Ree Williams<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ascap.com/repertory#/ace/search/workID/310309467 |title=AMERICA EATS THE YOUNG |website=ASCAP |publisher=American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers |access-date=April 29, 2023 |archive-date=November 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201106193550/https://www.ascap.com/repertory#/ace/search/workID/310309467 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| alias             = 
| birth_date        = {{nowrap|{{Birth date and age|1962|09|30}}}}
| birth_place       = [[Queens]], [[New York City]], U.S.<ref name="Marley">{{cite web|author=Steve Huey|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marley-marl-mn0000286818|title=Marley Marl|publisher=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=November 12, 2019|archive-date=April 13, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190413201939/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marley-marl-mn0000286818|url-status=live}}</ref>
| death_date        = {{Death date and age|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}}
| origin            = 
| genre             = [[East Coast hip hop]]
| discography       = [[Marley Marl production discography]]
| occupation        = {{hlist|DJ|producer|rapper|music executive<ref name="FDS">Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/j3_nE1xMJs8 Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20191229012118/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3_nE1xMJs8 Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web|url=https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=j3_nE1xMJs8&t=515s|title=F.D.S #39 – THE ERIC B EPISODE – FULL EPISODE|publisher=[[YouTube]]|date=August 8, 2017|access-date=November 12, 2019}}{{cbignore}}</ref>}}
| years_active      = 1983–present
| label             = {{hlist|[[Cold Chillin' Records|Cold Chillin']]|[[Warner Bros. Records|Warner Bros.]]|[[Def Jam Records|Def Jam]]|[[Barely Breaking Even|BBE]]}}
| past_member_of    = [[Juice Crew]]
| associated_acts   = {{hlist|[[Dimples D]]|[[Roxanne Shanté]]|[[Spoonie Gee]]|[[MC Shan]]|[[Juice Crew]]|[[Kool G Rap]]|[[Biz Markie]]|[[LL Cool J]]|[[Lords of the Underground]]|[[Monie Love]]|[[Mobb Deep]]|[[Capone-N-Noreaga]]|[[Tragedy Khadafi]]}}
| website           = 
}}

'''Marlon Lu'Ree Williams''' (born September 30, 1962), better known by his stage name '''Marley Marl''', is an American DJ, record producer, rapper and record label founder, primarily operating in [[hip hop music]].<ref name="LarkinDM">{{cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Virgin Encyclopedia of Dance Music]]|editor=[[Colin Larkin (writer)|Colin Larkin]]|publisher=[[Virgin Books]]|date=1998|edition=First|isbn=0-7535-0252-6|page=211}}</ref> Marlon grew up in [[Queensbridge Houses|Queensbridge]] housing projects<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mao|first=Jeff "Chairman"|date=2014|title=Marley Marl Lecture|url=https://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/lectures/marley-marl-tokyo-2014|access-date=August 10, 2020|website=Red Bull Music Academy|archive-date=August 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803084610/https://www.redbullmusicacademy.com/lectures/marley-marl-tokyo-2014/|url-status=live}}</ref> located in [[Queens]], New York. He performed in local talent shows during the early days of rap music, further fueling his interest.

He was also featured on [[Eric B. & Rakim]]'s "[[Paid in Full (Eric B. & Rakim song)|Paid in Full]]" from their [[Paid in Full (album)|debut album]], which was also recorded in his studio.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Mao|first=Jeff "Chairman"|date=December 1997|title=The Microphone God|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ry0EAAAAMBAJ&q=marley+marl+vibe&pg=PA134|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220415151247/https://books.google.com/books?id=Ry0EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA134#v=onepage&q&f=false|archive-date=April 15, 2022|magazine=Vibe|pages=134|via=Google Books}}</ref> 
He is credited with influencing a number of hip hop icons such as [[The Notorious B.I.G.|Biggie Smalls]], [[RZA]], [[DJ Premier]], [[Madlib]], and [[Pete Rock]].<ref name="ALLMUSIC">[{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p101803/biography|pure_url=yes}} Biography], [[AllMusic]]</ref> Producer Madlib stated in an interview that Marley was the first producer who inspired him to make beats.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Torres|first=Andre|date=November 19, 2013|title=Madlib revived the crate-digging tradition before flipping the script and embracing live playing|url=https://www.waxpoetics.com/blog/features/articles/astral-traveler/|magazine=Wax Poetics|access-date=August 11, 2020|archive-date=August 5, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805065256/https://www.waxpoetics.com/blog/features/articles/astral-traveler/|url-status=dead}}</ref> ''[[Vibe (magazine)|Vibe]]'' magazine wrote that he, "forever changed the sound of hip-hop with his unique beat barrages."<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Mao|first=Jeff "Chairman"|date=September 1998|title=Props: The Juice Crew|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lywEAAAAMBAJ&q=marley+marl&pg=PA312|magazine=Vibe|pages=312|via=Google Books}}{{dead link|date=May 2024}}</ref>

