Michael Uzowuru
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Michael Uzowuru | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 10, 1991 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Record producer, songwriter |
| Years active | 2010–present |
Michael Uzowuru // (born November 10, 1991) is an American record producer and songwriter. He has produced and written for SZA, Frank Ocean, FKA Twigs, Beyoncé, Donald Glover, Vince Staples, Earl Sweatshirt, and Rosalía, among others.
Life and career
[edit]Michael Uzowuru was born on November 10, 1991, in Los Angeles and raised in both Cypress, California and Rancho Cucamonga, California. He went to Etiwanda High School in Rancho Cucamonga. Michael is of Igbo descent through his mother, who immigrated to the United States from Nigeria.[1]
2010–2015: Career beginnings
[edit]Uzowuru began his music career by making independent beat tapes and working with a number of collaborators. His early projects include works with Vince Staples and Odd Future's Domo Genesis, Matt Martians from the Jet Age of Tomorrow, and Hodgy Beats.
In 2012, Uzowuru released a mixtape with the title Winter in Prague with longtime friend and collaborator Vince Staples.[2] In 2013, Uzowuru produced the opening track "Pre" for Earl Sweatshirt's debut album Doris. Later that year, he produced "Tweakin" and "Yap Yap" for Chicago rapper Vic Mensa's second mixtape Innanetape.
In addition to producing for other artists, Uzowuru released a number of instrumental and solo projects in 2014, notably Paisley Palm Trees, which was premiered by The Fader magazine[3] and Pink Orchids, released in August 2014.
2016–present
[edit]Uzowuru was named in the production credits for Frank Ocean's 2016 visual album Endless and Ocean's long-awaited second studio album Blonde. Uzowuru was credited as both a writer and a producer on the track "Nights".[4][5] He also executive produced rapper Kevin Abstract's second album American Boyfriend, which debuted in the Fall of 2016.[6][7]
In 2017, he appeared as co-producer on Frank Ocean's single "Chanel" released on Ocean's Beats1 radio show. Scott Vener and Pharrell Williams premiered a remix done by Uzowuru and collaborator Jeff Kleinman of Little Dragon's "High" featuring Denzel Curry and Twelve'len[8]
In 2018, Uzowuru's work appeared on Anderson .Paak's "Til It's Over", which was used in Apple's "Welcome Home" commercial directed by Spike Jonze.
In the spring of 2019, Uzowuru composed the score for the short film Guava Island, starred and produced by Donald Glover and released by Amazon Studios. The following summer, Uzowuru was credited for writing and production on Beyoncé's compilation album The Lion King: The Gift, having worked on the tracks "Mood 4 Eva" and "Brown Skin Girl".[9][10] He also wrote and produced for artists FKA Twigs and GoldLink.[11] Later in the year, Uzowuru appeared on the production and writing credits of the Frank Ocean single "In My Room".[12]
Uzowuru collaborated with Spanish singer Rosalía through 2020 and 2021 and co-produced her album Motomami, which ended up winning the Digital Album of the Year Award in the Latin Grammy Awards of 2022.[13]
In 2022 Uzowuru executive-produced Vince Staples album Ramona Park Broke My Heart. The album received widespread critical acclaim[14][15][16] and appeared on several best album year-end lists.[17][18][19][20]
In 2023, Uzowuru composed the score and co-produced the soundtrack for the Amazon TV series Swarm created by Donald Glover and Janine Nabers,[21] which was also released as an EP.[22] He contributed to 10 out of 18 tracks on The Great Impersonator by Halsey (singer)
Influence
[edit]In a 2015 MSNBC interview, Michael mentioned a number of musicians across a wide range of genre as his inspiration, including Elliott Smith, Nirvana, Kanye West, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Afrobeat, Fela Kuti and Björk.[1]
Discography
[edit]Music for TV and film
