The name John Hillyard might be unfamiliar to many of our readers, even though you’ve likely seen him before. He is the man on the cover of US pressings of DJ Shadow’s single Midnight in a Perfect World (FFRR, 1997), and the source of many samples from Shadow’s seminal LP Endtroducing..... (Mo Wax, 1996). So who was he, and why did his photo appear on the Midnight record? 🎵 This article can be read while listening to a selection of songs John Hillyard worked on, songs made b

"I've always loved electro and old school rap. Stuff where if you get a feel for it, it's unmistakable and it's also undeniable..."

"I always had a dream of having my own label, so soon after Mo Wax Japan came to an end, I started Rush! Production..."

"I remember James Lavelle saying "I'm looking for the holy grail for Mo Wax in Japan," and so this was already very intriguing for me..."

"I love the cat among the records! It's the notion that everything there has already gone through some kind of human cycle."

"I didn't have a computer so the first [Bomb Hip Hop Magazine] issue is actually done on my mum’s typewriter..."

"I suppose my A&R career started, probably in 1995-96 [...] I was 24 so it was a foot in the door for me as a young London DJ..."