== Early career ==
Marley's career started with an interest in [[electronica]].<ref name=":0" /> As a young intern at [[Unique Recording Studios]] in the early 1980s, he had an opportunity to experiment with very expensive samplers like the [[Fairlight CMI]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last1=Muhammad|first1=Ali Shaheed|last2=Kelley|first2=Frannie|date=September 12, 2013|title=Microphone Check: Marley Marl On The Bridge Wars, LL Cool J And Discovering Sampling|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/microphonecheck/2013/09/11/221440934/marley-marl-on-the-bridge-wars-ll-cool-j-and-discovering-sampling|access-date=August 10, 2020|website=NPR|archive-date=August 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200813181920/https://www.npr.org/sections/microphonecheck/2013/09/11/221440934/marley-marl-on-the-bridge-wars-ll-cool-j-and-discovering-sampling|url-status=live}}</ref> One day during a studio session with an artist named Captain Rock he discovered sampling by accident. <blockquote>"I was actually trying to get a riff off of a record. I made a mistake and got the snare in there before the sound came. I was truncating the vocal part but the snare was playing with the beat — we was truncating while the beat was playing. Thank God the beat was playing, because it probably wouldn't have happened if the beat wasn't playing. So I was playing it and the snare sounded better than the snare that I had from the drum machine when I was popping it."<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>A short time later pioneering hip-hop radio DJ [[Mr. Magic]] heard Marley Marl's remix of [[Malcolm McLaren]]'s [[Buffalo Gals (Malcolm McLaren song)|Buffalo Gals]], leading to Marley becoming his DJ.<ref name=":0" /> They eventually started the hip-hop collective the [[Juice Crew]] together in 1983. 1986 saw the foundation of [[Cold Chillin' Records]], where Marley served as in-house producer for many projects. He earned $250,000 per year for his production work.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Kondo|first=Toshitaka|date=May 2005|title=Karma: Marley Marl's Juice Crew ran rap in the '80s, but nothing lasts forever|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FCcEAAAAMBAJ&q=marley+marl&pg=PA56|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210426203737/https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=FCcEAAAAMBAJ&q=marley+marl&pg=PA56&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=marley%20marl&f=false|archive-date=April 26, 2021|magazine=Vibe|pages=56|via=Google Books}}</ref> The label was also home to many Juice Crew artists.

Marley caught his big break in 1984, with artist [[Roxanne Shante]]'s hit "[[Roxanne's Revenge]]". In a 2008 interview Shante noted how seriously he took recording despite his limited setup. "We'd be recording in his living room on a reel-to-reel and four-tracks. I really just wanted to go to the mall after one take, but Marley always made me do it again."<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Gonzales|first=Michael A.|date=2008|title=Crew Deep: Marley Marl Forms the Indomitable Juice Crew|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lyYEAAAAMBAJ&q=marley+marl&pg=PA88|magazine=Vibe|pages=88|via=Google Books}}{{dead link|date=May 2024}}</ref>

Another significant early record was 1985's "Marley Marl Scratch" featuring MC Shan. The song was recorded on a four-track cassette recorder and Shan used a mic with a missing ball to record his lyrics.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Merlis|first=Ben|title=Goin' Off: The Story of the Juice Crew & Cold Chillin' Records (RPM Series Book 3)|publisher=BMG Books|year=2019|isbn=978-1-947026-32-2}}</ref>

Several of his early records featured inventive use of the [[Roland TR-808]] drum machine. On [[MC Shan]]'s 1986 Pop Art single "The Bridge', which later appeared on his 1987 album ''[[Down by Law (MC Shan album)|Down By Law]]'', Marley used the 808 pulse to trigger different samplers.<ref name=":0" /> According to Biz Markie, the button on Marley's 808 stuck during the recording of his hit "Make the Music with Your Mouth, Biz", leading to sound heard on the record today.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Coleman|first=Brian|title=Check the Technique: Liner Notes for Hip-Hop Junkies|publisher=Villard|year=2007|isbn=978-0-8129-7775-2|location=New York|pages=50}}</ref> Juice Crew member [[Big Daddy Kane]] praised his ability to pair 808 drum sounds with sampled drums. "Regardless of how clean or brand-new the record was that he was sampling, or light the production may have been, he always gave it a really gritty feel when he sampled it. He always put the 808 to it and gave it a heavy bottom and warm feel."<ref>{{Cite book|last=Coleman|first=Brian|title=Check the Technique: Liner Notes for Hip-Hop Junkies|publisher=Villard|year=2007|isbn=978-0-8129-7775-2|location=New York|pages=38}}</ref>

