You can’t claim to eat, live and breathe hip-hop music, if you commence to wrinkling your brow when asked if you know about Cincinnati’s versatile producer, Hi-Tek (aka Tekzilla). If you happen to adopt that Kevin Arnold “Wonder Years” look when asked the question, take two scoops of this knowledge and get back to us.

He’s the cat who constructed the sonic backdrops to Black Star’s classics “Definition”, Redifinition” and “Respiration.” He eventually joined Talib Kweli to form the heralded group Reflection Eternal and further established his name on his own Hi-Teknology (vol. 1 & 2) series. In the last four years he has found himself abusing his MPC pads for the likes of Dr. Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment, 50 Cent, Common, Beanie Sigel, Lloyd Banks, and Snoop Dogg.

Currently a staff producer and talent scout for Aftermath, Tek has his artist, Dion, signed to the label as well. Keeping keen about the alliances that can help a career soar, he’s joined Sha Money XL’s Money Management Group [MMG], which will ultimately help him in reaching all of those “fans” who needed those to scoops just to get to where many of us have already been taken by his rich sonic renderings created over the last decade. Hi-Tek sat down with us recently and talked about his evolution as a producer, and why the latest disc he’s cooked up, Hi-Teknology Vol.3, is sure to have purists saying “bon appetít.”

Scheme: Yo Tek, what’s good man?!

Hi-Tek:What’s poppin’ Bliz?

Scheme: Let’s kick this sh*t off. We all know about Hi-Teknology and Hi-Teknology Vol.2…Did you expect this to expand to three volumes?

Hi-Tek: Well, the first one I was kind of forced into. After I completed the first one I definitely wanted to do more.

Scheme:So Rawkus basically threw it in your lap since you were already working with Rawkus artists?

Hi-Tek: Right. It was supposed to be an EP situation, where it was gonna be instrumental. So after we recorded the Reflection Eternal album, I did the EP, but they never put it out. I just asked them to let me do an album and that’s how it all started.

Scheme: Reflection Eternal. Simply a classic and most purists should have it in their iPods. You and Kwe have a very storied history. We know about the creative separation and y’all still maintain a great working relationship. How did that relationship develop with Kwe?

Hi-Tek:I met Kwe through some cats I was workin’ with outta Cincinnati; a group called Mood. They had a deal with TVT Records and they used to fly back and forth to New York a lot. To make a long story short, they met Kweli and introduced him to me. Kwe came to Cincinnati and I had these beats and my own camp. I really wasn’t in Mood’s camp, I had my own camp. You know…they knew I had all these beats and I was looking to work with someone from New York basically. I always loved New York’s style of hip hop so I began flying to New York and giving him beats. He already had the group [Reflection Eternal] with a couple other people and it eventually came down to just me and him. Kwe’s always been a dope emcee and I was always dope on the beats. We just came together.

Scheme: Speaking of beats, I was on Youtube a while ago and peeped the clip of you constructing a beat from Scratch. Babygrande [Records] threw that out there, so I’m sure it was for promotional use only. Can you speak on your process a little?

Hi-Tek: [laughs] Yeaaah… definitely promotional only! I can’t give anybody my true blueprint. [laugs] They were saying that people wanted to see me [make a beat], but I definitely won’t give anybody my raw.

Scheme: [laughs] No, not the raw! So in the course of a cool eight hour day, how many beats do you think you can knock out?

Hi-Tek: I mean if there was a contest, I could probably do 30 beats. The thing is don’t like to work like that though. My thing is I just don’t make beats; my thing is the production, so I might take all day on one track. I like to make a beginning and an end on every track. I just don’t like to throw out beats. I like to take my time.

Scheme: Yeah man. I’ve been bangin’ that “My Piano” joint for the past couple days…

Hi-Tek: Ok, ok.

Scheme: That guitar you used is stupid man. I had to zone out to the sh*t and I was thinking “okay Tek, that’s how you close out a beat! That guitar is killin’ it right there.”

Hi-Tek: [laughs] Thanks man, good lookin’!

“…understanding where other big artists are at in their career. Sometimes the concept may not fit them. The track might be saying it’s right for Snoop, but the hook might not fit him because he may be past that level in his career. You gotta balance it all out and make sure the pieces of the puzzle fit together.”

Scheme: You have Ghost and Rae [Ghostface Killah and Raekwon the Chef] in the “My Piano” track. Arguably one of the illest duos hip-hop can claim. How do you go about securing artists for your albums?

Hi-Tek:I’m a big fan of Ghost and Rae man, so I it was just a pleasure to be able to work with them dudes. It was a great to have them bless a track that I want to hear them on. There was a time in my life where I didn’t have that kind of access and now I’m at the point where I can reach to people I have an ongoing relationship with. Who else could be on that track? The character of the track has their name written all over it.

Scheme: A lot of the time when you go in to lay a track, you can hear the character developing and have a vision of who that track will be best suited for?

Hi-Tek:Yeah, yeah. Once it’s kind of shaped up. A lot of times it has a lot to do with what the chorus is saying and the beat is saying, ya know. Also understanding where other big artists are at in their career. Sometimes the concept may not fit them. The track might be saying it’s right for Snoop, but the hook might not fit him because he may be past that level in his career. You gotta balance it all out and make sure the pieces of the puzzle fit together.

Scheme: I read the Scratch Magazine piece a while ago. I had spoke with Marsha [Ambrosius] a while ago about it and I know y’all have a serious gag order in effect, but can you drop any gem about Detox and collaborating with Dr. Dre??

Hi-Tek:I look up to Dre to this day. He’s a hip hop genius. He’s a well-rounded producer and his track record speaks for itself.

Scheme:So when you hit L.A. do you listen to the stuff he’s laid down and does he give you a vision to embellish on at all?

Hi-Tek: You never know where Dre is going with it. He just allows me to do me.

Scheme: Indeed. So what can Hi-Tek fans expect from Hi-Teknology Vol. 3 coming out on December 11th?

Hi-Tek: With this album man I really wanted to do a record [version] “Pulp Fiction.” With Volume 2, I had all these big-name artists on there and people were wondering how I got all these names. That was my brand and how I got solidified in this game. I’ve been away for a long time. I haven’t dropped an album in four years so I wanted to do something for the fans. I’ve been away for a long time doing production for 50 and Aftermath, Lloyd Banks ya know. That music still represents Hi-Tek as well, and the thing is as far as the Hi-Teknology brand that I gave back to those fans who bought the first album. There are some emotional, street records on this one.

“Find some knowledge of music so when you’re diggin’ through the crates you can find the love for the music and make your music from the heart. That way you can create the love for the music, as opposed to just making beats.”

Scheme: The fans will respect that. Do you have a label deal set up under Aftermath?

Hi-Tek:Nah, not at all.

Scheme:Will you be setting up a label in the future?

Hi-Tek:I’d love to.That’s actually one of my goals.

Scheme: I’m definitely rockin’ with your artist Dion. Dude’s voice is on point. I’d like to hear him rock with Marsha on a track.

Hi-Tek: Yeah he’s the truth.

Scheme: If you could get them two on a track, it’d be crazy.

Hi-Tek:Yeah it would, definitely.

Scheme: What gems can you drop on any up-and-coming producers looking to get on and make a living off of music?

Hi-Tek: Always do your studies; not just on hip hop producers, but any producers of music in general. Find some knowledge of music so when you’re diggin’ through the crates you can find the love for the music and make your music from the heart. That way you can create the love for the music, as opposed to just making beats. You can become a composer as opposed to just being a beat maker. That way when you making a beat you can always get yourself in the mode of really enjoying what you’re doing and that creates originality.