Gregory Keltgen, better known by his stage name DJ Abilities, is an American underground hip hop producer and DJ signed to

Rhymesayers Entertainment Rhymesayers Entertainment (sometimes abbreviated RSE) is an American independent hip-hop record label based in Minneapolis. History Rhymesayers Entertainment was co-founded in 1995 by Sean Daley (Slug), Anthony Davis (Ant), Musab Saad (Sab th ...

who is based in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

. He is a founding member of

Eyedea & Abilities Eyedea & Abilities (often abbreviated as E&A) was an American hip hop duo from Saint Paul, Minnesota, consisting of rapper Eyedea and DJ Abilities. The duo was founded in 1999 and became a prominent figure of the underground hip hop scene, bec ...

alongside

Eyedea Micheal David Larsen (November 9, 1981 – October 16, 2010), better known by his stage name Eyedea, was an American musician, rapper, and poet. He was a freestyle battle champion and songwriter from Saint Paul, Minnesota. Larsen had appear ...

Semi.Official Semi.Official is an American hip hop group from Minnesota. It consists of I Self Devine and DJ Abilities. The duo released the debut album, ''The Anti-Album'', on Rhymesayers Entertainment in 2003. In 2011, ''Complex (magazine), Complex'' listed t ...

, and

I Self Devine Chaka Mkali (born 1972), better known by his stage name I Self Devine, is an American hip hop musician based in Minneapolis. He has been a member of groups such as The Dynospectrum, Micranots, and Semi.Official. In 2012, '' City Pages'' describ ...

. DJ Abilities is a member of 1200 Hobos and was also a member of

Atmosphere An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A s ...

at one point. He has won two regional DJ championships for the

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

region.

Career

DJ Abilities released '' First Born'', a debut album with the rapper

, in 2001. He handled the turntable work on

El-P Jaime Meline (born March 2, 1975), better known by the stage name El-P (shortened from his previous stage name El Producto), is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Starting his career as a member of Company Flow, he has been a ...

's 2002 solo debut album ''

Fantastic Damage ''Fantastic Damage'' is the first solo studio album by American hip hop artist El-P. It was released through Definitive Jux on May 14, 2002. It peaked at number 198 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. Music videos were created for "Stepfather Factory" ...

''. Two more collaborative albums with Eyedea, '' E&A'' (2004) and '' By the Throat'' (2009), were both released on

Eyedea & Abilities has been honored with a star on the outside mural of the

nightclub First Avenue, recognizing performers that have played sold-out shows or have otherwise demonstrated a major contribution to the culture at the iconic venue. Receiving a star "might be the most prestigious public honor an artist can receive in Minneapolis," according to journalist Steve Marsh. DJ Abilities won the Midwest regionals in the 1999 and 2001

DMC World DJ Championships DMC World DJ Championships is an annual DJ competition hosted by Disco Mix Club (DMC) which began in 1985. Championships were sponsored internationally by Technics (brand), Technics, but in 2010 Technics has been replaced by Serato and Rane Corpo ...

. ''

City Pages ''City Pages'' was an alternative newspaper serving the Minneapolis–St. Paul metropolitan area. It featured news, film, theatre and restaurant reviews and music criticism, available free every Wednesday. It ceased publication in 2020 due to a ...

'' noted that he and Eyedea for their ability to interact in live on stage performances, as well as on record.

Discography

DJ mixes

* ''Finally'' (1997,

) * ''...For Persons with DJ Abilities'' (2000, Rhymesayers Entertainment) * ''Now! That's What I Call Fuck Off'' (2012, self-released) * ''The Blends'' (2014, self-released)

Productions

Deep Puddle Dynamics Deep Puddle Dynamics was a collaborative group featuring underground hip hop artists Sole, Doseone, Alias and Slug. History Deep Puddle Dynamics released the album '' The Taste of Rain... Why Kneel?'' on Anticon in 1999. Discography Albums * ...

- "Deep Puddle Theme Song", "Thought vs. Action" and "Where the Wild Things Are" from '' The Taste of Rain... Why Kneel?'' (1999) All E&A albums.

Guest appearances

Rusty Ps The Rusty Ps is a hip hop/rap group based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Initially known as the ''Rusty Pelicans'' after forming in 1995, its membership currently consists of Phantom Channel (MC), Count Classic (MC), S Watson (production), and Madhatt ...

- "All I Have" from ''Out of Many'' (2001) * Unknown Prophets - "The Wrong Route" from ''World Premier'' (2001) *

- ''

'' (2002) *

Mr. Lif Jeffrey Haynes (born December 28, 1977), better known by his stage name Mr. Lif, is an American rapper from Boston, Massachusetts. While being praised because of his political lyrics, he has released two studio albums on Definitive Jux and one ...

- "Return of the B-Boy" from ''

I Phantom ''I Phantom'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Mr. Lif. It was produced mostly by alternative hip hop artist El-P, among others, at Boston Butta Beats in Boston and the New York City-based Steel Acres, The Danger Room, and Def Jux Stud ...

'' (2002) *

One Be Lo Nahshid Sulaiman (born Ralond Scruggs; November 7, 1976), better known by his stage name One Be Lo, is an alternative hip hop artist from Pontiac, Michigan. He is well respected for being one half of the rap duo Binary Star, and has released a n ...

- ''L.A.B.O.R.'' (2011) *

Killer Mike Michael Santiago Render (born April 20, 1975), better known by his stage name Killer Mike, is an American rapper, actor, and activist. Mike made his debut on Outkast's 2000 LP ''Stankonia'', and later appeared on their Grammy-winning single " ...

- "Go!" from ''

R.A.P. Music ''R.A.P. Music'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Killer Mike. It was released through Williams Street Records on May 15, 2012. The "R.A.P." in the album's title is a backronym for "Rebellious African People". Production was handled b ...

'' (2012) * Seez Mics - "Post Pathic Profiteers" from ''Cruel Fuel'' (2014) *

- Baby (Being a black youth) (2020)

References

External links

*
DJ Abilities
on

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abilities American hip hop DJs Rhymesayers Entertainment artists Living people Midwest hip hop musicians American hip hop record producers 1979 births