Your Favorite Producer’s Favorite Producer

Working behind the scenes, interpersonal connection is all the things — so Billboard requested quite a lot of booked and busy producers to speak up the rising stars, in-demand innovators and still-evolving veterans they need extra artists and listeners to learn about.

“These twin brothers who go by TWO FRESH. I met Sherwyn years in the past at a writing camp and I favored what I used to be listening to, [so] I began following him on Insta and observed he was doing the artist factor himself. All the things I heard was fireplace to me, and I felt extra folks should learn about this. But it surely wasn’t till just lately that I came upon he and his brother [KingJet] have been a producer duo and have finished lots of stuff collectively. They’ve this uncooked, various, funky, soulful sound. Typically they remind me of N.E.R.D or comparable. They’re just like the cool cats to me.” —D’MILE (SILK SONIC, VICTORIA MONÉT, H.E.R.)

“TWO FRESH are behind a few of my favourite genre-bending music lately, working with artists like Tommy Newport — ‘Tangerine’ is a favourite of mine — Samara Cyn, Duckwrth and Grasp Peace. For years they’ve been doing what persons are gravitating towards now, mixing reside music with R&B, indie, rock, rap. I used to be instantly hooked by their pocket and really feel — it’s impeccable.” —JULIAN BUNETTA (ONE DIRECTION, SABRINA CARPENTER, THOMAS RHETT)

“OKLOU’S debut album, Galore, from 2020 is well one in all my favourite albums of the previous few years. Her productions all the time have an extremely sparse sound palette — her virtuosic writing for keyboard, plus her capability and confidence hold issues so minimal — and she or he constantly makes amazingly stunning and refined harmonic decisions. I’d be so to listen to her produce or write for different artists too.” —EASYFUN (CHARLI XCX)

“CECILE BELIEVE’s manufacturing all the time feels crucial to me — all the time poised no matter how a lot is happening and the way onerous she pushes parts. Her experimental and daring manufacturing selections by no means usurp the guts of the monitor — it stays curious and compelling. Small marvel she known as upon by visionary avant-pop artists just like the late nice SOPHIE, Dorian Elektra and Caroline Polachek to collaborate.” —CATE LE BON (WILCO, ST. VINCENT, KURT VILE)

“I first turned acquainted with OJIVOLTA (Mark Williams and Raul Cubina) in 2015, after they have been working at my supervisor’s studio, Electrical Really feel, on a number of songs with Jon Bellion. We had an intensive dialog concerning the nuances and numerous technical approaches to producing a document, and I used to be deeply impressed by their huge data and musical versatility. Over the subsequent a number of years, we ended up collaborating on a few data and tasks, together with Halsey’s ‘Graveyard’ and [Ye’s] DONDA. They proceed to impress me. Whereas staying low key has its benefits, I consider everybody within the trade ought to know who they’re.” —LOUIS BELL (POST MALONE, TAYLOR SWIFT, MILEY CYRUS)

“I met BUDDY ROSS as a really gifted piano and synths participant. He performed on some data I used to be producing, and through that point he confirmed me music he was making on his personal, and I used to be very impressed and signed him to my publishing firm, Heavy Obligation. He later acquired employed because the touring keyboardist for Frank Ocean, who shortly picked up on his stage of expertise. Buddy went on to be one of many fundamental producers on Frank’s album Blonde. On prime of his reward as a participant and talent to construct sounds on samplers, modular synths, numerous pc applications, and so on., he performs and makes sounds with an emotion that may be very uncommon. All the things he does makes you are feeling one thing. He brings many ranges of depth to any artist he works with.” —ARIEL RECHTSHAID (ADELE, HAIM, SKY FERREIRA, VAMPIRE WEEKEND)

“HARRISON PATRICK SMITH, who simply launched his first album as The Dare. Somebody despatched me [The Dare’s] ‘Ladies’ and requested me if I’d need to meet with him. I didn’t initially love the track, however after a number of listens it began rising on me. Then I had breakfast with him and began to get to know him as an individual. Twenty-something Harrison jogged my memory a little bit of twenty-something Rostam. He stored sending me songs he was engaged on; they might simply pile up. He’s prolific, and ultimately I spotted I favored a lot of the music he was engaged on. I feel Harrison understands the intersection of ‘the track’ and ‘the sound,’ and it’s on this intersection that I feel we producers do our greatest work. It’s not solely concerning the track, and it’s not solely concerning the sound; it’s about each, all the time, and I feel Harrison will get that.”
—ROSTAM (HAIM, CARLY RAE JEPSEN, SANTIGOLD, MAGGIE ROGERS)

