There are no popular "household name" female hip hop producers.

[EastsideRio]

What is Pharrell's tag? And no the 4 count don't count

And what was Just Blaze's tag before 2003?

The 4 count does count

 

[Greenhornet]

yall are typing back what you just googled without obviously listening to hiphop for the long haul

neptunes used to have that sound effect in all of their beats ... fukk a 4 bar drop

even jay verbally acknowledged this in "give it to me" and made a punchline out of it

 

[O.Red]

The 4 count does count

yall are typing back what you just googled without obviously listening to hiphop for the long haul

neptunes used to have that sound effect in all of their beats ... fukk a 4 bar drop

even jay verbally acknowledged this in "give it to me" and made a punchline out of it

Y'all are being obtuse for no reason

Back to my original point, David Banner started the producer name drop tag

 

[JustCKing]

Y'all are being obtuse for no reason

Back to my original point, David Banner started the producer name drop tag

This.

It wasn't until it was pointed out like 5 years ago that people even noticed the "4 count". Even still, it wasn't a tag. It was no different than Tim beat boxing. It was more so a signature of their sound more so than a tag.

 

[JustCKing]

ehh, forbes aint really the media "the culture" follows (ie i only found one mention of trakgirl on a song credit on complex, no story...wondegurl has a few articles tho) - have they done the popular podcasts and radio shows? they really working SM? how much they get in the mix with the industry - networking, socializing, etc?

this is wondagurl's twitter (i assume) https://twitter.com/WondaGurlBeats , don't even have a blue check, her IG has 120 posts. trakgirl has 70 IG posts and while she has a blue check on twitter and way more tweets than WG, her followers are down bad... WG in particular doesn't strike me as a producer who really wants to be listener famous, but she has clout with artists and engaged listeners who check for production. there's nothing wrong with that, in fact that's the route i'd take if i were a producer or writer, but you can't question why a profile hasn't risen if the person isn't trying to be that big.

i'll also say my personal experience with knowing producers today comes from their tags and them doing full mixtapes with artists. she may command too much money for that or she may approach her artistry different and not want to work like that, but linking with an artist for a project that resonates seems to be a big way producers have elevated themselves for the past decade or so. hit boy had his hits he produced for kanye and bey, etc, but his full projects with Nas have taken his name recognition amongst listeners much higher (tho hid project with dom made him a name to me).

lastly, there's going to be sexism and more ceilings female producers have to contend with, it is what it is in that they need to grind harder and be more deliberate about self promotion to be more known...or get into non stop fukkery.


edit: you also just need more of them, for every 100 male producers out there, you got maybe 10 making records the masses hear, and 1 of who becomes anything close to a HH name. with odds like that, if you only got 20 females producing, it's hard to expect that just from a crop of 20 one will become a hot name.

I didn't post a Forbes article because of a name or to make a cultural connection. I posted it because of the content relevant to this discussion:

She’s been featured in the Los Angeles Times, Complex, BET and Nylon as a musical force to be reckoned with. Through speaking engagements and producer clinics, she’s passionate about delving into music technology and public speaking to serve as a mentor to other women entering the industry. Currently, she has 9 public appearances and speaking engagements with various brands.

^^^ all activities that you asked if these women were taking part in. This is evidence that they are.

So yesterday definitely are trying to be more known.

I agree though that there needs to be more of them. There's only a handful being named here and historically, there's just not been many of them that just blew up like that.

 

[THE 101]

This thread illustrates that there is far more to production than just making beats. One of the reasons why female producers aren't popular is because Hip Hop is still very male driven. A key element of production is direction. A lot, and maybe even most, are not going to be comfortable or vulnerable enough to trust their art in the hands of a woman. Just being honest. I mean, just look at the egos involved as is even among just us men. One comment, or piece of advice, no matter how constructive, gets taken the wrong way and that's it. Both parties go their separate ways.

The other element that nobody's addressing is that in order for a woman to break through, she's going to have to break a popular artist similar to how Dre introduced the world to Snoop. That or a Diddy type giving her a shot on an album. The Neptunes weren't known, but their first credit as The Neptunes was on Total's debut. They also did "Lookin' At Me" on Harlem World, which was their first hit record.

Missy's name is being brought up, but there's a story behind her even being a producer. She and Devante used to get into physical fights and arguments about writing and production.

I can't even think of many female producers in rock, pop and r&b.

 

[Sauce Dab]

 

[zayk35]

It's like mfs missing the whole premise of this thread. OP is talking about a female producer on the level of a Dr Dre. Not some random up and coming female producer. We know that women producers exist but none on that level.

 

[NZA]

i can imagine solo, geekish activities arent the average woman's idea of a fun time

 

[Manolo]

i can imagine solo, geekish activities arent the average woman's idea of a fun time

This.

Music might be fun to listen to but the process of making it is a long-winded, mentally challenging process that takes over a decade to master.

