I play jazz piano professionally, own a recording studio, and produce old-school hip-hop instrumentals for fun. The name Lil B was already taken, so I decided to take the next size up.
-Medium B
Radio Debut:
TJPL NEWS (UK):
MEDIUM B REIMAGINES INSTRUMENTAL HIP HOP ON RIGHT HAND MAN
By Tamara Jenna Scott-Willis
Instrumental hip hop has long thrived on the art of transformation. Samples become stories, loops become landscapes, and familiar sounds find new purpose. On Right Hand Man, released on 5 May 2026 through Third Motion Media and Electric Avenue Records, Rochester producer and composer Ben Miller, working under the alias Medium B, takes that philosophy in a different direction. Rather than building from existing fragments, he creates an entire world from scratch.Medium B is the hip hop production project of Miller, a musician whose roots run deep in jazz. Known in Rochester as the leader of the Ben Miller Trio and Dweller on the Threshold, as well as the founder of Third Motion Studios, Miller brings an unusually broad musical background into the beat making process. His experience spans performance, composition, production, recording, engineering, film scoring, mixing and mastering, allowing him to approach hip hop from a wider creative perspective.That perspective is immediately evident throughout Right Hand Man. While the album embraces the rhythmic DNA of classic hip hop, it avoids the predictable structures often associated with instrumental beat records. These tracks are not designed merely as backdrops. They evolve, shift and develop, revealing new textures and ideas as they unfold.What makes the project particularly noteworthy is Miller’s commitment to creating every instrumental from the ground up. Beyond the use of virtual instruments, no loops or pre-made content are relied upon. Instead, each composition is built through original musical ideas, giving the album a distinctive sense of identity and cohesion.The result feels like a conversation between eras. There is a clear affection for earlier generations of hip hop, particularly the period when experimentation and individuality often took precedence over algorithms and trends. Yet Right Hand Man never falls into nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake. Miller honours the genre’s lineage through atmosphere and spirit while pushing his own ideas forward.Tracks move with purpose, often feeling more cinematic than conventional. Jazz influences subtly surface throughout the project, not through overt virtuosity but through the freedom of the arrangements and the willingness to let ideas breathe. The album rewards attentive listening, revealing details and shifts in mood that might be missed on a casual first pass.Recorded at Third Motion Studios in Rochester, New York, the project also reflects Miller’s broader creative philosophy. Whether working as a pianist, composer, engineer or producer, he consistently seeks new contexts through which creativity can emerge, channeling both artistic curiosity and spiritual expression into a form that remains accessible while still feeling adventurous.⸻Sidebar“Medium B hopes to explore the sonic landscape rather than canvas.”⸻Perhaps the greatest strength of Right Hand Man lies in its refusal to chase trends. In an era where many instrumental releases are designed for passive consumption, Miller creates something more intentional. The album asks listeners to engage with it as a complete work, following its movement and allowing the compositions to reveal their stories over time.Right Hand Man is a reminder that instrumental hip hop can still surprise. It respects tradition without becoming trapped by it, delivering a collection of beats that feel alive, exploratory and deeply personal. For Medium B, the instrumental is not simply a foundation for someone else’s voice. It is the voice.
Indiefferential Magazine
"Some producers build beats around repetition. Others treat them as living compositions, spaces where rhythm, harmony, and emotion can continue to evolve. For Ben Miller, the artist behind Medium B, hip hop production becomes another language for musical exploration, one that connects his background in jazz with a deep appreciation for the history and creative spirit of the genre.
Released on 5th May 2026 through Third Motion Media and Electric Avenue Records, Right Hand Man introduces Medium B as a project built on originality, musicianship, and a desire to push instrumental hip hop into more expressive territory. Recorded at Third Motion Studios in Rochester, New York, the release moves away from traditional beat-making approaches, replacing loops and recycled elements with fully composed arrangements created from the ground up.
The result is an album that feels less like a collection of beats and more like a series of evolving musical environments. Each track carries its own identity, allowing melodies, textures, and rhythms to develop naturally. Miller approaches production with the mindset of a composer, shaping each moment with intention while preserving the energy and pulse that define hip hop.
Medium B is an extension of Miller’s already diverse creative career. As a jazz pianist, composer, and producer, he has built a reputation throughout Rochester’s music community through projects including the Ben Miller Trio and Dweller on the Threshold. He is also the founder of Third Motion Studios, where his work spans recording, engineering, mixing, mastering, film scoring, and large ensemble direction.
That wide musical background gives Medium B a distinctive perspective.
Rather than approaching hip hop production from a single angle, Miller brings years of experience with harmony, improvisation, and arrangement into the process. The influence of jazz is not simply added on top of the music. It shapes the way the compositions move, allowing unexpected changes and emotional shifts to become part of the experience.
