Professor P & Dj Akilles

Professor P and DJ Akilles are a critically acclaimed duo from Sweden that is all about the foundation of hip hop; beats, rap and scratch. They’ve been supporting act to such hip-hop legends as De La Soul, D.I.T.C., and Talib Kweli, and has received attention worldwide with their 2007 album Patience, their subsequent mixtapes and the vinyl release Maintain EP of 2010. Pro & Ak finds a lot of inspiration from hip hop groups where the collaboration between the rapper and the DJ are of great importance, such as; Gang Starr, Dilated Peoples, Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, and Lords of the Underground. The interaction between rapper and DJ is Pro & Ak’s signum at their live shows. The shows are well rehearsed, filled with unexpected features and crowd-pleasing surprises. This is their story: When Petter "Professor P" Tarland (born 1985) decided to leave his hometown Lund for Uppsala, Sweden he was no newcomer to the Swedish hip hop scene. In his early teens the name Professor P started revolving among the hip hop heads as one of the most talented youngsters in the business, mainly because of his witty punchlines and freestyle skills way above average. But still, after many years on stage, collaborations with some of Sweden’s biggest hip hop-stars (Afasi & Filthy, Snook, Chords, Organismen, etc.) and being top ranked in most of Scandinavia’s battle tournaments he still didn’t have a DJ by his side. Viktor "DJ Akilles" Backemar (also born 1985) is born and raised in Uppsala. When he bought his first turntable at the age of fourteen he knew what he wanted to do in life. He wanted to become one of Sweden’s best DJ’s, he wanted to touch people’s soul’s with the music he played, and he wanted to feel the power of setting the mood for a whole night by just placing the needle on the record. He defined his skills as a scratch-DJ throughout many years of playing at clubs and concerts, but he still didn’t have a rapper by his side. Let’s fast-forward a couple of years. A rapper without a DJ and a DJ without a rapper, but both of them very talented, hook up for the first time. The only possible scenario is to start working together, and of course, that was also the outcome. Pro & Ak immediately realize they love the same kind of music, hip hop that sounds like the hip hop they both grew up with. Soulful, sample based, 90′s hip hop with a lot of scratch and lyrics that reflect they’re reality. A perfect concept. A few years later, in 2007 to be exact, the gentlemen decide that they are ready for the world to hear what they have been working on. They release Professor P’s debut album Patience. Hip hop heads all over Sweden greeted the record with open arms and a lot of people ranked Patience as Swedish hip hop album of the year. After a couple of months filled with live shows Professor P and DJ Akilles went back in the studio to work on new projects. The final results were two mixtapes, He’s the DJ, I’m the rapper (2008) and Large Professor P (2009) and countless of collaborations with the Swedish hip hop elite (such as AFC, Supersci, Prop Dylan, Daniel Adams-Ray, etc). Maintain EP – 6 tracks of timeless hip hop satisfaction – was released digitally and on a limited vinyl edition (100 copies) November 3rd 2010. All copies where signed and numbered by the artists and the first copy was sold at Tradera.se (a Ebay company) a week before the official release date for 830 SEK (approximately 90 Euros or 120 USD). The EP is entirely produced by Professor P & DJ Akilles themselves and has two guest appearances. Two hip hop legends from two different countries. The king of Skåne (a region in the very south of Sweden) Timbuktu and the world famous DJ Static representing Denmark. The fact that these two individuals chose to participate on the record proves its quality and strengthens the already proven fact that is; Pro & Ak is well respected in the business. Mainatain EP became somewhat of a underground success. The duo toured Sweden with the EP and made 35 shows all aound the country, 15 of these as the opening act of pop sensation Daniel Adams-Ray. The two singles of the EP Do What’s On Your Mind featuring Timbuktu and Faillin’ where frequently played at various stations on Swedish National Radio. The Realism is Professor P & DJ Akilles’ latest project – a full-length album consisting of twelve brilliant tracks with everyday realistic lyrics that feels contemporary, keen and written from within the heart. Professor P really blossoms as a MC and Akilles, a master behind the turntables, makes it all rock properly. The Realism is a more personal, self-confident and more mature version of their earlier releases. Classic hip-hop at a level that is hard to beat not only in Sweden, but also throughout the entire continent. The album features guest appearances by Promoe (of Looptroop Rockers), Adam Tensta Rigael Damar, Sadat X, and Daniel Adams-Ray – a guest list that gives you a hint of what status Professor P & DJ Akilles have within the industry. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.