RIP Larry Smith, Legendary Hip Hop Producer For Run-DMC, Whodini

Larry Smith, the Queens-bred record producer responsible for some of rap music’s most iconic songs by artists like Run-DMC and Whodini has died.

Smith came up with bombastic tracks for Run-DMC, helping usher them into to the annals of American pop music history, cementing the use of drum machines and sampling into the early days of hip hop’s Golden Era. He also produced hit singles for Whodini, including the equally iconic “Friends” and “Five Minutes of Funk.”

His style of production, dubbed “Krush Groove,” created a sonic template that many rap records of the 1980s went on to mirror.

Larry Smith has been saddled by a stroke he suffered in 2007, which left him unable to speak.

Rip to the greatest hip hop producer of all times…. Larry Smith. Produced my biggest and most significant hits..

— Rev Run (@RevRunWisdom) December 19, 2014

RIP Larry Smith. King of Rock http://t.co/kqEPUeTXYD

— Reggie Ossé (@Combat_Jack) December 19, 2014

Read a recent feature on Larry Smith on Ebony.com.

WATCH: Run-DMC – Sucka MCs (produced by Larry Smith)