[edit]| Year | Film | Studio / Company | Director |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Becoming | Netflix | Nadira Hallgren |
| 2019 | Guava Island | Amazon | Hiro Murai |
| 2018 | Welcome Home (commercial) | Apple | Spike Jonze |
| 5 Reasons iPad Pro Can Be Your Next Computer (commercial)[23] | |||
| 2023 | Swarm (TV series)[21] | Amazon | Multiple |
Writing and production credits
[edit]| Year | Artist | Album | Song |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | Only Living Girl In LA |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | Ego |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | The End |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | Hometown |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | I Believe In Magic |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | Hurt Feelings |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | Dog Years |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | The Great Impersonator |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | Arsonist |
| 2024 | Halsey | The Great Impersonator | Lucky |
| 2023 | Ni'Jah | Swarm (EP) | "Big World" |
| "Agatha" | |||
| "Sticky" | |||
| Snoh Alegra | Single | “Be my summer” | |
| Dominic Fike | Sunburn | "4X4" | |
| Sofia Valdes | Silvia (EP) | "Midnight freak-Out" (Also released as single) | |
| "Easy" | |||
| "Wild" | |||
| "Silvia" | |||
| "Barbed Wire" | |||
| thxsomuch | Sleez (EP) | "Screws" | |
| Ryan Beatty | Calico | "White teeth" | |
| "Bright red" | |||
| Bakar | Single | "Good news" | |
| Lous and The Yakuza | IOTA | "Lubie" | |
| 2022 | SZA | SOS | "Notice Me" |
| "Open Arms" (featuring Travis Scott) | |||
| Ctrl (Deluxe) | “Awkward” | ||
| Burna Boy | Love, Damini | "Love, Damini" | |
| Rosalía | Motomami | "Saoko" | |
| "Candy" | |||
| "Chicken Teriyaki" | |||
| "Hentai" | |||
| "Bizcochito" | |||
| "G3 N15" | |||
| "Motomami" | |||
| "Delirio de Grandeza" | |||
| "La Combi Versace" | |||
| "Diablo" | |||
| "LA KILIÉ " | |||
| "LAX" | |||
| 2021 | Kenny Mason | Angelic Hoodrat: Supercut | "4ever" |
| 2020 | Omar Apollo | Apolonio | "Bi Fren" |
| "I'm Amazing" | |||
| 2019 | Frank Ocean | Single | "Little Demon" |
| Frank Ocean | Single | "In My Room" | |
| SiR | Chasing Summer | "Hair Down" (featuring Kendrick Lamar) | |
| Beyoncé | The Lion King: The Gift | "Brown Skin Girl" (with Saint Jhn & Wizkid, featuring Blue Ivy Carter) | |
| "Mood 4 Eva" (with Jay-Z & Childish Gambino) | |||
| GoldLink | Diaspora | "Days Like This" (featuring Khalid) | |
| FKA Twigs | Magdalene | "Cellophane" | |
| 2018 | Kelsey Lu | Single | "Due West" |
| Anderson .Paak | Single | "Til It's Over" | |
| Jorja Smith | Lost & Found | "February 3rd" | |
| Ludwig Göransson | Black Panther: Wakanda Remixed | "Ancestral Plane" | |
| Choker | Honeybloom | "Drift"
"Starfruit NYC" "Jet Stereo" "Daisy" | |
| Troye Sivan | Bloom | "Running Shoes" | |
| 2017 | A$AP Mob | Cozy Tapes Vol. 2: Too Crazy | "RAF" |
| Jesse Boykins III & Noname | Bartholomew | "Into You" | |
| Little Dragon | Single | "High (Michael Uzowuru & Jeff Kleinman Remix)" | |
| Rex Orange County | Apricot Princess | "Waiting Room" | |
| Frank Ocean | Single | "Chanel" | |
| 2016 | Blonde | "Nights" | |
| Endless | "Rushes To" | ||
| Kevin Abstract | American Boyfriend | "Empty"
"Seventeen" "Blink" "Tattoo" "Yellow" "Kin" "Runner" "Papercut" "June 29th" "Miserable America" "Echo" "I Do" | |
| 2014 | Vic Mensa | Single | "Major Payne" |
| 2013 | Innanetape | "Tweakin" (featuring Chance the Rapper)
"Yap Yap" | |
| Earl Sweatshirt | Doris | "Pre" | |
| 2012 | Domo Genesis | Single | "Crushed Velvet" |
| Vince Staples | Winter in Prague | "Winter in Prague"
"Lord" "SK La Sermon" "Twitch" "Waterpark" "Matlock" "Traffic" "SK Climactic" "Mattress" "Black Oprah" | |
| Single | "Champagne Wishlist" | ||
| 2011 | Generic | "Martin Ruger King"
"Barreta Scott King" "Gold Chain Ricky" "Vicoden" | |
| Shyne Goldchain Vol. 1 | "Versace Rap" | ||