For Miller, the Medium B project began as a creative outlet during the quieter moments between studio sessions and other musical commitments. Over time, those instrumentals became more than experiments. They developed into a way of expressing ideas that sit outside the boundaries of his other work, creating a space where rhythm and reflection can exist together.
Right Hand Man carries a strong connection to earlier eras of hip hop while still feeling rooted in the present. The project looks back toward periods when producers were focused on experimentation, identity, and building something unique from limited resources. However, instead of copying the past, Miller captures the creative freedom and attitude that defined those moments.
There is a sense of respect for hip hop’s foundation throughout the release. The beats maintain the genre’s rhythmic core, but the arrangements expand beyond familiar structures. Instead of relying on predictable patterns, the tracks unfold like stories, revealing new details with every listen.
This approach reflects Miller’s broader philosophy as a musician. Whether performing jazz, producing, or creating for film, his work centers around communication and emotional connection. The goal is not technical complexity for its own sake. Every musical choice exists to support the feeling of the piece.
The production quality of Right Hand Man also highlights Miller’s experience behind the console. His knowledge as an engineer allows him to shape each sound with precision, balancing clarity and atmosphere. The tracks feel carefully crafted while still maintaining the warmth and spontaneity often associated with live musicianship.
Medium B stands out because it challenges the idea of what a hip hop instrumental can be. The project respects the genre’s traditions but refuses to treat them as limitations. Jazz, composition, and beat culture come together in a way that feels natural rather than forced.
Right Hand Man is ultimately a statement about creativity without boundaries. It shows what happens when an artist brings an entire lifetime of musical experience into a new form. Through original compositions, thoughtful production, and a deep understanding of rhythm, Medium B creates a body of work that honors where hip hop has been while imagining where it can go next."
More Press
Indie Dock Music Blog (UK)
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"There is an old argument in music — never quite resolved, never quite abandoned — about whether restraint is a virtue or a failure of nerve. "Right Hand Man", the new single from Medium B, the hip-hop production alias of Rochester-based jazz pianist and composer Ben Miller, lands squarely on the side of virtue. This is a track that understands, with quiet authority, that the space between the notes matters as much as the notes themselves.
Mid-tempo and unhurried, "Right Hand Man" settles into its groove with the ease of someone entirely comfortable in their own company. The electronic hip-hop beats at its foundation are clean and purposeful — never flashy, never overcrowded — providing a rhythmic chassis onto which Miller layers synths and harmonies that open the track outward into something genuinely cinematic. It is the kind of production that soundtracks the interior life: the late-evening commute, the moment between sleeping and waking, the view from a window when you are thinking about something else entirely.
What lifts "Right Hand Man" above the considerable volume of instrumental hip-hop currently competing for attention is the quality of its harmonic imagination. Miller is, first and foremost, a jazz musician — leader of the Ben Miller Trio and the ensemble Dweller on the Threshold — and that background surfaces here not in any obvious quotation of the jazz tradition but in something subtler and more valuable: a feel for how chords can carry emotional weight without resolving too quickly, how a layered synth harmony can suggest an entire mood without ever stating it directly. The cinematic quality that the track achieves is not the result of reaching for grandeur, but of trusting the atmosphere to do its work.
"The cinematic quality is not the result of reaching for grandeur, but of trusting the atmosphere to do its work — the mark of a producer who has learned when to let go."
The no-loops, no-pre-made-content approach that Miller has committed to across his Medium B project is audible here as a quality of organic coherence rather than a technical credential. Nothing feels stitched together; everything breathes. The synth layers accumulate with the logic of a composed piece rather than the repetition of a constructed beat, which places "Right Hand Man" in the tradition of producers — Nujabes, early Madlib, the more meditative corners of J Dilla's catalogue — for whom the instrumental hip-hop format was always a vehicle for something more considered than the sum of its parts.
Rochester, New York does not receive nearly enough coverage in the music press. On the evidence of this single, that is an oversight worth correcting. Ben Miller has built something here that functions equally well as background music and as the object of close, headphones-on attention — a rare achievement, and one that speaks to the depth of craft behind what might superficially appear to be a simple, relaxed piece of music. Simple it is not. Relaxed it certainly is. The difference between those two things is exactly where Medium B lives.
VERDICT
A cinematic, unhurried single that wears its jazz intelligence lightly and rewards close listening. Medium B understands that in hip-hop production, as in life, the most indispensable presence is often the quietest one in the room."
Indie Tapes (Germany)
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"What begins with a slightly hazy, atmospheric intro is soon complemented by a relaxed beat and mystical textures. When I listen to the new release ‘Right Hand Man’ by Medium B, an almost spiritual vibe emerges, combined with a dark, surreal approach that quickly captures my full attention.
What comes to the surface is a true masterpiece of experimental instrumental music, featuring captivating lo-fi and hip-hop elements and a wide range of synthesizer riffs. Medium B, also known as Ben Miller, is a talented producer from Rochester, New York, who, through his compositions, unveils an innovative, cinematic soundscape.
