Che Pope | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 3, 1970 |
| Origin | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Labels | |
| Website | wrkshp |
Che Pope (born May 3, 1970) is an American record executive, record producer, and songwriter from Boston, Massachusetts, also the former COO of GOOD Music and the founder of Wrkshp Media.[1] He is perhaps best known for producing on the Grammy Award for Album of the Year winning album Miseducation of Lauryn Hill and the Grammy-nominated "Bound 2" by Kanye West,[2] as well as executive producing Cruel Summer[3] and co-executive producing Yeezus.[4][5]
Pope entered the music industry in 1994 signed to Teddy Riley, after Riley was introduced to Pope's instrumentals via a mutual friend. In 1995, Pope relocated to New York where he began producing for Wyclef Jean and The Fugees, accruing credits on the tracks Destiny Child's “No, No, No Part 2”, “Ghetto Supastar”, “Gone Til November”, among others.[6] While working with Jean, Pope was introduced to Lauryn Hill, who invited him to produce and write with her on several projects including Aretha Franklin's "A Rose Is Still A Rose", Carlos Santana's "Do You Like The Way", The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, and more. Pope's production on The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill earned him his first Grammy win.[7] Due to improper crediting and compensation, several lawsuits stemmed from the project.[8] Pope and his then co-producer opted not involve themselves in the ongoing litigation surrounding the album, but parted ways with the production team to pursue independent efforts.[9]
After his time working with Hill, Pope continued to produce projects in both domestic and foreign markets. In 1999, he was hired as the Vice President of A&R at Warner Bros Records.[7] Pope later moved to Los Angeles to explore film composition. Pope was hired by composer Hans Zimmer as a staff producer, contributing production to over 150 films, television shows, and commercials. Pope parted ways with Zimmer's studio in 2000.[9] Pope was introduced to Dr. Dre through a mutual friend and subsequently offered a position on the latter's immediate production team, with whom he collaborated for over 8 years. Pope worked on Aftermath projects including projects by Eminem and 50 Cent among others. In an interview for the podcast "A Waste of Time", Pope estimated that he had produced over 1,000 unreleased tracks for Dr. Dre and the Aftermath during his tenure with the label.[10]
In 2012, Pope joined G.O.O.D. Music as a partner, as well as head of A&R. In addition to his administrative work for the label, Pope continued to produce for the label's signed artists. In 2014 he was named Chief Operations Officer of G.O.O.D.[11] Pope is also credited with establishing the initial collaborative relationship between West and apparel company Adidas, the distributor of the Yeezy clothing line.[9] Recent production from Pope includes the tracks "Jukebox Joints" on ASAP Rocky's album At. Long. Last. ASAP[12] and "Tell Your Friends" on The Weeknd's 2015 release Beauty Behind the Madness with West, Illangelo and Mike Dean.
| Year | Nominee / Work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Kanye West - "Bound 2"[13] | Best Rap Song | Nominated |
| 2015 | Kanye West - "All Day" | Best Rap Song | Nominated |
| 2015 | The Weeknd - Beauty Behind the Madness | Album of the Year | Nominated |