| Domo Genesis | Single | "Cashmere" | |
| Under the Influence | "Mind Games" | ||
| Hodgy Beats | Single | "April 27th" | |
| 2010 | The Jet Age of Tomorrow | Journey to the 5th Echelon | "Want You Still" (featuring Kilo Kish) |
Mixtapes and EPs
[edit]| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Pink Orchids | |
| 2012 | Winter in Prague | with Vince Staples |
| 2011 | Paisley Palm Trees | |
| 2010 | Space is the Place | |
| The Mellowest Trip | ||
| No Need for Sense |
Singles
[edit]| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2015 | "Without You" (featuring Anderson .Paak) |
| 2014 | "April 13th" (featuring Vic Mensa) |
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Michael Uzowuru: Validation from Kanye is bigger than a Grammy". MSNBC.com. February 5, 2015. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
- ^ Diep, Eric. "Vince Staples & Michael Uzowuru "Winter in Prague"". complex.com. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
- ^ Cooper, Duncan. "Michael Uzowuru's Paisley Palm Trees Beat Tape". thefader.com. the fader magazine. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
- ^ Hogan, Marc (September 14, 2016). "Frank Ocean's Blonde Songwriting Credits Revealed". Pitchfork.
- ^ Pearce, Sheldon (August 21, 2016). "Frank Ocean's Blond: 6 Things to Know". Pitchfork.
- ^ "Pigeons & Planes: The Best in New Music Discovery and Curation".
- ^ "Kevin Abstract's 'American Boyfriend' is Unlike Any Record You've Heard This Year". www.vice.com. December 13, 2016.
- ^ @LittleDragon (March 19, 2017). "Shoutout to @pharrel @brokemogul for playing Michael Uzowuru & Jeff Kleinman's Remix w Denzel Curry & Twelve'len of…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Bailey, Alyssa (July 19, 2019). "Blue Ivy Carter Sings on Beyoncé's 'The Lion King: The Gift' and Twitter Had a Meltdown". ELLE. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
- ^ Leight, Elias (July 19, 2019). "Inside Beyoncé's Bold Bet to Get Americans to Listen to African Music". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
- ^ Bruce-Jones, Henry (April 25, 2019). "FKA twigs shares haunting new track, 'Cellophane'". Fact Magazine. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
- ^ "michael uzowuru is the mysterious frank ocean producer who doesn't do press". i-d.vice.com. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
- ^ "2022 Latin GRAMMYs: Complete Winners & Nominations List". www.grammy.com. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
- ^ Ramona Park Broke My Heart by Vince Staples, retrieved August 5, 2023
- ^ Vince Staples - Ramona Park Broke My Heart Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic, retrieved August 5, 2023
- ^ "Vince Staples: Ramona Park Broke My Heart". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
- ^ "The 100 Best Albums of 2022". Rolling Stone. December 1, 2022. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
- ^ Jenkins, Craig (December 7, 2022). "The Best Albums of 2022". Vulture. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
- ^ "The 50 best albums of 2022". The FADER. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
- ^ Jesus, Ecleen Luzmila Caraballo, Jordan Rose, Eric Skelton, Brenton Blanchet, Jessica Mckinney, Stefan Breskin, edwinortiz, Angel Diaz, Alejandro De. "The Best Albums of 2022". Complex. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "How KIRBY Found The Voice For 'Swarms Pop Star Ni'Jah". Nylon. March 22, 2023. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
- ^ "Donald Glover releases 'Swarm' series EP soundtrack". faroutmagazine.co.uk. March 17, 2023. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
- ^ Apple (November 19, 2018), 5 Reasons iPad Pro can be your next computer — Apple, retrieved July 21, 2019
25 New Producers To Watch Out For The FADER - Michael Uzowuru Download Vince Staples and Michael Uzowuru’s Winter In Prague Mixtape
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