Chauncey Alexander Hollis Jr. (born May 21, 1987), better known by his stage name Hit-Boy, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. In May 2011, he had signed a two-year deal with

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

GOOD Music GOOD Music (also known simply as GOOD, stylized as G.O.O.D. Music; a backronym for Getting Out Our Dreams) is an American record label founded by rapper Kanye West in 2004. The label signed an exclusive long-term worldwide label agreement with t ...

production branch. With this stimulus, he produced singles such as " Niggas in Paris" by

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 o ...

and

, "

Trophies A trophy is a tangible, durable reminder of a specific achievement, and serves as a recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are often awarded for sporting events, from youth sports to professional level athletics. In many sports medals (or, i ...

" by

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

, "

Clique A clique ( AusE, CanE, or ), in the social sciences, is a group of individuals who interact with one another and share similar interests. Interacting with cliques is part of normative social development regardless of gender, ethnicity, or popular ...

" by

, and " Racks in the Middle" by Nipsey Hussle featuring

Roddy Ricch Rodrick Wayne Moore Jr. (born October 22, 1998), known professionally as Roddy Ricch, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to fame in 2018 with his single, " Die Young", which peaked at number 98 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. ...

. "Racks in the Middle" won Best Rap Performance at the 2020 Grammy Awards. In December 2012, Hit-Boy signed a recording contract with

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner ...

and subsequently founded his own record label imprint, Hits Since '87. He has since expanded his production catalog with singles such as " Drop the World" by

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...

, " Sorry" by

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 ...

, and " Sicko Mode" by Travis Scott, all of which have been

certified platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

or higher by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

(RIAA).

Career

Hollis got his start on Myspace when he received a message from

Polow Da Don Jamal Fincher Jones (born October 15, 1977, or 1978), professionally known as Polow da Don, is an American record producer and rapper. Jones has produced a variety of singles for a multitude of artists including "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj (2014) ...

stating simply "Let's get this paper, pimp", and reached out to say he wanted to meet Hollis and discuss signing him professionally. He has produced for big-name artists such as

Big Sean Sean Michael Leonard Anderson (born March 25, 1988), known professionally as Big Sean, is an American rapper. Anderson began his music career in 2007 and gained popularity in 2010 with his third mixtape '' Finally Famous Vol. 3: Big''. He then s ...

Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Y ...

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 music, hip hop in Middle America (United Sta ...

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

, Mary J. Blige,

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 ...

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 contempor ...

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his progressive musical styles and socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generat ...

Selena Gomez Selena Marie Gomez ( ; born July 22, 1992) is an American singer, actress and producer. Gomez began her acting career on the children's television series ''Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004). As a teenager, she rose to prominence for starring a ...

and several others. The California native is one of the founding members of the collective brand Surf Club (along with fellow beat makers Chase N.Cashe, BCarr, and Chili Chill). Surf Club has become a team to host a number of artists as well as songwriters and other producers. Surf Club originated in southern California. They got their start in the industry in 2007, after linking with

's Zone 4, an imprint of

. He began his work with Kanye West when he produced his GOOD Friday track, "Christmas in Harlem",

Pusha T Terrence LeVarr Thornton (born May 13, 1977), better known by his stage name Pusha T, is an American rapper, songwriter and record executive. He rose to prominence as one-half of the hip hop duo Clipse, which was mainly active from 1994 to 201 ...

Musiq Soulchild Taalib Hassan Johnson (born September 16, 1977), better known by the stage name Musiq Soulchild or simply Musiq (pronounced "music") is an American singer and songwriter whose style blends R&B, funk, blues, jazz, and gospel influences fused w ...

and Cyhi Da Prynce. On May 2, 2011, he signed to

Label, produced the single " Niggas in Paris", on the collaborative "

Watch the Throne ''Watch the Throne'' is a collaborative studio album by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West, collectively known as The Throne. It was released on August 8, 2011, through Roc-A-Fella Records, Roc Nation, and Def Jam Recordings. Prior to t ...

" album created by

and

, and produced the singles "

Goldie Clifford Joseph Price MBE (born 19 September 1965), better known as Goldie, is a British music producer and DJ. Initially gaining exposure for his work as a graffiti artist, Goldie became well known for his pioneering role as a musician in ...

" and "1 Train" for

ASAP 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 ...

. On June 7, 2012, Hollis released his first official song in which he raps, the promotional single "Jay-Z Interview", which was produced by

Bink! Roosevelt Harrell III (born February 20, 1972) professionally known as Bink is an American hip hop producer from Norfolk, Virginia, who is noted for his work with Roc-A-Fella Records artists. His most high-profile work has been Jay-Z's critica ...

. Later in July 2012, Hollis was featured rapping on

CyHi The Prynce Cydel Charles Young (born September 15, 1984), known professionally as CyHi the Prynce, is an American rapper and singer. In 2009, Young signed his first major-label contract with Konvict Muzik, with the backing of Def Jam Recordings. In 2010, h ...

