Madlib Discography (2024)

After a 20-year wait, the sequel Madvillainy 2: The Madlib Remixes (2008) and the 2024 release of raw Madvillainy demos and alternate cuts continue to feed the legend. While DOOM was the supervillain, Dudley Perkins (now Declaime) was the soulful counterpart. Madlib produced Perkins' A Lil' Light (2003), an album that sits perfectly between Dilla-esque soul and psychedelic funk. The track "Flowers" remains a underground classic.

Tracks like "Whenimondamic" and "Questions" showcase a young producer already operating with the complexity of a seasoned jazz bandleader. This era established the "Madlib sound"—raw, tactile, and overwhelmingly human. Perhaps the most audacious chapter of the Madlib discography is the invention of Yesterdays New Quintet (YNQ) . Claiming to be a five-piece jazz ensemble that had been recording since the 1970s, Madlib revealed that he played every instrument himself , manipulating tape speeds and recording techniques to sound like a forgotten Blue Note Records session. Madlib Discography

The follow-up, Bandana (2019), saw Madlib refine his craft further. Using the OP-1 synthesizer and cleaner mixing, tracks like "Crime Pays" and "Flat Tummy Tea" prove that Madlib can make "clean" music without losing his dust. This duo single-handedly revived the "rapper-producer album" format in the streaming era. Madlib’s recent output shows no sign of slowing down. Rock Konducta (2011, but widely released later) saw him flip 70s Turkish psych rock and German krautrock, proving his sample interests are infinite. After a 20-year wait, the sequel Madvillainy 2:

Madvillainy is a masterpiece of asymmetry. Madlib sent DOOM a "brick" of beats (unedited loops), and DOOM rapped over them in chaotic, stream-of-consciousness verses. The result, tracks like "Accordion," "Meat Grinder," and "All Caps," sounds like a radio transmission from a collapsing universe. The beats are short, abrasive, looped vinyl crackles, and jazz stabs. This album redefined what sampling could be, moving from "borrowing" to outright "collaging." The track "Flowers" remains a underground classic