DJ Premier & Roc Marciano Talk ‘The Coldest Profession’ & Today’s Rap Landscape: ‘We Breaking That Mold’

“This is a dream come true for me. Some bucket list s—t.”

That’s what Roc Marciano says to me while I talk to him and DJ Premier over a Zoom call this week, right before saying that he wanted people to not only enjoy their new EP, but to play The Coldest Profession “into the ground.”

Surprisingly enough, the first conversation they had about doing an entire project together happened around 20 years ago. The two ran into each other in the Armani section of Macy’s flagship store in New York City’s Herald Square, as Preemo was on his way to cop some Phat Farm gear.

This was almost a decade before Marciano would reinvent himself in 2010 with the seminal record Marcberg. That album helped usher in a revamped version of traditional East Coast street rap music and a new era of independence — where rappers would rather deal directly with their fans, instead of waiting for a label to figure out how to market them to an audience, effectively cutting out the middleman.

The Coldest Profession features two masters at work, as DJ Premier’s notable style of production provides the perfect soundscape for Roc’s slick raps, about being probably the flyest rapper you ever heard in your life.

Check out our conversation with the duo below.

I know you guys have mentioned that you first ran into each other at Macy’s in the Armani section — that’s why the the first single is titled that way. But do you guys remember when you first talked about doing a project together?

DJ Premier: It was way before that. Just being fans of each other’s music, and talking about, “One day we gotta get one.” You know, anytime you see an artist that you like, and whether we met or not and we’re familiar with each other, the first thing we always say, “Yo, we gotta get one in.” That’s always like the standard thing, I think that ends the conversation.

Roc Marciano: Especially with Preem. I don’t go for everybody — but Preem, yeah, we gotta get one in.

P: It got to a point where it seemed like every time we ran into each other, and just on a humble, he’d be like, “Yo, man.” It’s almost like I’m frontin’, like, “Yo, Is it real or not?”

R.M.: I mean, you was frontin’ at that time, you didn’t know what I could do yet. I hadn’t become who I am now, yet. So, you know, I was just raw talent.

P: Boy, did you earn your stripes, man. And what’s so ill is — that particular time, you know, I’m only cutting through the Armani section because I was always a stocky dude. Them clothes, they ain’t cut from guys of my size. I’m just cutting through to get to another department to get some Phat Farm or something during that era — and I happen to see Roc, and it was just a reminder of that conversation.

Then when we finally said it’s time to do something, I was like, “Yo, remember when I saw you there?” And he was like, “Yo, that should be the name of the first single.” And not only that — if you look at all of Roc’s song titles in his catalog, he always has unique titles to the record that, for me, I’m a title guy. And I think that titles of songs makes you want to check them out, almost like clickbait. It makes you want to hear what the record sounds like.

You mention Phat Farm — so this must’ve been during the early 2000s?

R.M. Yeah, early 2000s.

P: And he confronted me, and, like I said, he’s like, “Yo, man, what’s up?” Like, “When we gonna do this?” And said it with that type of of energy. Then back in February of 2023 actually, I said, “Yo, man, I think it’s time.” I actually went to his show in Brooklyn, and it was sold out, and everybody was singing every single word to everything he dropped. It was to where I was like, “Damn, I don’t know that one.” And as a DJ, I know everything. You already hear how I scratch. I’m always knowing lines from what other other MCs spit. And I know a lot of of Roc’s records.

Obviously, Marcberg is one of those classics that goes up there with the Paid in Fulls, and Run-D.M.C. albums and the Kane albums and KRS-One albums. You know, he has a classic under his belt, and that one stands out tremendously. But there was so many records that the crowd is singing back to him, and I’m sitting there saying to myself, “How do I not know this?”

And I went and saw him backstage, and I said, “Yo man, I’m ready.” And he said, “Yo, start sending stuff.” And I started sending beats. I said, “I’ma send you a beat a day.” And I sent him a beat every day like, “Incoming, incoming. Here’s another one. Here’s another one.” That’s how it started.

