Amoeba Music

Producer and legendary A&R rep Dante Ross signs and reads from his new book, Son of the City, at Amoeba Berkeley on Saturday, July 8th at 2pm. Includes DJ sets from Dante Ross & DJ Platurn plus a Q&A with journalist David Ma, Demone Carter, and Nate LeBlanc of DadBodRapPod. Hosted by Del the Funky Homosapien!

Buy copies of Son of the City at Amoeba Berkeley starting July 5th to secure your place in the signing line on July 8th.

Dante Ross
You might not know his name, but you’ve heard his work.
Dante Ross, born in San Francisco and raised by political activists on New York’s pre-gentrified Lower East Side, would play a pivotal role in the golden age of hip-hop. Named as one of Complex Magazine’s Top 25 Greatest Hip-Hop A&Rs, Ross got his start at Tommy Boy Records, where he would sign and handle the careers of De La Soul and Queen Latifah. At Elektra Records, he would go on to sign Brand Nubian, Grand Puba, Pete Rock & CL Smooth, KMD, Busta Rhymes, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard.

As a producer, he has worked on a range of hit records by artists such as 3rd Bass, Del the Funky Homosapien, Run-DMC, and Everlast, including the multi-platinum album Whitey Ford Sings the Blues and the gold follow-up, Eat at Whitey’s. Ross earned a Grammy in 1999 for his production work on Carlos Santana’s Supernatural and also produced and co-wrote two songs featuring Macy Gray and Young Z for the soundtrack to Eminem’s 8 Mile.

In this highly entertaining memoir, Ross pulls no punches as he details his chaotic childhood, his life in hip-hop, and all the hard lessons he learned growing up in New York as a true son of the city.

DJ Platurn
A 28-year veteran of the music industry, Platurn has traveled the world many times over, bringing quality music to multiple corners of the globe. With a client list that includes Red Bull, Netflix, Toyota, HBO, Adidas, Pixar, Puma, Hulu, Monster Cable, MTV, and the Golden State Warriors (to name a few), he’s built a reputation as a music man with vision plus a deep sense of community, and has preserved crucial aspects of DJ and music culture. Founder of Platurn Productions, The 45 Sessions, and the Oakland Faders, Platurn has solidified himself as a force to be reckoned with in the ever-changing entertainment industry landscape.

Del the Funky Homosapien
The Bay Area's own Del the Funky Homosapien is a rapper, producer, and pioneer of underground hip-hop. He's known for founding The Hieroglyphics Crew and contributing to Deltron 3030, as well as collaborating with the Gorillaz.

DadBodRapPod
DadBodRapPod is a Hip-Hop discussion podcast that showcases the opinions of an emcee, a writer, and a record collector, and features interviews with rap music's most well-respected figures past and present. Over the last 5 years, hosts Demone Carter, David Ma, and Nate Le Blanc have amassed an archive of over 250 episodes, including conversations with a wide array artists, producers, writers and other rap luminaries such as Too Short, DJ Shadow, DMC, billy woods, and Roxanne Shante. DadBodRapPod is a proud member of the Stony Island Audio network.