“One in every of my favourite producers, and other people, on this planet is CHONG THE NOMAD! She’s an unimaginable producer, songwriter and DJ primarily based in Seattle. I found her music round 2018 via my supervisor. I instantly knew that somebody with a reputation like that needed to be making one thing loopy and totally different. We arrange a grasp a number of weeks later and ended up making six or seven loopy beats collectively. Her capability to carry one thing totally different to the desk each time has been key in pushing her personal sound as each an artist and beat-maker. Drum-wise, she’s in a lane of her personal. All the time taking dangers and offering rhythmic pockets that push different producers and artists to go above and past. I can play the craziest jazz piano riff, and she is going to discover a small clip she likes in two seconds, chop it, flip it and put an insane beat over it that seems like nothing else.” —ROGÉT CHAHAYED (TRAVIS SCOTT, BIG SEAN, JACK HARLOW, DOJA CAT)

“I first found JAY JOYCE when Little Huge City launched ‘Pontoon’ in 2012. There was simply one thing distinctive concerning the sound of the mandolin he captured and the heavy slapback on the vocals that made me cease for a second and say, ‘Who did this? That is so cool and totally different!’ The remainder of the document was equally as sonically attention-grabbing — and, evaluating that to their earlier work, highlighted how a producer can change the sound of an artist and put them on a special trajectory. Jay all the time strives to seize sounds in an outside-of-the-box means that makes a document stand out. He’s all the time utilizing bizarre gear I’ve by no means heard of, like an amp that was custom-made out of an previous movie projector. I hear rumors of him consuming mass quantities of Weight loss plan Coke and staying up into the early hours simply experimenting with sounds. He has a stage of inventive genius that makes so many artists need to work with him.” —ALEX KLINE (TENILLE ARTS, TIGIRLILY, TEDDY ROBB)

“There’s this child I actually admire; he goes by the title of TAIKO: a producer from Chile, tremendous younger however with a really attention-grabbing catalog. I found his music via Instagram, then a bit of time handed by and he was already doing stuff for J Balvin, Eladio Carrión, Mora, Jhayco. He even launched an EP with all of the Chile expertise — that, for me, is a scene that all of us must be extra conscious of. I don’t know which of his a number of abilities is my favourite — I simply assume he creates these beats that carry lots of character and lead the artist to be impressed simply together with his sound, having huge songs in return.” —SKY ROMPIENDO (J BALVIN, FEID, BAD BUNNY)

“I look as much as JEFF BHASKER and MIKE ELIZONDO. I first turned aware of Mike once I was a studio assistant on an album for Muse at [Rick Rubin’s] Shangri-La. We by no means crossed paths, however he was working with them over at his studio, and listening to his title led me to do a deep dive into his catalog. [And] it’s onerous for me to pinpoint once I turned aware of Jeff’s work — I stored seeing his title pop up on so many songs I liked. I first crossed paths with him in 2018 whereas I used to be a studio assistant at Shangri-La for the Harry Kinds album Positive Line, and he was all the time so type and inspiring to me as a younger, aspiring producer.

“Each of those guys are such sonic chameleons. Simply extraordinarily versatile. I like how Mike’s profession has so many distinctive chapters — weaving from Eminem and 50 Cent to Fiona Apple to Avenged Sevenfold and Twenty One Pilots and Turnstile to even motion pictures like Encanto. [And I’m] impressed by the truth that Jeff’s success actually began kicking into gear in his 30s. I all the time respect and admire producers who paid their dues and needed to grind out their path. Versatility is a big issue within the longevity of each of those guys — which looks like an more and more tough feat as of late. Each have weathered enormous shifts in music and tradition — and, in actual fact, have pushed lots of these shifts. They’re each musically fearless and observe their ears.” —ROB BISEL (SZA, KENDRICK LAMAR, DOJA CAT)

“Mustard’s music soundtracked a vital time in my life. I first came upon about him after discovering YG, who I used to be sharing a wall with for a minute at a studio in The Mission district in San Francisco. I met my spouse at that very same studio and we spent our early courting rocking “Paranoid,” “I’m Completely different,” “Rack Metropolis,” and so on. At this level we had moved to L.A. and he was the soundtrack of L.A., the soundtrack of the 2010s. He stored producing a few of my favorites like “Huge Financial institution” and went on to find Ella Mai proper as I used to be attempting to develop my very own artists. And he has had yet one more renaissance this yr together with his personal album that offers followers like me a me a window into his personal life, and he created a historic piece of music for the West Coast and the world alike with “Not Like Us.”

Mustard’s manufacturing does what my favourite manufacturing does finest: it showcases the vocal, it feels nice, it makes your physique transfer. However what I discover most inspiring about him is his perseverance. When he went from “Don’t Inform Em” to “Wanted Me,” it was clear that he can be somebody that might proceed to re-invent himself. And now with Religion of a Mustard Seed and “Not Like Us,” I really feel like “he did it once more” is an understatement. We can be speaking about this man for the subsequent 30 years.” —RICKY REED (LIZZO, TINASHE, CAMILA CABELLO )

This text seems within the Oct. 5 situation of Billboard.