Rest in peace to Bay Area hip-hop producer Deon Evans (aka Big D, aka Big D The Impossible). He was known widely for his production work with Tupac Shakur in crafting such timeless 2Pac tracks as "If My Homie Calls" and "Brenda's Got A Baby" (co-produced with Underground Railroad), which was the lead first single off the rap icon's 1991 debut album 2Pacalypse Now. I got the sad news earlier this morning from longtime Oaklander Craig "C-Note" White, whose credits include working with Mac Mill back in the day when he was a part of the tight-knit East Bay rap scene along his old friend Deon Evans. This morning C-Note confirmed that Evans, who reportedly had a history of kidney and heart related health problems, had passed away sometime overnight. Even more tragic is the fact that the multi-platinum hip-hop producer was still a relatively young man of 45 years old.

Back in the day, Deon Evans was part of the East Bay hip-hop fabric and working with other artists such as Berkeley rapper/producer Clever Jeff. H e also contributed to Digital Underground and was a part of the extended family. DJ Fuze and Money B used to live a couple of blocks away and were always hanging out. His older brother James ran with the DU crew. The two appear in Digital Underground's "DooWutchYaLike" video. Pac was a part of that musical family too, and it is in hip-hop history books that Deon Evans' legacy will be mostly forever interlocked with Tupac's name. The list of 2Pac classics Evans produced includes "Changes," "Ghetto Gospel," "Papa'z Song," and "Point The Finga" with the latter two both off Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. On that 1993 2Pac album Evans went by his Big D the Impossible handle, and under it he also co-produced with Pac the album track "Something 2 Die 4."

The photo to the right is of Deon in the studio with Pac in 1992 while the recent photo below is culled from the late artist's Twitter page that was updated as recently as two weeks ago. Condolences to Deon's family and loved ones, including his surviving twin sister Dee Ann Evans.



Upon learning the news of Evans' passing today, Ne-Yo tweeted "Man....when it rains it pours. Rest In Peace Deon (Big D) Evans. The amazing friend and producer that gave me my name. Prayers to the fam." Growing up in the East Bay and hooked on hip-hop from an early age, the young Deon Evans was barely into his teens when he had begun making beats and teaching himself the craft in an age before laptops and the Internet. Fortunately he was lucky to be in the right place and the right time and to be surrounded by role models such as DJ talents CJ Flash and DJ Fuze with whom he attended Berkeley High School.



When Fuze's partner in Raw Fusion and Digital Underground, Money B, first met Evans, he was equally impressed with the the young producer's skills. Reportedly it was at a Raw Fusion concert where Evans first met Tupac. The two would go on to be friends and musical collaborators. Bas-One remembers those days well, telling the Amoeblog by phone that, "I remember Pac used to be sleeping on his couch in his home studio where they started working on 2Pacalypse Now - the early practice recordings before they went into Starlight Studios in Richmond." Bas-One, who himself is a Bay Area hip-hop living legend, recalled good times and "Deon's incredible personality. He was always so down to earth."



DJ Fuze (Raw Fusion, Digital Underground), when asked to comment on this sad day about his old friend, summed up Deon Evans' legacy beautifully. "Deon Evans was a homeboy of mine from the Old School, literally. We met at Berkeley High and I hung out at his house on Alcatraz Ave. with him and his two brothers and twin sister for a couple of years before DU popped, when I lived with Money B right around the corner on 63rd. It was a lot of good clean fun involving hip-hop culture; DJ'ing, rapping, producing beats, dancing, and talking smack. He was a true hip-hop head, and gear junkie! I'll always remember that he taught me the how to scratch like Joe Cooley! The last few times I saw him after he relocated to LA, I can say for a fact that his two boys adored him because they were hangin' all over him. Now that I have children that's how I will remember Deon Evans; as a great father, brother, son, and friend. I regret to say that I have not seen the brother in over 10 years."

Rest in Peace Deon Evans/Big D The Impossible.









2Pac "Brenda's Got A Baby"







2Pacalypse Now Part 2 "With Producer Deon Evans (Big D The Impossible)







Producer Deon Big D Evans working with 2Pac at Hyde St Studio's in San Francisco CA in 1992.







2Pac "If My Homie Calls"







2Pac "Changes (feat. Talent)"