Parliament- Funkadelic legacy guitarist and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member Michael Hampton‘s Into the Public Domain, a mini-album produced by 9-time Grammy Award winner/Ruffhouse Records co-founder Joe “The Butcher” Nicolo. A founding father of power-funk electric guitar, Hampton edges into new territory on Into the Public Domain, a meld of rock & world music with jazz & western overtones, hallmarked by Michael’s trademark sizzling leads. This EP inaugurates a series of 2 mini albums and a full length release from Michael to be released from December 2025 -> Spring of 2026, all on Nicolo’s personal imprint, Sound Mind Records. Into the Public Domain was co-produced by Joe Nicolo, Michael Hampton, Philip Samuel Smith & John Schreffler, the latter three of whom wrote and played on all songs on the EP. Some Into the Public Domain sessions were held at the famed Sunset Sound in Los Angeles, California, a favorite studio of Led Zeppelin, The Doors, The Beach Boys, Van Halen, Michael Jackson, Prince, Elton John, Fleetwood Mac, & Tom Petty. Grammy-winner Shooter Jennings, a musician & producer known for blending outlaw country with rock & experimental styles, guested on keys and co-production at Michael’s Sunset Sound sessions. After receiving his first guitar at age 10, a determined Michael became self-taught with the help of his bedroom radio, spending days on end playing along with Jimi Hendrix, Wes Montgomery & B.B. King records. After studying jazz guitar in high school, an impromptu backstage audition for George Clinton in 1974 earned 17-year-old Michael a seat on the Parliament mothership alongside the immortal Eddie Hazel, under the name “Kidd Funkadelic”. He has spent the past half-century playing nearly 400 shows with the band, in 25 countries across 6 continents. Highlights include multiple appearances at world-renowned festivals like Montreux Jazz, Glastonbury, Reading, Woodstock ’99, Coachella, Bonnaroo, Roskilde, Lollapalooza, Fuji Rock, and Isle of Wight, and venues like the Apollo Theater, The Fillmore, Royal Albert Hall, Madison Square Garden, The Troubadour, Red Rocks, The Beacon, and Sydney Opera House. Among hiss Funkadelic writing credits are group staples like “Who Says a Funk Band Can’t Play Rock?!” & “Funk Gets Stronger”, both released during the group’s late-’70s/early-’80s hit run. His lead guitar is also embedded in the DNA of 90s hip-hop’s G-Funk movement—Dr. Dre’s “Let Me Ride” samples Parliament’s “Mothership Connection”, Ice Cube’s “Bop Gun” borrows elements of Funkadelic’s “One Nation Under a Groove”, while De La Soul’s “Me Myself and I”, Digital Underground’s “Kiss You Back”, and Snoop Dogg’s “What’s My Name?” all draw from Funkadelic’s “(Not Just) Knee Deep”. Michael’s colleagues include George Clinton, Bootsy Collins, Bernie Worrell, Maceo Parker, Charlie Wilson, Dewayne “Blackbyrd” McKnight, Fred Wesley & The JB’s, Chuck Treece, Dean Ween, Primal Scream, Digital Underground, Too $hort, and Deee-Lite. Michael’s contributions to the Parliament Funkadelic catalog have also influenced famed artists like Prince, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Outkast, D’Angelo and Janelle Monáe, among many others. As of 2025, Michael has appeared on over 30 separate major label releases. I had the chance to catch up with Michael shortly before the 12/13 release date of the first EP. We get into all the planning, work and amazing music that on Into Public Domain. We get into a little bit of what is to follow and just how this project has come together. Michael also shares a little about what working with The Parliament Funkadelic crew helped him prepare for this kind of effort.
