As Grand Hustle has developed star producers ranging from the veteran DJ Toomp to Danja to Drumma Boy, another face and sound might be next. Jackson, Mississippi's Cordale "Lil C" Quinn might be just 21, but he's got more stripes under his belt than many older colleagues. Most recently, Lil C produced the Pop-fused "Porn Star" for T.I.'s [click to read] Paper Trail [click to read].
However, as far back as 2005, Lil C was locking down major placements, like "My Hood," the final single from Young Jeezy's debut. "From high school, I was just hustlin' beats. Instead of being in the streets," C told HipHopDX late last week. "I was doing the music thing. I started sellin' beats to different dudes that was rappin' in high school - maybe they or their parents had money; I used to sell beats from $500 to [1,000]. It helped pay the bills and shit like that."
Although "My Hood" might've been a single, Lil C found his biggest success to date producing Yung Dro's 2006 hit "Shoulder Lean." According the then-teenage producer, it was an instant single. "It didn't take Tip but like 15 minutes to hear the beat and [place it as a single]. That's when the [Grand Hustle] chemistry started, right there."
The chemistry did follow. "After 'My Hood,' I was coming back and forth from Jackson to Atlanta with a friend of mine. I met Jason Geter, which is T.I.'s manager. That's like my right-hand man. I moved to Atlanta, made this home. It took a year, that's when I hooked up with him [and worked on] the Yung Dro album - had like four tracks on his first album [Best Thang Smokin'] [click to read]."
Being part of one of the fastest-growing, most respected labels and families in Hip Hop has elevated C's profile. "I was always doing my own thing, workin' with other artists from different [cities] like Dallas, New York, Cali. When I got with [Grand Hustle], it just made me certified."
After hits with front-runners T.I. and Yung Dro, Lil C is now connecting with more recent and younger Grand Hustle artists. "Working with Yung L.A. has been a crazy experience. B.o.B. [click here], same thing, he's a wonderful artist. I just talked to him today. I got a banger on [his album] too. Yung Dro, 8Ball & MJG - that's two of my favorite artists right there, since 'Space Age.' It's just crazy to work with legends," said the 21 year-old.
Of his most recent hit, "Porn Star," the producer said he looked at T.I.'s previous catalogue for inspiration. "When I made that record, I knew we had to come up with a big song for the females. I thought about it...Tip being Tip, he's always gonna have the 'Let's Get Away' - the 'Why You Wanna' on the album, so I had to give him somethin' - I had to step it up. [Laughs]"
Although Lil C would not disclose artists, the Mississippi native says he hopes to take his abilities to the Pop genre next, and has work lined up for 2009.