E. Dan has always been a bit of a musical omnivore. For more than 20 years, the producer and studio proprietor has been a pivotal figure in Pittsburgh hip-hop, first as a member of the local group Strict Flow, later as one of the scene’s key beatsmiths, and eventually as the founder of ID Labs, the studio from which local legends like Wiz Khalifa and the late Mac Miller would emerge. Through his production for (and mentorship of) those artists and others, E. Dan has been crucial in growing hip-hop in Pittsburgh and exporting it nationwide. Enamored of songs by New Yorkers like Slick Rick and Public Enemy, the young E. Dan began to make pause tapes as he listened to the radio. This kicked off a lifelong obsession with the music itself and rendering it just so. While his work with Khalifa and Miller brought his sound to listeners around the world (and onto albums by the likes of Juicy J., Freddie Gibbs, Smoke Dza, J.I.D, Logic, and Snoop Dogg, among others), E. Dan never left the city for too long, preferring to focus on his family, his community, and the larger ecosystem of which he’d become such an important part. And, of course, Dan is still pushing musical boundaries—free from worries about conformity or commercial whims.