This was a time before Eminem 1 had even recorded his first album when he was struggling to attain recognition and authenticity, paddling up a river of hard-earned credibility bred in the slums and ghettos born in the backwash of the Reagan era a time when ‘whiteness’ in rap pretty much pertained only to the wait-is-this-a-joke of Vanilla Ice. “Juvenile Techniques” features the sort of whimsical production and light-hearted-rhymes-delivered-with-a-razor’s-edge characteristic of the New York sound in the early 90s. Between sold-out shows, festival appearances, comic-book tributes, Bernie Sanders endorsements–it’s safe to say Mike and Jaime are among the only two rappers in their 40s enjoying a career renaissance in hip-hop. Music being produced by El and then shortly thereafter two albums under the RTJ moniker, with a third on its way. Three years ago, El-P and Killer Mike released the self-titled Run The Jewels for free–a partnership that would come to fruition after the two were introduced by an Adult Swim exec for the network’s annual singles program, resulting in Killer Mike’s R.A.P.

Shortly after Jaime “El-P” Meline met Bigg Jus and the company was formed–in 1997 their debut LP, Funcrusher Plus made a quiet and prolonged splash on late-90s hip-hop and became a cult classic of the underground. Len whom Meline had just met at his own birthday the year before. 22 years ago, a barely formed group called Company Flow released their first single, “Juvenile Techniques,” featuring a 19-year-old Jaime Meline rapping over his own production and scratching by DJ Mr.

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