R.M.: Yeah, I got more than one classic, Preem. I got a couple classics, Preem. [Laughs.]

P: Oh, yeah. No question, no question.

Word, I was gonna say Reloaded is one. He got a couple.

P: Well, being that that one is the most recent anniversary, and it got pushed back to the forefront.

R.M.: I know, you know. I’m just f—kin’ with you.

P: Yeah, and that’s why I’m glad me and you are definitely a team.

So, Preem, speaking of Marcberg, do you remember when you first heard that record? Because it came at a time when things were changing. Everything was moving to the Internet with streaming, it dropped in the middle of the blog era.

P: I’ve always liked his rhyme style. I even reposted a interview I did in 2019 about how the voice is a major part of what attracts me to wanting to work with an artist. And it seemed like once that record dropped — being that he previously had been in a group prior to going solo — Roc’s growth has come into a whole different lane. He built his own fanbase that followed him, almost like a cult — the good kind, not the not the weird kind — and you could tell that he was confident in doing things his way.

And as a producer, when you start seeing that the artist is producing themselves — even though he raps over other people’s beats, you know, him and Alchemist have a long track record with doing records together. Pete Rock in the early days, and even being affiliated with Busta Rhymes in the early stages before he went solo when he came into his own, and introducing Stove God Cooks with Reasonable Drought, which is a classic to me.

And for him to even play that role in the driver’s seat, as a producer and engineer, and then still put out his own music relentlessly whenever he feels like doing it — all of that makes you to want to move faster on making a connection to finally do work together where we have something to put out there to the world.

Marcberg was the one that did it for me, but then every time you look, he’s got another record dropping, another bundle dropping, he has merch, tours dropping, collabs, he just don’t let up. I guarantee you probably the day before our album drops, he’lI have three more albums coming out.

So, Rock, Preemo said he was sending you a bunch of beats. Was it hard picking any?

R.M.: Nah, it really wasn’t. Preemo is somebody that I respect, I hold in high regard. I wouldn’t allow everybody to produce me. He’s one of the few people that I would allow to produce me — so when Preem hits you with anything, it’s intentional, you know what I’m saying? Preem don’t send you a beat pack, Preem sends you beats for you, for the project that we’re making. So, that’s the direction we’re going in, he’s steering the ship. He was sending joints and I’m like, “Oh, yeah, I could kill that.” Anything that I felt like I could kill, that’s what it is. I’m just pulling my blade out and I’m going to work.

P: And it was really just supposed to be maybe three or four records — but every time I sent another one, he was like, “Yo, nah, nah, let’s hold off. I’ma work on this one too.” I’m like, “All right.” And then another one. “You want to wrap it up now? ‘Nah, nah, nah, let me knock these other two out.’”

R.M.: I didn’t want to wrap this up where we was at. I wanted to keep going. I didn’t want to stop. I was like, “Yo, come on, man, let me get two more.”

P: I was bumpin’ The U.N. the other day, man, because I mean that stuff right there was so hardcore and raw. The ’90s era — I guess they still call that the golden era and whatnot — but, you know, Roc caught that, and still, we almost about to get into the damn 2000 and 50s, and this dude is so consistent. And that reminds me a lot of myself as well, with consistency of constantly [dropping] product.

That’s why I was a big fan of Marley Marl, because his name was on so many albums at the same time. He’d be on a Kane album, he’d be on all the Juice Crew, Biz Markie, MC Shan, Kool G Rap, Roxanne Shante. Then he’d be doing one with Heavy D. And to me, “The Symphony” started the whole collab era of making records, because after “The Symphony” everybody wanted to get features on their albums.m Prior to that, it was just one artist, one producer, and no features.

Now, you can go to an interview and one of the first questions that’s asked is, “Who you got on your album?” It’s almost like that’s how it goes now — but with this one, it’s just me and Roc just doing what we do, and how we do it best.

Were you able to link up for some studio sessions?

