Psycho Les

by Cyril CordorTeamed up with rhyme cohort JuJu, MC/producer Psycho Les (b. Lester Fernandez) staked out his claim in hip-hop as a member of the party-crazed underground Latin rap crew the Beatnuts when they formed in 1989. The Beatnuts' reputation for crate-digging obscure samples and grooves as well as their traditional hip-hop production techniques is partly due to Psycho Les' musical talents. In fact, On the Strength Entertainment gave him the opportunity to showcase his trained ears for old soul and funk records on the mix CD Music for the Soul, Vol. 1, first issued in 2005. Outside of the Beatnuts' work, he has produced for many artists, including Fat Joe, Inspectah Deck, Tony Touch, and Mos Def. In 2007 he finally put the finishing touches on his own solo album, Psycho Therapy, released through his Pit Fight Records label.