Mark Batson, the Grammy-winning producer behind some of hip-hop’s most powerful records, recently opened up about what he calls the “grimiest” and most electric studio session of his career — and of course, it involved Dr. Dre and Eminem. In a new interview, Batson painted a vivid picture of the now-legendary moment: smoke in the air, the bass cranked high, and two of hip-hop’s most obsessive perfectionists battling each other bar-for-bar and beat-for-beat. “It wasn’t just music,” Batson said. “It was war. Creative war. No egos — just fire. Eminem walked in already hyped. Dre had this loop playing, just this dirty, raw piano with no drums. And Em goes, ‘Don’t touch it. I want it like that.’”
Mark Batson took a trip down memory lane, recalling the raw energy of the Relapse era and his work on one of its darkest tracks.
Acclaimed producer and classically trained pianist Mark Batson, known for his work with Dr. Dre, Eminem, and 50 Cent, among many others, recently shared his thoughts on one of the most haunting tracks from the “Relapse: Refill” album, “Buffalo Bill”.
Reacting to a video analysing the track’s intricate rhyme scheme, Batson posted:
Buffalo Bill
hands down one of the grimiest beats I ever worked on with Dre and Em in the grimiest of eras.
He followed it up with a second post, doubling down:
I reminisce on that era sometimes. So so gangsta and grimy!!!!!
“Buffalo Bill” remains one of the standout deep cuts from “Relapse: Refill”, capturing the eerie, horrorcore sound that defined Eminem’s creative direction in that era. Batson’s memories give fans a rare glimpse into the studio chemistry behind a raw, twisted track built by some of hip hop’s sharpest minds.
Listen to “Buffalo Bill” on the album below: