Exclusive Interview
Mar 6, 2025
Produced by: Rudy Manager
Edited by: Rudy Manager & Andrej Aroch
Charles “Chizzy” Stephens – “If you’re aiming high, your work ethic has to be just as crazy”
From an unexpected first studio session—after his parents met a producer mowing their lawn—to winning a Grammy, Charles “Chizzy” Stephens has built an impressive career. Known for his work with top-tier artists like Chris Brown, Justin Bieber, and Jennifer Lopez, he’s become a sought-after producer and songwriter. In this exclusive Studio Talks interview, conducted via video call by Rudy Manager on February 19, 2025, Chizzy discusses his journey from self-taught beat-making to working with top artists, his creative process, and his vision for the future.
How did you first get into music?
I started out probably in middle school. I played trumpet in the band. Initially, I started with the drums, but I quickly switched to the trumpet. While I was in the band, I started learning music theory—that was my first real introduction to it. Eventually, I took piano lessons.
When I was around 15 or 16, I started a rap group with my friends. We needed beats, and I had always been into reading credits, looking at booklets, and seeing who produced and wrote on songs. I looked up to Dr. Dre, Timbaland, and Pharrell Williams a lot, so I thought, “Maybe I can be like them and produce beats for our rap group.”
I started learning how to produce. For our first song, my parents met a guy—he was cutting our grass—who had a studio and was also a producer. So we went in and recorded our first song, and I just fell in love with the process.
When it was time for our next song, we realized we had to pay for beats. So I thought, “Let me just start making my own.” And that’s how I began teaching myself how to make beats and produce.
What was your process for improving your craft back then?
At school, we had an audio-visual (AV) room. That’s where they ran the school’s morning show, but it also had a makeshift studio. There was a keyboard and a setup to record.
If I finished my schoolwork, I’d be like, “Hey, I gotta go to the AV room to work on a project.” Then I’d go in there and start making music, just trying to recreate what I was hearing. Whatever the popular song or my favorite song was at the time, I’d teach myself how to remake the beat. That’s how I learned.
Scott Storch was killing it at the time, so I studied his tracks and learned to remake them. That taught me about sound selection and what to listen for. I was making music at school, then coming home, turning on the keyboard, and making more—I was always creating.
What’s your creative process like? Do you treat making music like a 9-to-5, or do you listen to music first to get inspired?
It’s a little bit of both. I definitely treat it like a job—I get up, plan my schedule, and keep a full calendar of sessions.
But it also depends on the day. If I have a day without a session, where I’m just creating, I’m really just having fun. I’ll look for a cool sound, a loop, or a chord progression and start building from there.
When I’m in a session with an artist, I like to prepare ahead of time. My most productive days are when I already have an idea of what we want to create—whether it’s a guitar loop, a chord progression, or a drum pattern. I like having something ready to go.
Once we’re in the session, it’s all about feeling the vibe—talking with the artist and songwriter to figure out the direction we want to take. If we decide to make something like an ‘80s pop track, for example, we’ll listen to a few ‘80s hits to get into that mindset. Then, we start creating from there.
You’ve worked extensively with Chris Brown on multiple projects. Can you share how you first met and started working together?
It all started when I was living in Atlanta, before moving to L.A. I was networking online, reaching out to people like, “Hey, I’m a producer, let’s work,” just grinding.
I had been following this producer named Amadeus, and we had been connected for a while. I reached out to him like, “Yo, we’ve been connected for a minute. Let’s link up.” He was down, gave me his info, and told me to send some beats.
I sent him a bunch of beats, but there was one I knew was special—I just didn’t know where it would land. At the time, I was trying to get it to Rick Ross and his team. But long story short, Chris Brown ended up writing a song to that beat with Jennifer Lopez—it became “Same Girl.” It became a buzz single for her album A.K.A., and that ended up being my first major placement.
That’s how I got into that circle. That connection led to more projects, introductions to Chris’s team, and collaborations with other producers and writers who worked with him.
I met Chris twice. The first time was at a party he threw, where his manager introduced us. He said, “Hey, this is Chizzy—he produced Same Girl.” Chris was like, “Yo, love your work. We’re gonna get one soon.” And I said, “Yeah, we definitely are.” Sure enough, we ended up working on a couple.
Following up on that, let’s talk about Moonlight, the song that recently won you a Grammy. Can you share the story of how it came together?
That was a fun process, and I remember it vividly because, as soon as we finished the song, we knew it was special. That doesn’t happen all the time, but with this one, we all knew: “Yeah, this is one of those ones.”
That day, instead of coming in with an idea like I usually do, I decided to start from scratch. I was working with Jesse Leprotti, Donye’a Goodin, and Tristan Rice, and we knew we’d be making something for Chris, so we had a general idea of what we wanted to do, but nothing set in stone.
