Beyond The Beats: Mike WiLL

We link up with the up-and-coming producer responsible for bangers like Meek Mill's "Tupac Back" and 2 Chainz' "Got One."

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Here at Complex, we like to celebrate hip-hop culture in its entirety. Sure, rappers get most of the glory, but from label execs to radio DJs, hip-hop has always been a community of many contributors—the majority of whom you won’t see in front of the camera.

Beyond The Beats is our way of giving up-and-coming producers some shine. We reached out to Mike WiLL Made It—the Atlanta beatsmith who may be best known for producing Meek Mill’s “Tupac Back”—and chopped it up with him about all things production. He told us how he got his start in the game, shared the stories behind some of his biggest tracks, and even gave some free advice to aspiring producers who are hoping to reach the same heights as him. So click through to witness the triumph of WiLL power...

As told to Julian Pereira (@Broadway_Jay)

Growing Up

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Growing Up

Mike WiLL: “I was an athlete. I liked playing basketball, baseball, and football. I was always into the girls, and liked to be fresh. So I wanted new clothes and shoes, and stuff like that. I was just a fly young cat with hoop dreams. Then, my hoop dreams turned into music dreams, and I made those dreams come true.

"I really didn’t know I would start producing. My childhood friend Fortune would freestyle rap, and I had this little broken keyboard. The batteries were falling out of it and everything, but I’d hear something on the radio, and I would play it back on that keyboard.

“I remember playing the Big Tymers’ ‘Still Fly’ on my front porch like it was yesterday. My homie was rapping to it. Then, I’d switch it up and play something else that we’d heard on the radio, and he’d rap to that.

“At school, we’d be in the lunchroom, and I’d make beats by using my hands and tapping a pencil against the table. People would be freestyle-battling to it. So Fortune told me, ‘Man, you need to start making beats.’"

Learning To Produce

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Learning To Produce

Mike WiLL: "When I was 15, I went to the local music store, Mars Music, and I started messing around with the MPC 2500. The people at the store showed me how to use it, and I remade Fabolous’ ‘Young’n (Holla Back)’ into a Southern joint. They asked me how long I had been making beats, and when I told them I had never made a beat, they didn’t even believe me. So I told my pop to grab me a beat machine for Christmas, and he did.

“My beats sound like they come from Mars. Every beat sounds different. I always try and make the next track harder than the last and different from the past. I’ve got tracks that are epic-sounding, then I’ve got smooth tracks and energy tracks. I’m versatile.

“With my first big check from producing, I bought some more equipment and a couple pairs of Jordans.”

Influences

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Influences

Mike WiLL: “This list could go on forever. Dr. Dre and Timbaland are definitely the pioneers. Dr. Dre was the first one with that knock on a street level. I always admired his drums, and his sounds were always so crazy.

“Timbaland was the first crazy pop producer and I liked his melodies. He brought so many artists to the game. That’s what I really respect; being able to pull so much from the beats that they turn an artist into a major factor. He brought Aaliyah, Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake, Magoo, and Missy Elliott—even though they kind of rubbed off on each other, her being a great producer as well. He’s a genius.

“Coming up in the South, I was also looking up to Shawty Redd. He was the first producer to really bring that dark trap energy and sound. I really admired his work on the earlier Gucci Mane and Young Jeezy records, and even Drama’s ‘Left Right Left.’ He was going crazy.

“Also coming out of the south was DJ Toomp. I was kicking it with him last night. He’s like my big brother or my mentor. I love what he does. He’s had some bangers with T.I.”

Being Hands On

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Being Hands On

Mike WiLL: “I’m only 22-years-old, without any kind of publishing deal, and I’m really hands-on with everything that I do. Being independent has helped me, because I can do what I want to do and work with whoever I want to work with, when I want to work with them. I get to really establish those relationships and go with my gut.

“For example, if I was signed to someone else, they may have brushed Future off before he popped, and we wouldn’t have the relationship that we have now. Since we met, we’ve kept it 1000 with each other, and now he and I are like brothers. Same goes for me and 2 Chainz. Being able to make your own decisions gives you leverage, once you’re successful.”

Advice To Young Producers

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Advice To Young Producers

Mike WiLL: “Come with a plan, then execute and move forward. If you’re moving without a plan, you’re going to end up tripping and falling. That’s like running full-speed with your shoes untied.

“Stay focused and don’t limit yourself. Don’t listen to anyone telling you what you can and can’t do—just be original. You can look up to other producers, but be versatile and don’t put yourself in a box.”

Dream Collaborations

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Dream Collaborations

Mike WiLL: “I want to do all kinds of music. I want to do something with Lady Gaga. Even though people just heard me do five records on Gucci Mane’s mixtape, I’ve still got stuff for Lady Gaga. People don’t really know that.