R.M.: We did some we did some sessions together, but I also knocked out beats he sent me out of my home studio.

P: “Prayer Hands” just happened to be one of them that we were together [to record].

Do you have a different approach when you’re producing a full project with one particular artist, as opposed to contributing to an album?

P: Everything from my mind comes from a DJ mentality. I do mix-show radio, but also DJ parties, and I can do any party. I used to do Derek Jeter’s parties — and he preferred more Hot 97, what was popular stuff, but I would spin and still tear it down, because I know how to put those types of records together. Then I can do an underground party and play Snoop, and then go right into “Raw” by Big Daddy Kane, then go to the South Bronx, and then go into a Roc Marci record. That’s the difference on having a DJ approach; everything is kind of like tastemaker mentality.

Same thing with what kind of food you eat, or how you cook, that’s how I approach who I’m serving. So, if I’m serving tracks that go to Roc, like he said, I made it for him. I didn’t just pull out stuff I had in the stash and say, “Check out one of these joints.” That’s why “Armani Section” was the first beat I gave him, and to me, it just sounded like a Roc Marci beat. I’ve studied him so much that I’m like, “Well, what’s my approach if I do it my way, but where it’s still geared to him.” And I just thought “Armani Section” just totally hit it on the nail. As soon as he he sent me the vocals, I was like, “This is it.” We then immediately started talking video.

Me and my videographer who does all my content flew to L.A. in less than 24 hours, and shot the video. The Alchemist lets us borrow his studio, and he let me borrow his Maybach. And the dope thing was, Roc has one too, and we just showed out. Went on Rodeo Drive, no permits, just in and out and I was back on a plane going back to New York, and we started editing. That’s how much fun it was.

So, how was the experience for you Roc? You really didn’t have any input on the beats or samples or anything like that? What was your process like?

R.M.: Nah, you don’t tell Preem what to do. You know, Preemo is the big homie, so to work with Preemo is bucket list s—t. That’s why he’ll tell you, even back then, “Yo, when we gonna get one in?” I deserve my Preemo moment too. I put my work in, so to me it’s like a dream come true. I fully trust him and his ear. This is where I sit back. These are moments where I’m a student. I’m usually teaching. When you get with somebody like Preem, you gotta approach it like a learning experience. That’s how I approached it.

Do you guys have enough songs for another tape?

R.M.: I think only one didn’t make it.

P: And we already talked about doing another one new one. I don’t want to start from where we left off. I’d rather just recook again.

How long did it take to finish the entire project?

R.M.: Probably about what? Two years.

P: Yeah, we were off and on. He was on the road and had other commitments and other projects to drop before this. And we even pushed this one back. It was actually supposed to be out two months ago.

R.M.: Yeah, but when we locked in, it was quick because we had started some joints, we were finished in about a month. The break in between is what made it take longer. We took like a year off before starting again.

Roc, you reinvented yourself with Marcberg when you were in your 30s — and now with the Clipse coming back, and guys like Slick Rick and Raekwon putting out solid albums, older rappers are thriving more today than ever before. I remember growing up, they used to say rap was a young man’s game. Why do you think that isn’t the case anymore?

R.M.: I mean, because it’s not. It’s not athletics. It ain’t like your knee blows out and you get to a certain age. I feel like as far as exercising your mind and music, you should improve with time. So, yeah, I just don’t buy into that. That’s just a myth. I really feel like they put that on hip-hop. They don’t put that on other genres of music. That’s really just some hip-hop bulls—t, The music business likes us young and dumb, so they could take advantage or whatever. So, once rappers get older, it’s like, “We don’t need you anymore, you guys are thinking for yourselves now.”

P: Absolutely. And the thing is, we came into it young as well. When Roc came into the game, he was very young. I was 21 when I joined Gang Starr. All of our albums always went up like this, “Bing, bing, bing, bing, bing,” all the way to finally gold status and back-to-back gold albums. We grew without just jumping, and going platinum off our first album and not knowing how to follow up on it.