We were catching up since it had been a while, and Tristan suggested sampling something. So we started throwing out ideas, and he mentioned “City Pop.” I didn’t recognize the name “City Pop,” so we pulled up a Spotify playlist, and it was full of old Japanese funk-pop tracks. As soon as I heard it, I realized I knew the sound—I just hadn’t known the name.
We clicked through a bunch of songs until “Sky Restaurant” popped up. Right away, we all thought, “Yo, this is crazy—we have to use this.” So we looped the sample, and I began with the bassline first, then layered the chord progression, and finally added some basic drums—nothing overproduced, just minimal and clean.
Then we started writing. We laid down melodies, and I think Donye’a came up with what became the chorus. As soon as he did it, we were like, “Yo, that’s the hook.” From that point, we just kept writing and finished the song.
I spent another day or two refining the production before sending it over. They hit me back with, “Yo, this is fire.” And that was it.
You’ve produced a lot of incredible songs over the years, but is there one that holds a special place in your heart?
I feel like songs are like your children, so it’s hard to pick a favorite. But if I had to choose, I’d pick two for different reasons.
From a production standpoint, one of my favorites is “Playtime” by Khalil featuring Justin Bieber. That’s one of my favorite beats. It has these cool guitars made by my boy Trey Jones—shoutout to him; we’ve been working together for a while. When we made that beat, I knew it was going to land with someone. Shoutout to my boy C-Minor and Josh Gudwin. C-Minor hit me up and said, “Yo, Josh said Bieber’s looking for beats.” So I sent it over, and they ended up recording a song to it. That was dope because I’m a fan of Justin Bieber’s work. After Journals, he was doing a lot of pop/R&B, and I really wanted to land a placement with him. And I did—so that one is special to me.
The second would be “Guilty” by Sevyn Streeter, A$AP Ferg, and Chris Brown. That was such a fun day and a cool process. We actually wrote it on Valentine’s Day, but it was one of those “No date? Pull up to the studio” situations. So we all got together, wrote that song, and the vibe was crazy. It was also one of my first radio singles, which made it even more special. Getting videos from people hearing it on the radio—especially from my parents—was a really cool moment.
What’s your opinion on the use of AI in music production?
I see AI as just another tool, and I believe it can be helpful. At the same time, I think there needs to be some level of control, especially when it comes to ensuring creators are properly compensated. A lot of AI technology is trained on copyrighted material, yet the original creators aren’t being compensated. I believe that issue will be resolved over time, but it needs to be addressed because the music industry is often the last to adapt when technology evolves—just like during the LimeWire and Kazaa days.
So my take is twofold: AI is dope, and creatives should absolutely use it as a tool. But there also need to be clear regulations and laws in place.
What advice would you give to up-and-coming producers looking to build their brand and work with established artists?
First, be delusional—but make sure your work ethic matches that mindset. If you’re aiming high, your work ethic has to be just as crazy.
When it comes to working with established artists, don’t focus solely on them—work with up-and-coming artists too. Look for people whose music you genuinely love and vibe with, and build with them. They could be the next wave of artists to blow up. So working with people who are similar to you, helping them develop their sound, and breaking an artist—that’s key. When you help create a sound, people will start coming to you because they’ll recognize you helped develop that, and they’ll want to bring you in on bigger projects.
Another thing is build a community. Surround yourself with other creatives—producers, songwriters, engineers, A&Rs—who are on the same journey as you. You never know who you’re working with now that may eventually be someone’s assistant and later rise to be the head of a company. Many of the friends I started with are now A&Rs and heads of companies, and we’re still working together today. So building a strong community is important.
Lastly, use social media to your advantage. With so many tools available today, there’s no excuse not to be online, putting yourself out there and building your brand. Don’t be lazy.
Do you have plans to release more of your own music in the near future?
I do. I never really planned on releasing my own music, but when “Catching Villains” went viral from the TV show, I was like, okay, maybe I’m not crazy about this music stuff after all. So I started working on a new project, and I plan to release at least a song or two by the end of the year. A full project is definitely on the way. I’m just figuring out how to balance it with everything else I’ve been working on.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
In five years, I see myself continuing to build my publishing company. I want to sign a few writers and producers and help them create and develop music. The next five years are all about nurturing and developing the next generation of creatives.
As for me personally as a producer, I want Grammys across all genres—pop, country, dance. I know the work it takes to get there, and I understand it won’t happen overnight, but I believe it will happen eventually.
And, of course, continuing to work with great artists. One of my big goals is to break a new artist and help them blow up. Those are some of my top goals for the next five years.
Follow Charles “Chizzy” Stephens on Instagram: @yaboychizzy
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