Rick Rubin

Frederick Jay "Rick" Rubin is an American record producer and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin is probably best known for helping popularize hip-hop music with artists like Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Public Enemy and Run-DMC. In 2007, MTV called him "the most important producer of the last 20 years", and the same year Rubin appeared on Time 's 100 Most Influential People in the World.

Rubin first worked with The Smashing Pumpkins on "Let Me Give the World to You" in 1998, then later on Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol. 1 / LP: No Past. No Future. No Sun. and Billy Corgan's second solo album, Ogilala.

I think he has an incredible ear for clarity. If you present something three different ways he’ll pick the way that is most clear. And what I mean by clear is the way that would then translate to people all over the world. What he’s attracted to is what a lot of other people would be attracted to. If you look at that which has been most successful for Rick it’s those things that are super clear, like they’re clear on first listen. And I don’t care if you’re talking about the Beasties or Slayer. He has a way of navigating to the heart of the matter. As an artist, that can be kind of weird because, in many ways, it feels like it’s not enough, like there should be more. I’ll give you a perfect example, during the recording sessions he played me one of his favorite Neil Diamond songs that I never heard. It was mid-‘70s Neil Diamond and he was literally in tears because he loved the song so much. And his point for showing me the song was to illustrate a certain emotional quality that Neil captured on the song. And that was his way of communicating, “Gee, I wish you would get some of this in what you’re doing.” But he wouldn’t tell you how to do that, nor would he want to manipulate you.