Copperpot

Copperpot derived his performing name from a character in the film The Goonies and also records as Chester Copperpot. Based in Chicago, the DJ and producer first gained traction in underground rap through close ties to the rising British hip-hop community. Drawing on a broad range of influences that runs from Duran Duran to DJ Premier, he assembles beats along conventional lines, yet the material he samples—East Asian folk, choral music, video game scores, and Eastern European jazz-funk—supplies his tracks with distinctive textures.

Daniel Kuypers was born in Chicago, Illinois, on February 15, 1979. By the middle of the 1990s he had turned from skateboarding to turntablism and developed a serious commitment to hip-hop. After graduating from high school in Evanston, Illinois, in 1997, he attended four different colleges, where he studied poetry, English, and music theory while intending to become a teacher. Dissatisfaction with the state of hip-hop at the end of the millennium led him to purchase his first MPC in 2000.

A writing program took him to the Czech Republic, but he instead spent the time sharpening his beat-making skills and traveling throughout Europe, where he met Braintax, CEO and rapper of Low Life Records, in the United Kingdom. Returning to Chicago in 2001, he devoted himself to hip-hop production, joined the local turntablist group Phonograph Scientists for Midwest performances, and earned his first production credit on Walk Thru Walls (2001) by Qwazaar of Typical Cats.

The following year brought his first release, the 12-inch “Chapter Seven, Verse One,” which featured Chicago rappers Bamski the Bigot and Iomos Marad. Local label EV Productions then issued the remaining “Chapter Seven”-themed singles, which included prominent appearances by Braintax, as well as the debut album Chapter Seven (2005). Copperpot retained the recurring title because credit-card debt incurred for music, equipment, and European travel ultimately forced him to declare bankruptcy. Distribution through Braintax’s Low Life imprint brought the strongest reviews in the United Kingdom.

The second album, WYLA? (2007), received praise on both sides of the Atlantic. Guest spots from golden-age figures KRS-One and Masta Ace confirmed his standing as a reliable producer, while contributions from Tortoise guitarist Jeff Parker and Isotope 217 bassist Matthew Lux furthered his development as a composer.