Mike Dean Reflects On Jay-Z & Kanye West's "In Paris"

Mike Dean celebrates one of his boldest production choices as he reflects on working with The Throne's hit single.

BYMitch Findlay
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While Kanye West and Jay-Z's creative partnership has taken a few hitches following the release of 2011's classic Watch The Throne, one thing has endured -- the music they made during their brief but spectacular reign. And while both rappers obviously contributed to the album's success, the work of the producers should not go uncelebrated. As Mike Dean was involved in the creation of several key Watch The Throne tracks, including the Hit-Boy produced "N***as In Paris," he recently opened up about some of his favorite moments behind-the-scenes.

Mike Dean Reflects On Jay-Z & Kanye West's "In Paris"
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Speaking on Beats 1, Dean cited his work on the smash hit to be the "boldest" production work of his career. "The "Paris" record from Watch The Throne, we were pushing boundaries, making samples out of Jay-Z and chopping them up," he recalls. "That was one of my first dope-ass endings. I went in the studio one day, had a hangover, and I kind of felt like how that ending sounds."

To think, it wouldn't have been possible were it not for Plain Pat, who introduced Dean and Kanye to begin with. He reveals that the pair originally connected after they both produced on Scarface's The Fix abum, with Kanye having laced the iconic "Guess Who's Back." From there, Mike and Kanye developed an appreciation for one another, and a longstanding creative relationship was forged as a result. Check out the full interview below. 


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About The Author
<b>Feature Editor</b> <!--BR--> Mitch Findlay is a writer and hip-hop journalist based in Montreal. Resident old head by default. Enjoys writing Original Content about music, albums, lyrics, and rap history. His favorite memories include interviewing J.I.D and EarthGang at the "Revenge Of The Dreamers 3" studio sessions in Atlanta and receiving a phone call from Dr. Dre. In his spare time he makes horror movies.