Apollo Brown is different than most producers. He grew up on the Seals & Crofts—not The Isley Brothers—version of Summer Breeze. Born into a bi-racial family in Grand Rapids, Michigan, his early influences skewed more toward the music of Journey and the Carpenters than the urban genres his peers often cite as inspiration. This is not to say that once hip-hop came into play, Apollo wasn’t all in. Just as easily as he can praise the virtues of yacht rock...