's mixtape ''Ivy League Club'', on the song "Entourage". Hollis then released the self-produced track "Old School Caddy", which features fellow GOOD Music member

. These two tracks appeared on his first full-length project, a mixtape titled ''HITstory'', which was released for free download on his official website. On December 23, 2012, Hollis secured a recording contract with

, under the record label Blueprint Group, along with the L.E.P. Bogus Boys. Soon after, he tweeted: "2012 has been great to me and my fam. Feeling more blessed than ever. Excited to see what God has planned for 2013. TU." On January 23, 2013, it was announced that his record label Hits Since '87, is now an imprint of

. On June 29, 2013, he announced that he is no longer signed to GOOD Music, but still on good terms with everybody in the label. In 2016, Hit-Boy and Local Los Angeles rapper

Dom Kennedy Dominic Ross Hunn (born August 22, 1984), better known by his stage name Dom Kennedy, is an American rapper from Leimert Park, Los Angeles, California. Since 2008, Kennedy has released 5 independent mixtapes, most notably his 2010 critically acc ...

came together to work on a joint mixtape named ''Half-A-Mil'' EP, subsequently adopting the name (dropping the EP) as an alias for the duo. ''Half-A-Mil'' EP was released on December 11, 2016. The mixtape consisted of five songs, with "100 Rounds" being the lead single off the mixtape. Following the release of their first mixtape, the pair decided to put out another mixtape a few months after their previous mixtape. ''Half-A-Mil 2'' EP released on February 24, 2017. The mixtape contained six songs with one guest feature from B.Carr. The duo would take a break and would not release music under the

Half-A-Mil Jasun Wardlaw (April 6, 1973 – October 22, 2003) better known by his stage name Half a Mill, was a Brooklyn-based American rapper. Career Half a Mill was considered an underground rapper in the early 1990s. His mainstream breakthrough c ...

name. After some time, the frequent collaborators released ''Half-A-Mil 3'' EP, continuing the mixtape series and being the last one in the saga. ''Half-A-Mil'' 3 EP was August 8, 2017. The mixtape only had two feature from 24hrs on "Don't run" and Quentin Miller on the tracks "Might as Well" and "In The Hills". Also, the duo released a music video for both songs on September 7, 2017. After releasing all three mixtapes, the pair finally released their first commercial album, Courtesy of Half-a-Mil, on November 29, 2017. The album contains 14 tracks and numerous features such as

Larry June Larry Eugene Hendricks III (born April 8, 1991) is an American rapper from San Francisco, California. He is known for his EPs ''Larry'' and ''Orange Season'' and has toured with musicians such as Cousin Stizz, Berner, Curren$y, and Post Malone ...

, TYuS, B.Carr, Jay 305, and

Ty Dolla Sign Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He first gained major recognition in 2010 for his feature on Ameri ...

. The Tandem would go on to take a hiatus and not release any new music. Nearly two and half years later, the group would release their second studio. "Also Known As" was released on July 31, 2020. The album consists of 11 tracks and features from

03 Greedo Jason Jamal Jackson (born July 26, 1987), known professionally as 03 Greedo, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and producer from the Watts neighborhood of the county of Los Angeles, California. He began to gain recognition for his ''Pur ...

, 24hrs, and

. In 2020 and 2021, he produced the

albums King's Disease, King's Disease 2, King's Disease III and Magic

Production style

Hit-Boy uses

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 ...

and custom music plug-ins to make his beats.

Personal life

Hit-Boy is the nephew of Rodney Benford, from the R&B group

Troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Tr ...

. He grew up in

Fontana, California Fontana is a city in San Bernardino County, California. Founded by Azariel Blanchard Miller in 1913, it remained essentially rural until World War II, when entrepreneur Henry J. Kaiser built a large steel mill in the area. It is now a regiona ...

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Mixtapes

Guest appearances and production credit

Awards and nominations

BET Hip Hop Awards The BET Hip Hop Awards are an annual awards show, airing on BET, showcasing hip hop performers, producers and music video directors. The awards ceremony began in 2006; it was held on November 12, 2006 at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, and w ...

The BET Hip Hop Awards were established in 2006 by the

Black Entertainment Television Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...

network to celebrate hip-hop performers, producers and

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

directors.

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
s

The Grammy Award is an award presented by

The Recording Academy The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous for its Grammy A ...

to recognize achievement in the mainly English-language

music industry The music industry consists of the individuals and organizations that earn money by writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling recorded music and sheet music, presenting concerts, as well as the organizations that aid, train, ...

. Hit-Boy received three awards from eleven nominations.

References

External links

Official website

Hit-Boy discography

Complete Surf Club discography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hit-Boy 1987 births Living people African-American male rappers African-American record producers American hip hop record producers American rhythm and blues keyboardists Grammy Award winners for rap music People from Fontana, California Rappers from California Songwriters from California West Coast hip hop musicians 21st-century American rappers Record producers from California 21st-century American male musicians African-American songwriters 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people American male songwriters FL Studio users