Earl Davis (born June 8, 1984), known professionally as Damu the Fudgemunk, is an American hip-hop producer, multi-instrumentalist, DJ, and rapper from
Washington, D.C.[1][2][3] Damu is a member of the groups
Y Society and
Panacea, and he co-owns and operates Redefinition Records.[4][5]
Career
Davis was raised by two musician parents, and he began making beats in his teens.[6] His official debut album was with Y Society, a duo project with rapper Insight;[7] the record, Travel at Your Own Pace, was released by
Tres Records in 2007.[8] The album is reminiscent of true-school hip-hop with its liberal use of jazz, soul samples, and scratching. In 2008, Damu released two free albums primarily composed of instrumental music, titled Spare Time[9] and Overtime. He developed a fan base through his
YouTube videos and live street performances around Washington, DC, and New York City,[10] using a portable electricity generator to power his
sampler and speakers.
Damu co-owns and operates the vinyl/cassette-enthusiast label Redefinition Records, through which he also releases the bulk of his own music.[11]
In 2019, he collaborated with Raw Poetic and legendary jazz saxophonist
Archie Shepp on the improvised album Ocean Bridges,[3] which he released on his label the following year.[12]
In January 2020, Damu visited the London
KPM music library,[13] renowned for a collection that has been sampled by artists including
MF Doom and
Jay-Z.[14] Damu was invited as the first artist to be featured on the Def Pressé / KPM Crate Diggers series, an initiative to release records extensively featuring samples from the library; his work with material from the archives resulted in the album Conversation Peace.[1]