Add in the fact that the ideal age range for learning production is in your teens and early adulthood—the time when girls are boy crazy and really seeking attention—and you start to see why there’s no legendary female producers.

The female artists and producers I’ve known are usually very casual about their craft. Most started singing, rapping or producing after high school and lack the dedication to really grind it out for the time it takes to really get skilled

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

i can imagine solo, geekish activities arent the average woman's idea of a fun time

it's not that, i already dropped it. music is too male dominated, especially back in the 00's and earlier when you needed to be in a studio to learn this stuff. you're not going to find too many 14-20 yr old females who'd feel comfortable in a studio full of grown ass men after school/at night trying to learn how to produce. and even today where they can do it in their rooms, they still need to navigate dealing with men more often than not to get a beat placement, negotiate contracts, etc. sure they can work with female artists, but these female rappers stay flying up under the wings of men themselves and more singers are doing writing and production themselves.

This.

Music might be fun to listen to but the process of making it is a long-winded, mentally challenging process that takes over a decade to master.

Add in the fact that the ideal age range for learning production is in your teens and early adulthood—the time when girls are boy crazy and really seeking attention—and you start to see why there’s no legendary female producers.

The female artists and producers I’ve known are usually very casual about their craft. Most started singing, rapping or producing after high school and lack the dedication to really grind it out for the time it takes to really get skilled

this is bullshyt...lol like teen boys aint girl crazy. girls also have higher levels of concentration and can work on things in longer sprints than boys, thus the difference in disruptive classroom behavior and learning styles seen between the sexes. and most people, male and female, are casual about their craft, that's why the bar for becoming famous/getting PAID off your music is incredibly high.

 

[Manolo]

it's not that, i already dropped it. music is too male dominated, especially back in the 00's and earlier when you needed to be in a studio to learn this stuff. you're not going to find too many 14-20 yr old females who'd feel comfortable in a studio full of grown ass men after school/at night trying to learn how to produce. and even today where they can do it in their rooms, they still need to navigate dealing with men more often than not to get a beat placement, negotiate contracts, etc. sure they can work with female artists, but these female rappers stay flying up under the wings of men themselves and more singers are doing writing and production themselves.

this is bullshyt...lol like teen boys aint girl crazy. girls also have higher levels of concentration and can work on things in longer sprints than boys, thus the difference in disruptive classroom behavior and learning styles seen between the sexes. and most people, male and female, are casual about their craft, that's why the bar for becoming famous/getting PAID off your music is incredibly high.

I feel you. I’m work in music and have been around lots of people. I’m only speaking from my experience. You’re right, most people, men and women, are casual and lack focus but in my experience these are the things that hold female artists back.

1. If she’s attractive, she’s preyed on by her male peers and bosses. I’ve seen females be in positions where they’re recording with a male producer or A&R and the guy tells her they have to fukk or she’s not getting her music. This happened to my ex who was working with a Bad Boy A&R. Then an engineer she was working with did the same thing

2. Women tend to like working in groups more than solo, in and outside of music. Women are group-oriented people by nature and that can work against you in music. People will steal your ideas or you will struggle to develop your own sound due to constantly working with other people. Women struggle with working completely alone at something without getting validation, which leads to my next point

3. The need for validation. Honing your craft takes forever and during that time most people won’t support your dream. They might think you’re wack and don’t have what it takes. Women usually struggle with this period especially when they’re used to getting tons of attention and special treatment due to being attractive. I’ve seen girls quit music and delete their social media because their project isn’t getting as much engagement as their selfies

All this may sound bullshyt but It’s all based on women I’ve worked around and with in music

 

[NZA]

it's not that, i already dropped it. music is too male dominated, especially back in the 00's and earlier when you needed to be in a studio to learn this stuff. you're not going to find too many 14-20 yr old females who'd feel comfortable in a studio full of grown ass men after school/at night trying to learn how to produce. and even today where they can do it in their rooms, they still need to navigate dealing with men more often than not to get a beat placement, negotiate contracts, etc. sure they can work with female artists, but these female rappers stay flying up under the wings of men themselves and more singers are doing writing and production themselves.

if there was a large number of female bedroom producers who quit as they grew up, i would be more inclined to agree with this argument. but i dont see that. i dont even see some notable group of underground female producers doing their own thing away from any gatekeepers. the pipeline appears to be an issue.

 

[Turbulent]

Just brainstorming here.

I think female beatmakers are more hesitant to come up with original style and sounds since they will be more harshly critiqued. So they just end up doing whatever style is in fashion. They do technically good stuff but nothing that pushes the needle. Not all but most beat makers that end up becoming big names did it by either working primarily with one or two rappers that ended up blowing, or by coming up with a sound that somewhat changed the sonic landscape.

 

[Sauce Dab]

It's like mfs missing the whole premise of this thread. OP is talking about a female producer on the level of a Dr Dre. Not some random up and coming female producer. We know that women producers exist but none on that level.

I understand the premise of the thread. I just posted it in here instead of making another thread.