The 10 Best Rapper-Producer Relationships Right Now

Hip-hop is built on the magic that happens when a rhyme is added to a beat, and over the years certain combinations of MCs and producers have proven particularly good at conjuring that magic, from Snoop and Dre to Biggie and Puff.

Today, when many rap albums are a patchwork of contributions from a dozen different producers, true rapper-producer chemistry is increasingly rare and precious. The Lifetime series The Rap Game is all about finding the next young hip-hop star, with host Jermaine Dupri having nurtured many rappers (and singers) to greatness.

Here are the 10 best rapper-producer relationships right now, all of the duos pushing each other to make music history.

Noah “40” Shebib and Aubrey “Drake” Graham were just a couple of Toronto-based child actors with musical aspirations when they got together and created the brooding, melodic sound that would eventually take over hip-hop. And even as Drake has expanded his musical territory and worked with other producers, 40 remains the curator of his vision, co-producing the bulk of his albums and mixing them for a cohesive listening experience, from Thank Me Later to Views.

Since they linked up for the 2013 hit “Karate Chop,” St. Louis native Leland “Metro Boomin” Wayne has emerged as the most crucial of the many producers in the orbit of Atlanta superstar Future. With his tough, synth-driven sound all over the albums EVOL, DS2 and Honest, and the mixtapes Purple Reign, Monster, and What a Time to Be Alive with Drake, the words “If Young Metro don’t trust you, I’m gon’ shoot you” have become one of the telltale signs of a great Future song.

Since the early days of Top Dawg Entertainment, the West Coast label’s acclaimed albums have been largely driven by the in-house production team Digi+Phonics, which includes Sounwave, Tae Beast, Willie B, and Dave Free. But as Kendrick Lamar emerged as TDE’s most brilliant rapper, Sounwave became the producer who often got the best out of him, from the lush orchestration of “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe” to the sticky funk of “King Kunta.” Sounwave recently accepted a Grammy on behalf of Kendrick and Pharrell Williams for his work on “Alright.”

Although Young Thug and London Holmes have worked together since 2009, they found fame together five years later when London-produced tracks like Rich Gang’s “Lifestyle” and T.I.’s “About the Money” helped turn Thug into a mainstream phenomenon. Tracks featuring London’s signature keyboard work like “Check,” “Power,” and “Digits” have continued to stand out on Thug’s recent releases, and London is playing a major role on Thugger's forthcoming album.

Much of what sets Chance the Rapper apart from his mainstream rap contemporaries is the live instrumentation and brighter palette of sounds afforded to him by the Social Experiment, the quartet of musicians who back him onstage and produce much of the music on his mixtapes. Nico “Donnie Trumpet” Segal and Greg Landfair Jr. began playing together in the Chicago band Kids These Days, which split in 2013. They later formed the Social Experiment with Peter Cottontale and Nate Fox. The group’s 2015 effort, Surf, was the most complete picture of the Social Experiment’s unusual fusion of hip-hop, jazz, soul, and gospel. Since then, the band has continued pushing its sound forward on highlights from Chance’s Coloring Book, including “Blessings” and “Same Drugs.”

Since his groundbreaking work throughout the ‘90s with Common, Chicago producer Ernest “No I.D.” Wilson has been known as a skilled beatmaker who can bring the best out of artists. And it’s in his current role as Executive Vice President and Head of Creative at Def Jam Recordings that he’s continued to burnish his legacy by resurrecting the lost art of the major label A&R. No I.D. helped transform Vince Staples from a promising but little-known Odd Future-affiliated rapper into a powerful new voice in hip-hop. He produced the bulk of the Long Beach rapper’s acclaimed 2015 album Summertime ’06 and has formed a strong creative chemistry with an artist barely half his age.

Xavier “Zaytoven” Dotson was Gucci Mane’s right hand from the very beginning, producing his breakout 2005 single “Icy” and dozens of mixtape classics over the decade that followed with his playful, piano-driven aesthetic. With Gucci in and out of jail in recent years, Zay produced hits for other artists like Migos and Future, but it always felt like he was biding time until his primary collaborator’s return. Within days of Gucci’s release from prison in May, he was seen working on new music with Zaytoven, who will no doubt be contributing to Gucci Mane’s hotly anticipated new album Everybody Looking, out on July 22.

Mike WiLL Made-It was already one of hip-hop’s most prolific hitmakers when he plucked two Mississippi teens out of obscurity to headline his Ear Drummers label. That investment paid off instantly. Rae Sremmurd’s smash debut single “No Flex Zone,” was followed by four more hit singles off of their 2015 album, SremmLife. The album was a showcase for the duo’s rubbery voices and Mike WiLL’s increasingly versatile production. With SremmLife 2 on the way later this summer, Rae Sremmurd’sSwae Lee has proven himself an integral piece of Mike WiLL’s team, helping to write the Beyoncé blockbuster, “Formation.”

A couple years ago, YG and DJ Mustard were arguably the most potent rapper-producer duo in hip-hop. But the two had a falling out, and while they resolved things this year, YG decided to finish his second album, Still Brazy, without Mustard anyway. He took a chance on a team of lesser-known producers, including Samuel “DJ Swish” Ahana. Swish’s bass-heavy traditional West Coast sound boosts standouts like the controversial single “FDT (F*** Donald Trump),” but he also experiments with different textures on creeping bangers like “Who Shot Me?”

Fetty Wap’s 2015 self-titled debut was an increasingly rare phenomenon: a platinum rap LP made entirely by a rapper’s core team that he came up with, with no outside help from established producers or guests. And the MVP of Fetty’s RGF Productions team was Brian “Peoples” Garcia. Peoples produced over a third of the album, including the hits “679” and “Again,” with a catchy, synth-driven sound that grounded the New Jersey rapper’s ear for melody.