I think that’s another thing, too. You keep increasing with your catalog, getting better and better, selling more and more, bit by bit. Your fanbase grows right there with you, to where [they want] everything you drop, even if they haven’t heard it. It’s just like how Def Jam used to be. You can trust the label, because anything they dropped in the early ’80s and going into the early ’90s, they were a trustworthy product — and as things watered down, the product just doesn’t have the same luster.

But with people like Roc and myself, we pay attention to why our fanbase stays with us, so we know how to still serve them more, where they’re never disappointed with any release.

The Rolling Stones be touring and they’re in their 80s.

P: And no one says anything. They’re doing stadiums, and they’re not limping either. They’re not in a wheelchair.

R.M.: Al Green still out here performing. George Clinton and them still performing. That’s just some bullsh—t they put on on hip-hop. But obviously, as you can see, we breaking that mold now.

And Preem, what’s the biggest difference for you in terms of navigating the industry today compared to when you were coming up?

P: Like I said earlier, always focus on your brand, and focus on how your brand works with the people that were fans from day one. People like Roc and I — and The Alchemist is another example — we’re blessed to be able to even open up our own stores online, and sell our merch and move our own vinyl and CDs and cassettes. Every time I do it, it sells out, and that’s proof that it’s organically being sold to the consumers that love us and want more from us.

We all want to be on a higher plateau, that’s always the goal — but not at the compromise of how we put our music together. I don’t want to really hear kiddie rap, or like Roc says, “Nerd rap.” That’s another lane, and the beauty of it — that it’s like 31 Flavors at Baskin Robbins. And for the ones that don’t get it, we weren’t making it for them anyway.

What else you do you guys have going on that you’re willing to share?

R.M.: It’s so much, man. I’m starting a tape with Rome [Streetz.] He’s supposed to pull up to my studio today. I produced one for my man GREA8GAWD. I don’t want to give out too many secrets. That’s some of the stuff I got going on. I don’t know if you’re familiar with my man, Errol Holden.

Yeah, NCB actually put me on to him.

P: He’s dope. My publicist put me on to him, because I guess he’s working with him. I do my “Bars in the Booth” series, and he’s like, “Yo, would you be down to have Errol Holden on?” And I was like, “Can he rap?” And he said, “You tell me.” And, man, I checked out his page, and I became a fan instantly.

He has a unique flow. It’s kind of like spoken word, reminds me of The Last Poets a little bit.

R.M. He’s the truth. Me and Errol, we working closely right now. That’s family right there. Y’all gonna love that.

P: He’s another one that you want to make unique tracks for, because you know how he’s going to attack it even before you even hear any lyrics.

Do you guys have more videos planned? Are you going to tour this project?

R.M.: Yeah, we’re shooting some more videos real soon. I know Preem is getting ready to hit the road with The Alchemist, so y’all about to be gone, but I’ma, pop out. on y’all.

P: That’s in three months, so we got a little window.

R.M. I’m touring in September.

P: And look at that, we still get so many tours like we’re new artists. It’s always just dope to be able to do what you love. We both love performing. We love the whole aspect of the game. We also understand how to respect playing on this field, and that’s another reason why we take advantage of it, where we can eat off of what we cook.

R.M.: I still feel new. I ain’t peaked yet, that’s what’s crazy.

P: I did Bastid’s BBQ in Toronto, and it was sold out — and I told them, “I’m 59 years old, Don’t make me outdo y’all. And I know none of y’all are near 59 years old.” And they laughed, but I meant it. Give me that energy, man, I’m not playing around.

Do you feel like you’ve gotten better as a producer overall?

P: I can always go back and do exactly how I did in the early days, but I did that, and it’s attainable. You can catch it on every format of music. But the fun part is showing that I still can do it that way, it’s just a different version. Like Guru used to say, “We just update the formula,” so if it’s 2.0 back then, now it’s 10.0, and the beast is still scratchin’. I love what RZA said on Drink Champs. He said, “If you listen to any Premier record, there’s always scratching on the hooks, there scratching somewhere on the record.” That’s one thing he loves about my style, is he that you get scratches in it.

