Matthew Jehu Samuels (born October 12, 1986), known professionally as Boi-1da ( , a play on "boy wonder"), is a Jamaican-Canadian record producer and songwriter based in Toronto, Ontario. The Toronto raised producer has worked with a variety of artists and groups, most notably Drake,

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...

, Nicki Minaj,

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ( ...

, Lana Del Rey, Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar among others. In 2015, Samuels served as the executive producer for Drake's mixtape '' If You're Reading This It's Too Late''.

Early life

Born in

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley Inter ...

, Samuels moved to Canada when he was three and grew up in the

North York North York is one of the six administrative districts of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located directly north of York, Old Toronto and East York, between Etobicoke to the west and Scarborough to the east. As of the 2016 Census, it had a popu ...

and Scarborough districts of Toronto.Jackson, Kevin (2014)
Ja's Wonder Boy
, ''

Jamaica Observer ''Jamaica Observer'' is a daily newspaper published in Kingston, Jamaica. The publication is owned by Butch Stewart, who chartered the paper in January 1993 as a competitor to Jamaica's oldest daily paper, ''The Gleaner''. Its founding editor i ...

'', March 28, 2014. Retrieved March 29, 2014Featured Producer: Boi-1da
HipHopCanada. Accessed on July 28, 2008. He was also raised in

Ajax, Ontario Ajax (; 2021 Canadian census, 2021 population: 126,666) is a town in Regional Municipality of Durham, Durham Region in Southern Ontario, Canada, located in the eastern part of the Greater Toronto Area. The town is named for , a Royal Navy cruiser ...

, where he attended Pickering High School.Boi-1da
''Exclaim!''. Accessed on November 18, 2010. His father was a keen listener of

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) "The Rou ...

music and so Samuels was brought up listening to Jamaican music. At the age of eight, his mother bought him a Casio keyboard, and at the age of 15, a friend had introduced him to

FL Studio FL Studio (previously known as FruityLoops before 2003) is a digital audio workstation (DAW) developed by the Belgian company Image-Line. FL Studio features a graphical user interface with a pattern-based music sequencer. The program is avail ...

(formerly Fruity Loops). Without any formal musical training, he started using the FL Studio beat-making program. A few years later, he won three consecutive Battle of the Beatmakers championships; because of this accomplishment, he was given a spot in the Battle of the Beatmakers judging panel. His first production work was at the age of 18, when he worked on two tracks on a

mixtape A mixtape (alternatively mix-tape, mix tape or mixed tape) is a compilation of music, typically from multiple sources, recorded onto a medium. With origins in the 1980s, the term normally describes a homemade compilation of music onto a cassette ...

('' Room for Improvement'') for Drake.

Career

Dr. Dre appeared on the remix of " Set It Off" by Kardinal Offishall, produced by Boi-1da. In an interview with

FLOW 93.5 CFXJ-FM (93.5 FM, ''93.5 Today Radio'') is a Canadian radio station in Toronto, Ontario. Owned by Stingray Group, it broadcasts an adult hits format. CFXJ's studios are located at Yonge and St. Clair in Toronto's Deer Park neighbourhood, whil ...

, Boi-1da revealed that he was working on beats for Dr. Dre's highly anticipated album, '' Detox'', which was to be released in 2011. However, that album was indefinitely shelved, and none of the released or leaked tracks by Dr. Dre featured Boi-1da's production. He has since stated that he was working with songwriter Sean Garrett and has submitted tracks for

Usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** Fiel ...

. He also worked on

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver ...

' '' Extinction Level Event 2: The Wrath of God''. In 2010, Boi-1da produced the hit song "

Not Afraid "Not Afraid" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his seventh studio album '' Recovery'' (2010). It was released as the album's lead single on April 27, 2010, by Interscope Records. "Not Afraid" was first revealed as a single b ...

" by

, and "hahahaha jk?" from Das Racist's second mixtape '' Sit Down, Man''. Boi-1da assisted with Drake's second album, '' Take Care'', which was released November 15, 2011. In March 2013, he produced "

5AM in Toronto ''Care Package'' is the first compilation album by Canadian rapper Drake. It was released on August 2, 2019 by OVO Sound and Republic Records. The compilation consists of songs released between 2010 and 2016 that were initially unavailable for pu ...

" by Drake, which was later released in Drake's 2019 compilation album, " Care Package". Boi-1da worked with rapper Lecrae on his song "Gimme a Second" from his mixtape '' Church Clothes''. He also collaborated with rapper

Bizzle Mark Julian Felder (born July 21, 1983), more commonly known under simply Bizzle, is an American Christian hip hop recording artist and entrepreneur. In January 2010, Bizzle released "You Got Some Explaining to Do" directed towards Jay-Z, cal ...

on his 2013 album ''The Good Fight''3. He is also a member of Drake's

October's Very Own OVO Sound (also known simply as OVO) is a Toronto-based Canadian record label, founded in 2012 by hip hop artist Drake (musician), Drake, producer 40 (record producer), 40, and Oliver El-Khatib. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distribute ...

with Noah "40" Shebib and

T-Minus A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...

. Boi-1da produced "Party Favors" for Tinashe for her album '' Nightride''. The single features Young Thug. In January 2016,

released the

track " Work", featuring Drake. The song peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming the second Boi-1da produced track to top the charts. Between 2016 and 2017, Boi-1da continued to produce dancehall tracks, such as Drake's " Controlla", Tyga's "1 of 1", PartyNextDoor's "Only U" and Nicki Minaj's " Regret in Your Tears". He co-produced the 2016 Kanye West single "

Real Friends Real Friends may refer to: *Real Friends (band) Real Friends is an American pop punk band from Tinley Park, Illinois. To date, the band has released seven EPs and three studio albums. Previously signed to Fearless Records, the band is currentl ...

