Pete Rock sings while adjusting a knob on the mixer to demonstrate that he had added his own vocal harmonies to his song “T.R.O.Y.” Credit: Daniel Bush | Campus Photo Editor
Pete Rock descended onto the stage of the Wexner Center for the Arts, joining friend, fellow musician and Assistant Professor of Hip Hop Jason Rawls — who goes by J Rawls — to explore Rock’s music and discuss his journey to success.
Rock and Rawls’ conversation at the Wex was part of a new lecture series called “Diggin in the Crates,” and is focused on the philosophy of producing beats, Rawls said.
“This lecture series is designed for us to gain insight and understanding into a master producer’s style, their skills, how they look at music and how producers listen to music,” Rawls said.
During the Thursday performance at the Wex, as Rawls played iconic songs sampled in Rock’s music such as “I Love Music” by the Ahmad Jamal Trio and “People Moving” by Azar Lawrence, Rock reminisced on discovering his golden samples, sometimes only making up a mere few seconds of runtime.
Specifically, Rock discussed finding the song “Guarde nos Olhos,” by Ivan Lins.
“[Lins] looked real cool on the cover,” Rock said “That’s what made me want to listen. My ears, I just turned them on, and went deep down. I was a little high, too.”
J Rawls introduces Pete Rock and discusses OSU’s hip hop studies program on Thursday. Credit: Daniel Bush | Campus Photo Editor
When discussing how DJ’ing has been undervalued as an art form and craft, Rawls said his upbringing played a role in his career.
“When I was going to school here on the south side of Columbus, I told my dad, ‘Yo, I would love to go to college to make beats,’” Rawls said.
He said his father didn’t share his aspirations, telling him to pursue a business degree instead.
With this in mind, Rawls said it’s important to make music studies more accessible at universities. He has strived to do this by helping to create the Hip-Hop Ohio Patton Education program at Ohio University, the “first of its kind in higher education,” according to the Ohio State School of Music.
Rawls said he is working to launch a minor, “The Hip Hop and Creative Practice in Popular Music” in the Spring 2026 semester at Ohio State.
“The fact that we are working towards [creating] a hip hop studies minor in the School of Music and [the department of] African American and African studies, is the big deal,” Rawls said.
Rock, a New York City native born to Jamaican immigrant parents, shared stories of how his father fostered his interest in hip hop, remembering the first time when his father brought one, then two new rap records home in one week.
“My pops was liking rap before me,” Rock said. “He’s buying these records, and telling me to come down and listen, and I’m listening and soaking up the music like a sponge. He played a lot of jazz, a lot of classical, but originally we’re from Jamaica, so reggae was our first love.”
Rock shared some advice for young, up-and-coming producers.
“They need to put more care into the music,” Rock said “The way they’re doing it, you can hear that you don’t give a d—. When you care about it, it blossoms. The youngins need to learn what originality is and add it to their music. Always keep that in your music.”
Rawls discussed Ohio State’s new DJ’ing course, “Art and Skills of Being a DJ,” calling attention to some students of the class who were in attendance as well as Otis Sharp — DJ O Sharp — who teaches the course and began Thursday’s event with an hour of DJ’ing.
Rock took a wide range of questions from the audience before moving to the museum lobby for a meet and greet. Fans bought out the Wex’s supply of Pete Rock and Common’s 2024 album “The Auditorium Vol. 1,” which many then had signed during the meet and greet.