In the late 1980s, the Juice Crew gained increased attention from mainstream publications. [[Spin (magazine)|''Spin'' magazine]] wrote, "they've produced some of the genre's toughest, most uncompromising music."<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Leland|first=John|date=December 1988|title=Singles|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5oyYjDeNc_AC&q=marley+marl+spin&pg=PA112|magazine=Spin|pages=112|via=Google Books}}</ref> At the time Marley began a streak of producing entire albums for several Juice Crew members. He produced all of the tracks on [[Craig G]]'s ''[[The Kingpin (album)|The Kingpin]]'' (1989), [[Big Daddy Kane]]'s ''[[Long Live the Kane|Long Live The Kane]]'' (1988)'','' [[Biz Markie]]'s ''[[Goin' Off]]'' (1988), [[Kool G Rap]] & DJ Polo's ''[[Road to the Riches]]'' (1989), [[MC Shan]]'s [[Down by Law (MC Shan album)|''Down By Law'']] (1987) and ''[[Born to Be Wild (MC Shan album)|Born to Be Wild]]'' (1988), and [[Roxanne Shante]]'s ''[[Bad Sister (album)|Bad Sister]]'' [[Bad Sister (album)|(1989)]].

In 1988, he produced the Juice Crew posse cut "The Symphony" by using a [[Hal Jackson]] record from the [[WBLS]] record library as a sample source.<ref name=":0" />

== Post-Juice Crew and Cold Chillin' ==
In 1996, Marley filed a suit against Cold Chillin' for unpaid royalties.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Coleman|first=Monyca D.|date=November 9, 1996|title=Gossip|work=Indianapolis Recorder|url=https://newspapers.library.in.gov/?a=d&d=INR19961109-01.1.10&srpos=1&e=-------en-20--1--txt-txIN-marley+marl------|access-date=August 11, 2020}}</ref>

In 2007 he produced the entire ''[[Hip Hop Lives]]'' album for former rival [[KRS-One]].

== Discography ==
{{Main|Marley Marl production discography}}

=== Studio albums ===
* ''[[In Control, Volume 1]]'' (1988)
* ''[[In Control Volume II (For Your Steering Pleasure)]]'' (1991)
* ''Hip-Hop Dictionary'' (2000)
* ''[[Re-Entry (Marley Marl album)|Re-Entry]]'' (2001)

=== Collaboration albums ===
* ''[[Hip Hop Lives]]'' (with [[KRS-One]]) (2007)
* ''Operation Take Back Hip-Hop'' (with [[Craig G]]) (2008)

=== Compilations ===
* ''House of Hits'' (1995)
* ''Best of Cold Chillin{{'}}'' (2001)
* ''Marley Marl's House of Hits'' (released 2007)
* ''Hip Hop's Hero w/ Nikal Fieldz'' (released 2010)

== Popular culture ==
Marl was referenced on [[Biggie Smalls]]' track "[[Juicy (The Notorious B.I.G. song)|Juicy]]" as being one of Smalls' early influences.<ref>{{cite web|title=Hip Hop Awards 2023: Marley Marl Honored For His Contributions to Hip Hop|url=https://www.bet.com/article/obxp68/hip-hop-awards-2023-honored-with-i-am-hip-hop-award|website=[[BET]]|date=October 10, 2023|access-date=May 12, 2024|archive-date=May 12, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240512175008/https://www.bet.com/article/obxp68/hip-hop-awards-2023-honored-with-i-am-hip-hop-award|url-status=live}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p101803/biography|pure_url=yes}} AllMusic biography]
* [https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marley-Marl/105294899503960 Facebook page] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810042123/https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marley-Marl/105294899503960 |date=August 10, 2023 }}
* {{Discogs artist|13873}}
* {{IMDb name|nm1796775}}

{{Marley Marl}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marl, Marley}}
[[Category:1962 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:African-American male rappers]]
[[Category:21st-century American male rappers]]
[[Category:20th-century American male rappers]]
[[Category:Rappers from Queens, New York]]
[[Category:People from Long Island City, Queens]]
[[Category:American hip-hop record producers]]
[[Category:Cold Chillin' Records artists]]
[[Category:African-American record producers]]
[[Category:American hip-hop DJs]]
[[Category:East Coast hip-hop musicians]]
[[Category:21st-century American rappers]]
[[Category:Record producers from New York (state)]]
[[Category:21st-century American male musicians]]
[[Category:21st-century African-American musicians]]
[[Category:20th-century African-American people]]
[[Category:Juice Crew members]]
[[Category:Barely Breaking Even artists]]
[[Category:Def Jam Recordings artists]]