". In September 2017, he produced " No Limit" by

G-Eazy Gerald Earl Gillum (born May 24, 1989), better known by his stage name G-Eazy, is an American rapper. His first major-label album, '' These Things Happen'', was released on June 23, 2014, and peaked at number 3 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 ...

featuring

A$AP Rocky Rakim Athelaston Mayers (born October 3, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Rocky ( ; stylized as A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper, music producer and record executive. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a membe ...

and

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar Cephus (, ; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper and songwriter. She first gained popularity as an influencer on Vine and Instagram. From 2015 to early 2017, she appeared as ...

. In January 2018, he produced " God's Plan" by Drake. In May 2018, he produced " TATI" by

6ix9ine Daniel Hernandez (born May 8, 1996), known professionally as 6ix9ine (stylized 6IX9INE and pronounced "six nine") and also as Tekashi69, is an American rapper. His music has been marked by an aggressive style of rapping, while his controversia ...

featuring DJ Spinking. In August 2018, he produced " Lucky You" by

featuring Joyner Lucas. In March 2019, he produced "

I'm Single "I'm Single" is a song by American rapper Lil Wayne, released as a single from his ninth solo mixtape, ''No Ceilings'', and is also included on his eighth studio album ''I Am Not a Human Being''. The song is produced by Noah "40" Shebib, with co-p ...

" by Jake Paul, and "Maze" and "Make Believe" from Juice Wrld's album, "

Death Race for Love ''Death Race for Love'' is the second studio album by American rapper and singer Juice Wrld and the last to be released during his lifetime. It was released on March 8, 2019, by Grade A Productions and Interscope Records. The album's artwork and ti ...

". In May 2019, he produced " Isis" by Joyner Lucas featuring Logic. In June 2019, he produced " No Guidance" by

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to '' Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempo ...

featuring Drake. In July 2019, he produced " 1000 Nights" by Ed Sheeran featuring Meek Mill and A Boogie wit da Hoodie. In October 2020, he produced " Tyler Herro" by Jack Harlow.

Musical style

Boi-1da is known for his distinctive

sound, having been brought up listening to dancehall before hip-hop. He often incorporates live instrumentation and an air horn sound effect into his beats, as used in

and reggae, and frequently incorporates samples in his productions. Boi-1da has spoken out against songs which imitate dancehall, criticising fellow Toronto musician Tory Lanez for doing so in his 2016 single " Luv". He currently uses FL Studio 12 to make beats, previously, he used Fruity Loops 3.56, 7 XL and 9. Boi-1da has spoken about being influenced by producers such as

Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...

, Swizz Beatz, Timbaland, and The Neptunes.

Production discography

Awards and nominations

ASCAP Pop Music Awards

The

American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...

(ASCAP) hosts a series of awards shows, honouring people in different music categories; pop music is one of its seven categories. In 2011, Drake presented the award to him and 40. They both won the ASCAP Pop Music Award for the Songwriters of the Year for "Over".

Grammy Awards

The Grammy Awards are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Boi-1da has one win out of nineteen nominations. , - ,

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, " Best I Ever Had" ( Drake) , rowspan="2",

Best Rap Song The Grammy Award for Best Rap Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rap music genre. Honors in several ...

, , - , rowspan="2",

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

, "

" (

) , , - , ''

Recovery Recovery or Recover may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books * Recovery (novel), ''Recovery'' (novel), a Star Wars e-book * Recovery Version, a translation of the Bible with footnotes published by Living Stream Ministry Film and television * R ...

'' (Eminem) ,

Album of the Year Album of the Year, often abbreviated to AOTY, may refer to: Awards * ARIA Award for Album of the Year, Australia * Brit Award for British Album of the Year, UK * Grammy Award for Album of the Year, US * Juno Award for Album of the Year, CA * Lati ...

, , - ,

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

, "

0 to 100 / The Catch Up "0 to 100 / The Catch Up" is a song recorded by Canadian rapper Drake. It was released on July 15, 2014, by Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records, and Republic Records. The song was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Associatio ...

" (Drake) , rowspan="2", Best Rap Song , , - , rowspan="2",

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, " Energy" (Drake) , , - , '' To Pimp a Butterfly'' ( Kendrick Lamar) , rowspan="2", Album of the Year , , - , rowspan="2",

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

, ''

Views A view is a sight or prospect or the ability to see or be seen from a particular place. View, views or Views may also refer to: Common meanings * View (Buddhism), a charged interpretation of experience which intensely shapes and affects thou ...

'' (Drake) , , - , " Work" (

featuring Drake) , rowspan="2", Record of the Year , , - , rowspan="6",

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

, rowspan="3", " God's Plan" (Drake) , , - ,

Song of the Year Song of the Year may refer to: * Country Music Association Award for Song of the Year * Dove Award for Song of the Year * Golden Melody Award for Song of the Year * Grammis Song of the Year * Grammy Award for Song of the Year * Latin Grammy Awa ...

, , - , rowspan="3", Best Rap Song , , - , " Lucky You" (Eminem) , , - , " Win" (Jay Rock) , , - , Himself , Producer of the Year, Non-Classical , , - ,

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

, '' Donda'' ( Kanye West) , rowspan="3", Album of the Year , , - , rowspan="4",

2023 Events Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1927 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ** Croatia will adopt the eu ...

, '' Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'' (Kendrick Lamar) , , - , '' Renaissance'' (

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

) , , - , "

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

" ( Jack Harlow featuring Drake) , Best Rap Song , , - , Himself , Producer of the Year, Non-Classical ,