We really like the downtempo yet driving character of the track and appreciate the subtle movement in the lead lines. It is an arrangement that feels meditative and slightly psychedelic at the same time."
New Indie Radar (Germany)
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Anyone who knows me knows I find it hard to resist sophisticated electronic music. That's precisely why I couldn't resist introducing you to the new track 'Right Hand Man' by Medium B from Rochester, New York.
Within the next five minutes, this elaborate instrumental immerses you in a subtly suspenseful, slightly mystical, yet pleasant atmosphere. I absolutely love the build-up and decay, as the composition seems to constantly evolve, beautifully painting an otherworldly soundscape.
The beat benefits from a strong lo-fi character while still delivering a purposeful and impactful texture. It's hard to resist the driving pulse, while moments of subtly weightless passages also stand out. Furthermore, the piece develops an intriguing cinematic flair with a multitude of original runs. At times, you can also sense a touch of the exotic with a penchant for the experimental.
MusikePool (UK)
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“Right Hand Man proves that hip-hop instrumentals can tell stories just as vividly as lyrics.”
In a musical landscape where many instrumental hip-hop releases rely heavily on familiar loops and predictable patterns, Medium B’s Right Hand Man arrives with a different purpose. Released on May 5, 2026, the album feels less like a collection of beats and more like a carefully constructed body of work that invites listeners to slow down and pay attention to the details.
Medium B, the hip-hop production project of Rochester-based musician, composer, and producer Ben Miller, brings a unique perspective to the genre. Known primarily for his work as a jazz pianist and bandleader, Miller approaches hip-hop production with the instincts of a composer rather than a beatmaker. That distinction becomes immediately clear throughout Right Hand Man. One of the album’s greatest strengths is its commitment to originality. Every instrumental is built from the ground up rather than assembled from pre-existing loops. As a result, the music feels alive and constantly evolving. The tracks breathe, expand, and shift direction in ways that keep the listener engaged from beginning to end. What makes Right Hand Man particularly interesting is the balance it strikes between old-school influence and modern creativity. There is a clear respect for hip-hop’s foundations running through the album. The rhythms, groove, and overall spirit pay tribute to earlier eras of the genre, yet nothing here feels like a nostalgic copy. Instead, Medium B uses those influences as a starting point for something personal and forward-thinking.
The jazz influence is impossible to ignore. Miller’s background shines through in the harmonic choices, musical textures, and arrangement decisions. The album carries a level of sophistication that rewards repeated listening. Subtle details emerge with every play, whether it’s a melodic phrase tucked beneath the main groove or an unexpected shift in atmosphere. What stands out most is the cinematic quality of the production. Rather than serving as simple background music, these instrumentals create vivid moods and environments. Some moments feel reflective and spiritual, while others push forward with confidence and momentum. Each composition seems designed to communicate an emotional idea without needing words. The title Right Hand Man feels fitting because the album often acts like a trusted companion. Whether listened to during a late-night drive, a creative session, or a quiet moment of reflection, the music adapts naturally to the listener’s surroundings while maintaining its own identity. For fans of instrumental hip-hop, jazz-infused production, and artists who prioritize craftsmanship over trends, Right Hand Man is a rewarding listen. Ben Miller has created an album that honors hip-hop’s past while expanding its possibilities, proving that instrumental music can still surprise, challenge, and inspire."
Good Music Radar (Amsterdam)
A song that doesn’t chase drops, and builds slowly forming an immersive soundscape with recurring melodies that become the emotional thread that connects every section, is ‘Right Hand Man’ by Medium B, featuring Ben Miller. The song almost feels like spiritual journey, but doesn’t feel overtly religious. Instead it creates the sensation of reflection and elevation, as though the listener is moving through different emotional states while always returning to the same guiding theme.
xThe beats build a steady pulse in the track, and the melody eventually invites introspection. It brings in a meditative quality, that can keep you company on a solitary night drive, a sunrise festival set or in moments of personal reflection. Its ability to hold its integrity in different settings gives the track a high replay value, as different moods and situations can reveal different emotional nuances within the same composition.
It is the kind of track you’ll keep coming back to, because hearing it once is not enough. You can listen to ‘Right Hand Man’ by Medium B, featuring Ben Miller, on popular platforms like Spotify.
The Musical Road
Medium B is the hip-hop production alias of Ben Miller, a Rochester-based jazz pianist, composer, and producer who leads the Ben Miller Trio and Dweller on the Threshold. As founder of Third Motion Studios in Rochester, New York—a creative lab and full-service recording studio—Miller has established himself as a multifaceted artist who traverses the worlds of jazz performance, production, recording engineering, mixing and mastering, film scoring, and large ensemble leadership.
