King Wizard has had a hell of a year. After landing a plethora of cuts towards the end of 2020, he’s currently one of the hottest new producers in hip-hop, landing placements left and right. We jumped on a call with Wizard to find out a little more about his creative process, and how he’s landing so many cuts.
King Wizard, it’s been a great year for you so far! Producing for Lil Uzi Vert, Money Man, Lil Quil, Marmaroso, Chevy Woods and we understand quite a few more… Which record are you most excited about?
‘It’s hard to pick. The Money Man record is special, he killed the vocals. Then the Uzi record is going to be huge, that album is going to be a real cultural moment. But honestly, some of the unreleased records from the past few weeks have me the most hyped, some of my favourite artists of all time have been using my beats. It’s both humbling and super exciting.’
Intriguing! Any clues?
“I can’t really speak on records that might not end up coming out. Let’s just say these are artists who are in literally everyone’s playlist.”
Awesome. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see! So tell us, how have you managed to land so many big placements in such a short space of time? Hip-hop is super competitive and there are hundreds of great producers out there – how are you standing out?
“I really think it’s a combination of factors. Firstly, the music is always priority number one. When you really put your heart and your creativity into your craft, it shows. You really need to come with a special sound in order to break through. Secondly it’s the attitude. Specifically, it’s teamwork, not competition. I have some of the best in the business on my side. My business partner and co-owner of Underdog Music Oliver ‘Big Papa’ Harvey is working behind the scenes constantly to generate opportunities for myself and the rest of the Underdog team – he must be the hardest working man I’ve ever seen. Expensive Wade constantly hooking up connections. And then there’s our network of producers, which includes many of the dopest in the game. I couldn’t have landed the Money Man record without RockTee and 808plugbeats. The Uzi connect came via Akachi and the legendary Supah Mario. We’re so blessed to work with so many talented and hard working people on a daily basis.
It doesn’t make sense to take on this industry alone – at Underdog our attitude is ‘we all win together’. There are plenty of cuts to go around. We love to share opportunities and bring dope people into our circle. And the more you give, the more you receive – that’s just a law of the universe. If you want to win yourself, you need to offer value to society and the people around you. That’s exactly what we do every single day, Teamwork really does make the dream work.”
Inspiring stuff! In terms of the actual music, how do you keep having fresh ideas? The big brass sound you brought to the Uzi record has been very influential – I’m hearing a lot of new epic brass records being made since that snippet. Where do you get your ideas?
“It’s really impossible to run out of ideas, as long as you don’t block yourself. As Quincy Jones says, you have to let God walk through the room. Creativity is automatic if you stop putting your ego in front of the music and let divine inspiration take its course. The source of ideas is infinite. It’s arrogant to think that you need to do anything special, or that you could run out of music to write. Just be humble and work hard and follow Quincy’s advice – stop taking credit for every idea, and you will find that there is an infinite supply.”
Great advice. Thanks for speaking with us King Wizard. We’re excited for more records from yourself and more success for your team!
You can keep up to date with Wizards latest music and movements via his Instagram, @iamkingwizard, or contact him via www.underdogmusicgroup.com or manager @bigpapaharvey
© 2021, Jake Strain. All rights reserved.
