Lawrence Smith (June 11, 1952 – December 19, 2014) was a pioneering American musician and hip hop record producer.He is best known for his co-productions (with Russell Simmons) of Run-DMC’s Run-D.M.C. (1984) and King of Rock (1985) and his solo production of Whodini’s Escape (1984) and Back in Black (1986).. It is a measure of Smith’s creative range that he could work simultaneously with the …