Josef Leimberg (born November 29, 1972) is a producer, lyricist, and trumpet player from Los Angeles. He contributed to Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy Award-winning album, To Pimp a Butterfly, and is currently signed with World Galaxy, the jazz imprint of Alpha Pup Records.
Career
Leimberg initially got his start in 1993 as a member of the group Mad Kap. They released one album on Loud Records, Look Ma Duke, No Hands, which featured the single "Proof Is In The Puddin'".[1][2] For several years, he collaborated heavily with Myka 9 and Freestyle Fellowship, producing the bulk of their albums American Nightmare,Work in Progress, and Temptations. He played trumpet on The Shape Shifters / Project Blowed posse cut elegy for DJ Rob One, "Rob One, Rock On."
In 2014, Leimberg linked up with Terrace Martin under a new alias LoveDragon. The two would collaborate on Kendrick Lamar’s upcoming project, the Grammy Award-winning LP, To Pimp a Butterfly. On the album, Lovedragon contributed to the track "You Ain’t Gotta Lie (Mama Said)" as well as the track "How Much a Dollar Cost" - which was President Barack Obama’s favorite song of 2015.[3] and featured "neck-snapping drums, a somber piano melody and heavenly horn stabs".[4] Leimberg's baritone vocals can also be found on the "Wesley's Theory" and "For Sale?". "As a trumpeter, Leimberg’s work appears in six tracks on To Pimp a Butterfly: "For Sale?", "Wesley's Theory," "These Walls," "Complexion (A Zulu Love)," "You Ain't Gotta Lie (Momma Said)" and "Mortal Man"[5]
In 2016, Leimberg released his first solo album Astral Progressions on World Galaxy, the jazz imprint of Alpha Pup Records, an independent label co-founded by Daddy Kev of Low End Theory. The album is a blend of jazz, ballads, hip hop, funk, and meditation.
National Public Radio member station KCRW presented a guest mix from Leimberg and also included his album Astral Progressions on "KCRW’s Best of 2016."[6]
Leimberg's music has also been featured on Hypebeast,[7] The Boombox of Townsquare Media,[8] Music Is My Sanctuary,[9] Soulbounce,[10] and DJBooth.[11]
Astral Progressions has been described by the Wall Street Journal as "stellar jazz-funk… heavy on virtuosic jazz solos…".[14] According to the Los Angeles Times, "Leimberg blasts into a decidedly cosmic realm...It’s a trippy record, thick with reverb, echo, layers of voices and a free-floating spirit that celebrates sonic spontaneity".[15]