Chart-topping rapper Drake maintained a steady reign on the Billboard Hot 100 with the debut of "Nice For What" on April 6, but many may not know producer behind the hit single: Murda Beatz.
Murda, born Shane Lindstrom, is a music producer from Fort Erie, Ontario. While he's primarily recognized for his association with hip-hop artists like the group Migos, he's created music for pop singers like Zayn Malik and Bebe Rexha.
"I just started making beats at a young age. I was always making music," Murda, 24, told Newsweek. "My dad was into music...So, I started playing drums when I was six years old. When someone introduced me to making beats on a laptop, I just fell in love with it. [I] traded my drumset for a little keyboard, and then [I] just started making beats."
Murda is behind some of the biggest tracks in hip-hop today. He produced Migos' "Pipe It Up," Nicki Minaj's "No Frauds" and G-Eazy's "Get Mine." In creating Drake's "Nice For What," Murda sampled Lauryn Hill's "Ex-Factor." He created the beat at Drake's house while the rapper played NBA 2K. Then, the Grammy winner penned the lyrics and cut the track. The song was completed in under two hours.
"I feel like just the beat itself is very refreshing," he said of the hit track. "The song together is just very refreshing for music right now because a lot of stuff is sounding similar. I feel like that was a good one [and it made a] big impact on the world, too."
Murda's second mixtape, Keep God First 2, is slated to drop later this year.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Dory Jackson is a New York-based entertainment journalist from Maryland. She graduated from Randolph-Macon College—in May 2016—with a focus in Communication ... Read more
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