Exclusive Interview
Nov 22, 2025
Produced by: Rudy Manager
Edited by: Rudy Manager & Andrej Aroch
Buddah Bless – Hit Producer Behind Travis Scott, Migos & 2 Chainz
Photo by Simone A.
Studio Talks sits down with Buddah Bless, the hitmaker behind some of the decade’s biggest records, as he steps into a full artist role and begins curating his own releases. In this conversation, he traces his roots from playing in church to the top of the charts, breaks down his FL Studio workflow, and talks collaboration and favorite hardware. He shares candid thoughts on AI in music, the records closest to his heart, and what it takes to turn ideas into placements. We also get into his upcoming album, Buddah Bless The Streets, and the vision driving his next chapter. This interview was conducted via video call by Rudy Manager on November 10, 2025.
“Melody is king. A great melody will live forever.”
- Buddah Bless
How did you first get into music, and how did that evolve into you becoming an artist and producer?
I started with music in church, where I played the piano and the organ. From there, I picked up music theory. Later, my aunt married a music producer who became my uncle, and on Thanksgiving I saw him working in FruityLoops, FL Studio. It was probably FruityLoops 3 at the time. I got interested right away. I was in sixth or seventh grade then, and by eighth grade I was taking it seriously.
Who were your influences when you were starting out?
My uncle Joe was a big influence for sure. I really loved Kanye. Havoc from Mobb Deep was a huge influence too. I was into The Heatmakerz, who did a lot of the Dipset records, and Dr. Dre. But if I had to narrow it down, it’s a mix of Pharrell, Kanye, and Havoc. Even now, I see my sound as a newer version of that mix.
What was your process from first downloading FL Studio to producing for artists?
At first it was simple. You download it and start figuring it out. I wasn’t an artist yet, so I always wanted to hear somebody on my records. I bought a microphone, and we recorded in Cool Edit Pro, which you might remember. I got kids in my neighborhood and friends to rap so I could hear vocals on my beats. I’m from New York, so my ear leaned toward that sound. My favorites were 50 Cent and Jay-Z, so that was the lane I started in. But I was living in the South, and the kids in the neighborhood would say, “Make something like Lil Wayne or Soulja Boy. Make some Southern beats. We don’t want to rap on New York stuff.” So I began pulling from ’90s and 2000s hip hop and mixing it with the newer Southern sound that was taking off.
I got a lot of practice working with neighborhood artists and learning what different people liked. One guy likes these kinds of beats. Another likes those. As I got older, I learned to read a room. When you’re with certain artists, you play certain kinds of beats.
Photo by Simone A.
How do you approach working on new music when you open FL Studio?
I’m one of those people who believe melody is king. A great melody will live forever, and I really take that to heart. I think Quincy Jones said something along those lines. I always start with the melody, something catchy that touches me or just feels good. Once that’s there, I move on to the drums.
Do you treat making music like a nine to five schedule, or is there a time of day when you lock in and focus?
I tried to do that. I remember hearing that Eminem treats it like that. He goes in at nine, leaves at five, and no matter what, he’s done by five. He had his own reasons for following that routine. I tried it, but my process doesn’t fit a schedule. Creativity doesn’t keep office hours. It can hit whenever and wherever. You might be watching TV and something sparks an idea, or you’re in the car and a thought clicks. Somebody might make you angry and it pushes you to create, or something might make you happy and it opens things up. I really try to listen to the voice of God and move when I feel that nudge to create. I don’t think you can put God on a schedule for when he’s going to speak to you.
On many of your biggest placements, it’s just you on production, maybe with one other person. What’s your take on producer collaborations, and on having five or more producers on one song?
Whatever it takes to get the job done. I can do it on my own and that’s how I grew up. When I started out, there weren’t a bunch of people making beats together. In high school we didn’t collaborate on beats. My guy Bryce was my competition. We’re good friends now, but back then it was more like, “I want to hear what you did, and you want to hear what I did.” We just listened to each other’s work, and it wasn’t about hate. We just never thought to team up. I say that to make the point that it’s about results. There are producers bigger than me with huge records who collaborate with two or three people and do great, sometimes better. I’m not the type to say you’re only a real producer if you make the beat by yourself. What matters is whether the music feels good and the business is straight between the producers.
My process often works better alone or with friends. A lot of my placements are with Mondo, who’s a friend from high school. We made a lot of 2 Chainz and Kodak Black records together. Jabz was a kid in the neighborhood who used to watch me make beats, and now we’ve made “OUT WEST” by Travis Scott and Young Thug together, “Coffin” by Lil Yachty, and a bunch of Young Dolph records. For me it’s an energy thing.
What are some of your favorite VST plugins, hardware, or synthesizers?
I say this all the time. Yamaha should sponsor me. I love the Yamaha MODX series. Most of my work comes from that keyboard. I’ll take the sounds and tweak them, contour them, reverse them, pitch them, and do all kinds of things, but I like playing live. I don’t really use VSTs or much MIDI. Playing live feels natural because of my church background, where I had to play on time, in tempo, and in key. I’ve been using the Roland Fantom a bit lately too, but the Yamaha is my baby and my bread and butter. I’ve made millions of dollars on that keyboard.
Photo by Simone A.
What are your thoughts on AI in music production? Do you like it?
I don’t think it’s about liking it or not. It is what it is for me. Sometimes I’ll find a reason to use it, like when I want a sample to say something specific. I can type in lyrics and get that sampled feel without an actual vocal take. So if I had to give a clear answer, I do like it.