“Chris [Brown] and I haven’t gone in yet, but I heard the freestyle he did to ‘Tupac Back.’ I would love to do something dope with him. I love what Rihanna’s doing right now. Really, the sky’s the limit.

“I’m pretty sure there’s some dope-ass artist out in England or in your neighborhood that I’ve never even heard of, and I want to work with him too. There’s so much talent out there, and I feel like everybody’s right around the corner. There’s really no barrier on who I’ll work with. I just want to make dope records.”

Meek Mill “Tupac Back”

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Meek Mill “Tupac Back” (2011)

Album: Self Made Vol. 1

Mike WiLL: “It’s crazy, because in my studio, I have a poster of Pac. That was one of my favorite rappers growing up. I used to want to be like Pac. I used to walk around with the bandannas on my head and shit like that. [Laughs.]


 

I used to want to be like Pac. I used to walk around with the bandannas on my head.


 

“I associate with one of Rozay’s A&R’s and I had submitted some tracks for Rozay. Of the tracks I sent, they called me and told me not to do anything with the ‘Tupac Back’ beat, because it was in the album folder, and they had a movie to it. They said, ‘The record’s called ‘Tupac Back.’’ I was like, ‘Oh, yeah? That’s out of here.’ I hadn’t even heard the song. I just knew what it would do with the energy of the beat and the controversy of that name.

“I didn’t know Meek Mill was on it until right before they put it out. They let me hear a little bit of the song over the phone. All I could hear was Ross rapping the chorus. They ended up putting out four records that week, and ‘Tupac Back’ grew legs and took off.

“To be all the way honest, I didn’t even know who Meek Mill was at that point. Me being from Atlanta, I’d heard he had a crazy buzz in Philly, but I wasn’t familiar with his music. When the song came out, I thought he killed it. Ever since then, I fuck with the nigga Meek.”

Future “Ain’t No Way Around It”

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Future “Ain’t No Way Around It” (2011)

Album: True Story

Mike WiLL:“When I made that track, I knew it wasn’t going to anyone but Future. I wasn’t going to let anyone hear it. I already had an idea about how he should go on it. We were shooting the video for the first song that he and I did called ‘Dirty Sprite,’ when he said, ‘Let’s go to the studio.’ I was like, ‘Alright. I’ve got this track for you. It’s crazy.’


 

Future had a show two weeks after the mixtape dropped. It was somewhere out of town, and he had left it off of the performance list. His DJ just started playing it, so he went in on his verse, and the crowd knew every word. He called me and said, '‘Ain’t No Way Around It’ is big, bro. We’ve got one.’


 

“When I played it for him, he wasn’t really feeling it and went to another track. He said, ‘Man, you ain’t got nothing else?’ I told him, ‘Nah. This is it, bro. I’m telling you.’ We’re together damn-near everyday, so the next day I played it for him again. He still said, ‘Nah. That ain’t it.’ I went to the studio with him about six or seven times with this same beat, and it got to the point where he asked me, ‘You ain’t got no more beats?’ I told him, ‘Nah. This is it. You’re going to go crazy on it.’

“The same night he was doing ‘Tony Montana,’ I came to the studio. He finished ‘Tony Montana’ at two or three in the morning and asked if I had any beats. I said, ‘I’ve got that same beat. You’ve just got to get on there and put some harmonies on it. Do some shit that the girls will fuck with.’ He finally agreed to try it.

“I played the track, and he listened to it two times through. Then, he said, ‘I got it’ and went in the booth and only laid down the hook. He let the hook sit for about a month, before he put a verse on it. Then, he let the verse sit for another month, before he put the second verse on it.

“Everyone in the studio was telling him it was hard, and I used to ask him everyday when he was going to finish it. He wasn’t really fucking with it. He only recorded the last verse to finish up his True Story mixtape.

“He was surprised that it stood out. He had a show two weeks after the mixtape dropped. It was somewhere out of town, and he had left it off of the performance list. His DJ just started playing it, so he went in on his verse, and the crowd knew every word. He called me and said, ‘‘Ain’t No Way Around It’ is big, bro. We’ve got one.’ He showed me the footage of the show, and I got chills. From there, the radio picked up on it, and you see what it is now.”

2 Chainz “Got One”

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2 Chainz “Got One” (2011)

Album: T.R.U. REALigion

Mike WiLL: “I sent him a couple of beats, and he had knocked out one for the TRU Realigionmixtape. When he let me hear the song, I told him it was cool, but we could knock out something harder than that. He was feeling the same way and wanted to come with something different.


 

We thought it was only going to be a crazy Atlanta song, but he says they love it on the road. Every city wants him to do a ‘Got One’ for their city.