When I was coming up, everybody was scratching on their records, From Terminator X on Public Enemy records to Marley Marl, Mister Cee on Kane’s records. There’s so many records that had scratching. UTFO — rest in peace Howie Tee, by the way — another one who scratched on record when he produced. We incorporate the things that make a record complete. And even with the way I scratch on this project that me and Roc about to drop, it’s so dope — because I played it for one of my people’s who’s a true DJ that understand the science, and he goes, “Yo, man, the way you scratched on this Roc project, it sounds like you’re actually doing Roc Marci-style scratches.”

And he’s right — because I didn’t do the my regular connecting hooks, they got spaces in them. He might say an ad-lib saying, “Ugh,” and I’ll wait for the “ugh” just to do another line after the “ugh” because I don’t want to get in the way of that. I’m on some Preem Marci scratching.

R.M.: I would say, when we talk about growth and stuff like that, there’s s—t on this project, like “Glory Hole” in particular. I ain’t never heard you make a beat like that. That’s something new. I’ve never heard you do nothing like that before. So, yeah, the danger is there.

P: The scratches are sparse, they’re in little spots. And when I sent it to him I added a disclaimer like, “You know, it’s a little left, I’ll put more in it. just tell me…”

R.M.: We not ducking no smoke. I’m ducking no wreck.

P: He did exactly what the track needed. I just see some fly women wiggling to that thing, man.

So, now that you produced this whole tape for Roc, can we talk about the one you have coming with Nas that everyone has been waiting decades for?

P: Man, s—t, that was supposed to happen almost 20 years ago. When people used to ask me, I’m like, “It’s gonna happen whenever he says, ‘I’m ready.’” I’m ready immediately. But if he don’t bring it up, I don’t really press him. I feel like the MC is going to be the one that’s gonna have to put those lyrics down, so until it’s time for him to want to do it, I never, ever ask.

Everybody would always be pressing me in interviews, asking, “When is it happening?” Then he called me one day and said, “Yo, I want you to come to my 50th birthday party” And the day I got to the party, he said, “Yo, I want to do like an announcement record, it’s time to finally do it.”

“Define My Name” wasn’t supposed to be some big, giant single, and that’s really what it was. It was just a quick announcement record. He said we should announce it on the record, instead of doing like a social media post. So we did, and now we’re in motion.

Are you planning on working on full projects with other rappers in the future?

P: Yeah, for one, I have my in-house, family stuff. Big Shug, one of the co-founders of Gang Starr with Guru… You know, they started Gang Starr before me. They created the logo with the chain and the star before I was around. So, Shug is the Godfather of the Gang Starr family, and we always talked about me producing a whole album when he came out of prison. We finally completed it, and we’re just mixing and putting everything together. It’s called Undefeated, so look out for that.

And then I have a crew called the NYGz. They’re the over-50 rappers that will bust your ass in lyrics and put it down hardbody, shouts to Panchii and Shabino. And the album is fully produced by me as well, and it’s going to really shock a lot of people. It’s adult rap, but everything is so relatable on how they rhyme, and the topics. You know, I don’t really talk about my projects like that, but I stand on it that it’s definitely going to do what it’s supposed to do. Then also me and Ransom did a product, an EP. I have a few EPs in the stash that I’m working on.

This EP era is becoming actually a really dope thing, because you can just cut five records and you’re ready to go — and then on top of that, it just keeps your name out there properly. As long as it’s with thorough artists that know how to deliver their end, cause I’ma deliver mine.

Do you feel like it’s easier to be an independent artist today?

R.M.: I mean, yeah, I would say. We have online stores, we have social media. There’s no need for a middleman anymore — so it’s definitely much easier now, because we can speak directly to the to the consumers.

P: And you don’t have to wait for six other albums on the label to come out. If I want to drop something tomorrow, I can, and that’s the beauty of it.

R.M.: Freedom is everything.