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“Right Hand Man” by Medium B featuring Ben Miller is a compelling exercise in hip-hop craftsmanship that bridges reverence for the genre’s roots with a forward-thinking creative ethos. Rather than relying on familiar loop-driven formulas, the track unfolds as a dynamic, evolving soundscape, reflecting a deeper commitment to storytelling through music.
From the outset, the production stands out for its intentionality. Ben Miller’s decision to build every instrumental element from scratch gives the track a sense of movement and originality that feels increasingly rare in modern hip-hop. The beat doesn’t simply repeat—it grows, shifts, and breathes, creating an immersive backdrop that mirrors the narrative arc of the song itself.
The instrumental core of “Right Hand Man” moves fluidly within its sonic space, guiding the listener through textures that feel both grounded and exploratory. There is a clear respect for hip-hop’s foundational elements—rhythm, groove, and atmosphere—yet the composition avoids leaning on nostalgia alone. Instead, it channels the spirit of earlier eras while embracing a more expansive, almost cinematic approach to musical storytelling.
What makes “Right Hand Man” particularly effective is its balance. It honors the past without being confined by it, allowing each musical transition to feel purposeful rather than ornamental. The track carries a subtle spiritual energy, suggesting a deeper layer of intention beneath the surface-level groove.
Ultimately, “Right Hand Man” succeeds as more than just a song—it’s a statement about process, discipline, and artistic independence. It’s a reminder that innovation in hip-hop often comes not from abandoning tradition, but from reimagining it with care and conviction.
Hip Hop Eargasm
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Medium B’s “Right Hand Man” is an instrumental hip-hop album that feels purposeful, personal, and grounded in craft. The project is from Rochester-based jazz pianist, composer and producer Ben Miller, who brings a rare kind of musicianship to the format where every beat feels composed with intention rather than assembled from shortcuts. The jazz sensibility can be heard in the harmonic movement and the rhythmic discipline, but the album never crosses over into academic territory. Instead, it plays like a living conversation between hip-hop tradition, spiritual reflection and the freedom to build something entirely original from scratch. The result is a record that sounds warm, focused and quietly ambitious.
What makes “Right Hand Man” different is the way the album uses the instrumental hip-hop album as a space for storytelling rather than repetition. Medium B doesn’t rely on loops or pre-fab material to bring the mood. He sculpts each track like a sonic landscape, allowing the music room to breathe, to shift and reveal new details as it progresses. That’s the kind of hip-hop experience that we get here, something that feels huge but still has that core heartbeat. The beats are deliberate but they have texture and depth as well, which keeps the project interesting whether you are listening to it as background atmosphere or really paying attention to every transition and detail.
The album is also a very traditional construction. “Right Hand Man” pays tribute to the earlier days of hip-hop, but respectfully instead of imitative. Medium B appears more engaged with the spirit of those periods than the surface style and that distinction matters. You get the freedom, the grit and imagination of classic hip-hop production but the album still feels current because it’s made through a deeply musical lens. Miller’s background in jazz, recording, mixing, mastering and film scoring gives the project a broad palette and that diversity is apparent in how the production moves with confidence from one mood to another. It’s like an album by someone who understands structure and instinct.
The thing is, “Right Hand Man” works because it lets the music speak for itself. When the base is this good, there is no need for excess or trend chasing. Medium B employs the instrumental format as a site for spiritual expression, creative exploration, and technical command, while anchoring the sound in hip-hop’s essential language. If you’re into beat-driven records with some serious musical depth, this album is a welcome union of precision and soul. Thoughtful without being standoffish, inventive without sacrificing the groove, it establishes Medium B as an artist who knows how to make production into a full artistic statement.
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IG version:
Medium B's "Right Hand Man" is an instrumental hip-hop album that exudes intention, intimacy, and a strong foundation in artistry. The project originates from Rochester-based jazz pianist, composer, and producer Ben Miller, who infuses a distinctive musicianship into the format, ensuring that each beat is crafted with purpose rather than constructed from shortcuts. The jazz sensibility is evident in the harmonic progression and rhythmic precision, yet the album remains firmly outside the realm of academia. Rather, it unfolds as a dynamic dialogue among hip-hop tradition, spiritual introspection, and the liberty to create something wholly original from the ground up. The outcome is a recording that exudes warmth, precision, and subtle ambition.
“Right Hand Man” distinguishes itself by utilizing the instrumental hip-hop album as a medium for narrative rather than mere repetition. Medium B does not depend on loops or pre-fabricated materials to establish the ambiance. He meticulously crafts each track as a sonic landscape, permitting the music to evolve, to transform, and to unveil new intricacies as it advances. This is the type of hip-hop experience we encounter here, one that feels expansive yet retains its fundamental essence. The beats are intentional, possessing both texture and depth, which maintains the project's intrigue, whether experienced as ambient background or through focused attention on each transition and detail.