Longtime Friend Says Jimi Hendrix Would Have Loved Rap Music

Jimi Hendrix's longtime collaborator and producer, Eddie Kramer, says that had the guitar god lived, he would have completely embraced hip-hop.

Eddie, who is one of the primary Hendrix archivists and the man who generally takes the lead in unearthing vaulted Jimi Hendrix material, is interviewed in a new film called Electric Church, which documents one of Jimi's final appearances at the Atlanta Pop Festival.

Kramer says the rock legend was a "musical sponge" who had begun to delve into funky R&B before he passed away.

"The idea of street music would have influenced him had he stayed alive," Eddie said.

“I think about this all the time. Not only would he have been a great record producer, he’d have had a record company, a film company, a musical production company. He’d have been an enormous force. Pretty much like Jay Z and all these guys are today – he would have been king of the heap," Kramer added.

The new Electric Church documentary also features interviews with Jimi's former band-mates Billy Cox and the late Mitch Mitchell. Kirk Hammett of Metallica, Steve Winwood and Paul McCartney also make appearances in the film.

Jimi died on Sept. 18, 1970. Contrary to popular belief, while Jimi did die of an overdose of sleeping pills, the coroner's inquest found no indication of previous drug addiction.