 

“The next night, I brought him a beat CD with 13 beats. I went straight to track 11, which was ‘Got One.’ It was about four in the morning. He was sitting down, and when the beat came on, he stood straight up and said, ‘Oh shit.’

“He started with ‘The crazy thing about it/I been knew I had it,’ and when he got to L.A. he added the first four bars of the first verse. When he got back to the A, he called me to come down to the studio and told me he was trying to knock out the rest of the song that night. That’s when he added the hook and the second verse.

“This was a week before the mixtape dropped. It was the last song recorded, but it ended up being the first song on the mixtape. It set the tone. We thought it was only going to be a crazy Atlanta song, but he says they love it on the road. Every city wants him to do a ‘Got One’ for their city. It’s always a pleasure to work with 2 Chainz.”

Young Jeezy f/ Future “Way Too Gone”

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Young Jeezy f/ Future “Way Too Gone” (2011)

Album: Thug Motivation 103: Hustlerz Ambition

Mike WiLL:“I ran into Jeezy at Magic City, in Atlanta. That night, DJ Esco was playing all of my records for Magic City Monday. Next thing you know, Jeezy sent his manager to come holler at me about ‘TM103.’


 

I told Jeezy, ‘This is where people want to hear you at, right now. This is VIP music.’


 

“We ended up knocking out ‘Nicks 2 Bricks’ and ‘Sittin’ Low,’ but when the tracklist came out for Thug Motivation 103: Hustlerz Ambition, I wasn’t anywhere on it. I said to myself, ‘Shit. I thought I was going to make it.’ He had decided to use those tracks for his mixtape The Real Is Back 2, instead.

“They had the ‘TM103’ listening party in New York, and when they came back to Atlanta that Wednesday, they hollered at me and said, ‘We’ve got to turn the album in Friday. We need you to send over a couple club records. Come to the studio.’ I’m thinking, ‘I’m not about to make the album. Let me just pull up.’

“I went to the studio, and they told me the album was almost done, they just needed something for the clubs. I thought, ‘This is where I like to come in: in the clutch.’ So I played a bunch of aggressive ‘Tupac Back’ style beats, and he had me put about five beats to the side. Then I played him the beat for ‘Way Too Gone,’ which was called ‘Champagne Campaign’ at the time.

“It’s crazy, because I had played that beat for him a while back, and I had played it for Future before, too. Future loved it when he heard it. I told Jeezy, ‘This is where people want to hear you at, right now. This is VIP music.’

“When he heard it, he said, ‘Shit. All I need is two blunts and a light.’ He knocked it out, and on Saturday, I was getting all kinds of texts from different DJ’s like, ‘Yo this shit you did on Jeezy’s album is fucking crazy!’ The engineer hit me like, ‘You’ve got Jeezy in here rearranging ‘TM103.’’

“Then, I was with Future on his birthday, and he said, ‘Yo I just did that record with Jeezy on your beat. It’s going to be one of the biggest songs of 2012.’ I got to hear the song during the mix, but when it got on the album, it was still really brand new to me, Jeezy, Future, and everyone else.”

Ludacris f/ Big K.R.I.T. “I’m On Fire”

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Ludacris f/ Big K.R.I.T. “I’m On Fire” (2011)

Album: N/A

Mike WiLL: “Ludacris is the homie. I had played him and Chaka Zulu some tracks, and they told me they were working on a mixtape, but that I also had what they needed for Luda’s album. So he picked the ‘I’m On Fire’ track for his mixtape, because of the sample.

“He told me he was going to grab Big KRIT for it, which was crazy because I had sent that same track to Big KRIT a while back. I like the way the song came out. It was really organic. Luda and I have another crazy-dope record that will be on his album. It’s a cross-over record. Look out for that.”

50 Cent f/ Jeremih “Girls Go Wild”

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50 Cent f/ Jeremih “Girls Go Wild” (2012)

Album: N/A

Mike WiLL:“Jeremih was working on one of my tracks with Sean Garrett. That song hasn’t come out yet, but it’s crazy dope. I sent him a beat CD, and ‘Girls Go Wild’ was one of the beats on there. He hit me back and told me he had a dope record to it, and that he thought he could hear Luda on it with him.


 

 


We ended up letting the big homie get it, and it came out extra-dope. It’ll definitely be a smash for the summer. I know they’ve already shot the video.


 

“That same night, 50 Cent stopped by the studio Jeremih was working at in L.A. Jeremih let him hear the record and called me and said, ‘I think 50 might put a verse on it.’ Then 50 called like, ‘I need this joint.’ So we ended up letting the big homie get it, and it came out extra-dope. It’ll definitely be a smash for the summer. I know they’ve already shot the video.”

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