ISSUE 021
IN SITU this week looks at the delicate balance that is an artist/producer relationship, and why all partnerships are not equal - and that's okay.
IN SITU is a platform dedicated to the intersection between culture, brand strategy and music. Sometimes the focus will be on one strand more than another, but always sitting in that sweet spot.
ISSUE 021 AT A GLANCE
LONG READ Cultural observation opinion piece: Artist/Producer relationships: When labels aren’t always necessary
VERBATIM Quote from cultural tastemaker: Derrick Gee - Music Content Creator
SHORT READ Belief relating to strategy and/or insight: Core Belief #16: Not all partnerships are equal
MUSIC CORNER Album recommendation: Jim Legxacy - black british music
LONG READ
ARTIST/PRODUCER RELATIONSHIPS: WHEN LABELS AREN’T ALWAYS NECESSARY
As a music journalist, I have interviewed a number of artists who are paired with a producer, whether this be behind the scenes or formalised as a duo. For instance, dvsn is made up of singer/songwriter Daniel Daley and producer Nineteen85, whereas Lucky Daye almost exclusively works with producer D’Mile, but they don’t operate under a shared name. Some might say it’s a relationship but without the ‘label’.
Someone I have not (yet) interviewed is the much revered Cleo Sol, who exclusively works with her husband producer Inflo under her solo moniker, but they are a collective under the previously anonymous, SAULT. However, Inflo of course works with many other artists, and for a long time, worked with Little Simz. The album Sometimes I Might be an Introvert won the Mercury Music Prize in 2022, and arguably Simz’s reached new heights as an artist when she linked up with Inflo.
However, due to unpaid loans from Simz to Inflo in 2023 and 2024 totalling £1.7m, Simz split from this musical partnership and worked with Miles Clinton James on her latest album, Lotus. This became her highest charting album, debuting at No. 3 in the UK, and receiving widespread critical acclaim.
I personally felt this project was a refreshing new direction for Simz. It still delivers the sharp lyricism and thoughtful narratives we expect, but with a new underlying sound and a range of collaborators, it felt like the step change needed.
Another recent product/artist break up has been singer/songwriter Lorde and producer Jack Antonoff. Lorde worked with Antonoff on her albums Melodrama and Solar Power, both incredibly successful for the New Zealand artist. However, on her latest album Virgin, Lorde decided to part ways, saying she is "very vibes-based" and seemingly just needed someone fresh to work with. Again, even for someone with a distinct sound as Lorde, which has been built with Antonoff, her unique artistry has not been lost by working with producer Jim-E Stack, and in fact, has successfully ushered in a new era.
For the two artists mentioned, and others who have achieved milestones with a previous production partner, it must have been somewhat terrifying to try something new. Surely they were asking themselves questions like, “What if I can’t make great music with someone else?” or, “What if my fans don’t like this direction?” But there comes a point where both the artist and fans are expecting something original to come out, and if they can’t grow with their current collaborators, then no matter the personal backdrop, it can’t be easy moving on.
For me, this producer partnership question leads me to an underlying belief I’ve had for a while, that although there are incredibly successful songs without particularly special production, any song that does have strong production tends to be a good one, regardless of the lyrical element. This is not a hard and fast rule, but generally I think it holds.
A recent example where I believe the production is doing the heavy work is Justin Bieber’s latest album, SWAG. The main producers were Bieber himself, Dijon and Eddie Benjamin, along with co-producers on certain tracks. There are some stand-out songs, like ‘DAISIES’, but overall this album feels like a ‘moodtape’, something that offers a certain vibe (due to the production) but isn’t delivering much to truly connect with as a fan. This is coming from someone who is rooting for Bieber and wanted the album to be better than it is.
There are of course producers who release their own music and have made an artist name for themselves. For instance, Kaytranada is a producer and DJ who has been plugging away for a very long time both with other artists and in his own right. However, he has found deserved prominence in the past 5 years with his own releases, partnering with singers and rappers to layer over his beats.
There is then the producer/artist hybrid, such as James Blake, who produces their own music (sometimes with collaborators) as well as writing and singing the lyrics. Although it is becoming more common for artists to co-produce their tracks, someone who can fulfil all roles to an incredibly high and equal standard is rare.
Artist/producer relationships are inherently both professional and personal, and this causes fragility. The choice to release as a group vs a solo artist with a consistent production partner likely comes down to whether the producer wants to be in the spotlight or not. This is a completely understandable choice, and many producers have chosen that career for a reason i.e. to be behind the scenes. But as we can easily check producer credits and have greater accessibility to production software, I hope we are moving towards a time where producers get their flowers no matter where their name appears.
VERBATIM
DERRICK GEE - MUSIC CONTENT CREATOR
“WHAT MAKES AN ARTIST/PRODUCER RELATIONSHIP SO SPECIAL?”
It depends on the artist, but many successful artists are as much creative directors as they are the talent and artist. They have a vision, they have a sound in mind, they have that sixth sense of knowing when a song connects to audiences on a large scale.
But, they often don’t have all the abilities to produce those sounds or words themselves. Some need someone who is able to interpret their feelings into words. Others lean on their producer to pull out their gesticulations and turn them into harmonies and arrangements. The producer can take a method, a recipe, a vision, and direct that into something tangible and concrete. A chef and a sous chef. A creative director and and art director. A pilot and a co-pilot.
Intertwined and often necessary - it’s a relationship that when done right, can create works greater than the sum of its parts!
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SHORT READ
CORE BELIEF #16: NOT ALL PARTNERSHIPS ARE EQUAL
It may sound obvious to say that not all partnerships are equal, but the expectation can still be that they are. Not being equal partners is not necessarily a bad thing. It just means everyone knows their role and is willing to put in a certain level of work for the relative level of credit on the output.
Issues arise when the input to output ratio is off, and one partner feels taken advantage of by the other. Perhaps success has clouded judgement, or a level of notoriety has taken hold that has altered third party expectations, but something has affected the delicate partnership balance and it’s no longer serving everyone. Sometimes these scenarios can be remedied with a reset, but sometimes it’s best to walk away and start over with someone new.
MUSIC CORNER
JIM LEGXACY - BLACK BRITISH MUSIC
It would have been remiss of me to write about artist producers and not include this album in the Music Corner. Jim Legxacy’s black british music is everything right with UK music right now. It’s a truly unique record - as is everything Legxacy releases. Born and raised in Lewisham, he skilfully connects lyricism with production in a way that feels entirely youthful but with an unmistakable ‘old soul’ feel running through every track.
Released by XL Recordings, known for nurturing diverse and unique artists by putting the creative first and commercials second, it’s the perfect musical home for Legxacy who has garnered industry attention since his single ‘cold lewisham roses’ in 2021. No doubt this friendly label backing will help mould a potential generational talent, as they did with the likes of Adele and Radiohead. If you ask me, Jim Legxacy is already living up to his name.
Don’t forget to follow IN SITU on Instagram @insitu.njd, and check out my website at nicolajdavies.com.