I understand why some people don’t. It can feel like it’s taking the place of real musicians. But the same thing was said when beat machines came along. Before that, someone like Quincy Jones had to orchestrate a whole band with horns, strings, and drums. Then beat machines let one person do that work. A lot of people lost checks, but there wasn’t a big rebellion to get rid of the machines. The world always moves toward making things easier. If that didn’t happen, we’d still be riding horses. Now we have cars, electric cars, and even cars that drive themselves. It’s part of how life improves. People will keep finding ways to make it make sense instead of only seeing it as jobs getting cut off.
Is there a record you produced that’s especially close to your heart?
“Big Amount,” of course, since it was my first song. I also really love “Senseless” with Kodak. I’ve got songs that are bigger and have made more money, but those two mean a lot to me. “Big Amount” came out in 2016, and from then until 2020, it was nonstop. It became a way of life, which can make you forget how special that run really was. Then I hit a six-month stretch where it felt quiet. In the grand scheme of music, that isn’t a long time, but for me it felt long. I started wondering if I was falling off. One day I got online and saw that Kodak had dropped “Senseless.” The label hadn’t even done paperwork or anything. He made the song, shot the video, and put it out. I woke up the next morning and my Instagram was more lit than it had ever been. His fans were going crazy, and that reminded me to keep working. The record is good, but it mattered more for what it represented in my head. This is a marathon, not a sprint.
It also told me to pivot when it’s time. Sometimes you need to recalibrate your sound and work with different artists. Back then, I’d been flooding 2 Chainz, Migos, and Travis Scott. Kodak was an artist I hadn’t worked with yet, and that move made sense. You have to know when something’s hot, when something’s done, and where you’ll work best instead of staying stuck in your ways.
You recently started releasing your own music as an artist. What’s your vision for your artist projects? Are you working on an album fans can look forward to?
Yeah, I’m working on an album called Buddah Bless The Streets. What I want to do is give people classic records, like the song with Kodak, “Owe Me,” which is going crazy. I’ve also got a record called “See the World” with BossMan Dlow, 2 Chainz, and Big Sean. You see those names together and wonder how it’ll sound. Then you hear it and it clicks. I’m trying to bring different things to the game the way DJ Khaled did. Whether he made the beat or not, he curated vibes, connections, and collaborations, and picked the right tracks and the right people for the hooks. From that perspective, I really respect what he did. I feel the same about Metro Boomin. Metro does a great job selecting production, and he’s hands-on, working on the laptop or on the MPC.
I’m aiming for the best of both worlds. I’m taking those approaches and making my own version of it, my own gumbo of what Buddha’s bringing to the table.
When can fans expect it?
I wanted to drop it around my birthday, February 8, 2026, but I may push it back because I’m executive producing Kodak’s next album and want to make sure that’s locked in. Right now I’m building records. I’ve got some great surprises I’m not ready to reveal yet, and I’m about ten songs in.
It’s a process, and I respect the producers who do this because it’s hard. I’m not a rapper, so to get these records, I have to work with artists and singers, then clear everything with their labels. You have to make sure you can release without overlapping their album releases. For “See the World” with BossMan Dlow, 2 Chainz, and Big Sean, I had to get three labels aligned. It’s tough, but people are starting to know me for putting these records together, which helps. To give a shorter answer, I’m looking at March 2026.
Photo by Simone A.
What advice would you give new producers who want to work with established artists and start getting placements?
Trust the process and don’t try to skip steps. I’m not claiming to know everything, and I don’t want anyone to take what I say as law, but I do know the internet is a powerful tool that I didn’t have coming up. You can DM producers, say you want to work, send loops, send drums. It might work for you or it might not, but whatever your path is, trust it.
If your process is reaching out to producers for a few years until something clicks, stick with it. If it’s getting out in the streets or locking in at studios, be consistent with that. Do good, fair business and stay consistent. Of course you have to make dope music, but what’s good is a matter of opinion. What you can control is your effort, your consistency, and your business. Trust your process and keep going.
Where do you see yourself a year from now, personally and professionally?
I’ve signed producers before and helped them land big records and publishing deals, and I want to do that on a larger scale. I just started a production team called Soundbenders. Think of it like the elements in Avatar: The Last Airbender. There’s air, water, fire, and earth, and I see sound as the fifth element. My goal is to build this team with people from different parts of the world and different backgrounds, so it becomes a household name. I don’t want it to be all about “Buddah Bless this beat.” I’m not a selfish person. I want to tap into the new sounds the younger generation is making that I might not do as well myself. My son makes beats, my little cousin makes beats, and they do things I didn’t grow up doing. Artists still come to me and want to work, so if a sound is better suited to someone on my team, I’ll bring them in. I’ll be the bridge that connects the right producer to the right artist so we make great records together and everyone wins.
I’m always a musician at heart, but I see myself stepping further into a CEO role and making plays that set other people up. That way I can be in more places at once. The more capable hands we have, the more we can accomplish.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
I want to shout out the youth and all the producers out there. This is hard. Building a life from music is a real blessing. Sometimes I feel survivor’s remorse because I know people who work as hard as I do, or harder, and it hasn’t happened for them, but they’re still staying down and working. I want to thank God for the opportunities I have because this isn’t easy. I take care of my kids and my family with this work, and it’s tough. We get paid a tenth of a penny per stream, so making records big enough for that to add up to something you can use for a meal, a house, or a car is amazing.
Follow Buddah Bless on Instagram: @buddahblessthisbeat
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