Metro Boomin was recently bestowed with a distinctive award in a special ceremony. The record producer received the highest recognition in his hometown of St. Louis, where he was presented with an extraordinary accolade.
Key To The Streets
On Thursday, Dec. 14, Metro Boomin, the music sensation known for his hit tracks, was remarkably honored in his hometown of St. Louis. The famous producer was awarded a key to the city by Mayor Tishaura O. Jones in recognition of his outstanding efforts in supporting single mothers.
Metro Boomin has dedicated himself to aiding single mothers through his “Single Moms Are The Real Superheroes” campaign, which offers career coaching, skills training, and essential resources. To make the occasion even more unique, the City of St. Louisalso declared Dec. 14 as “Leland ‘Metro Boomin’ Wayne Day” going forward.
In a touching tribute to his late mother, Leslie Joanne, Metro Boomin’ renamed the event “Leslie Joanne Single Mothers And Caregivers Appreciation Day.” This alteration paid homage to his mother’s memory and highlighted the incredible strength and resilience displayed by single mothers everywhere.
The recognition bestowed upon Metro Boomin by the City of St. Louis holds immense significance, not only for his outstanding philanthropy but also for his dedication to uplifting and empowering single mothers. The Key to the City symbolizes the community’s appreciation for his tireless efforts in making a difference.
New Partnerships, Who Dis?
Additionally, to kick off this unique charity, Metro Boomin’ announced “Single Moms Are Superheroes” at a Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Atlanta Falcons game. The campaign is in partnership with the Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation.
Kodak Is Honored By His Hometown
Similarly, Kodak Black recently joined the ranks of esteemed artists who have received their dedicated day. During a tailgate celebration at a Florida Atlantic University football game, the South Florida rap sensation was presented with a plaque by a Florida senator, officially declaring “Kodak Black Day.”
At one point, Drake said, “And to the rest of you… to the rest of you, the non-believers, the underachievers, the tweet-and-deleters, you guys make me sick to my stomach, fam. Honestly. If you guys… look in my eyes: You guys want to do something? You guys…? That’s what I thought. That’s what I thought. Mmhmm.”
Drake with a message via Kick
“And to the rest of you… the non-believers, the underachievers, the tweet-and-deleters, you make me sick to my stomach fam” pic.twitter.com/JiA5Yc1qdF
Many saw this as a reference to a Metro Boomin tweet that he later deleted, which read, “yet [Drake and 21 Savage’s Her Loss] still keeps winning rap album of the year over [Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains]. proof that award shows are just politics and not for me. Idc about awards honestly, the true award and REWARD is knowing that the music I spend so much time on brings joy to peoples everyday lives.”
Did Metro Boomin respondo Drake’s alleged diss?
A Metro tweet from after Drake’s livestream is being interpreted by some as a response. He simply shared a 9-second clip from a popular RDCworld1 YouTube video called “BLACK SITCOM THEMES VS WHITE SITCOM THEMES,” in which a group of men laughingly tell another one off-camera to calm down and put his gun down.
Yesterday, St. Louis native and acclaimed producer Metro Boomin was bestowed with one of the city’s highest honors, the Key to the City, by St. Louis Mayor Tishaura O. Jones. This recognition celebrated Metro Boomin’s outstanding contributions, particularly for his years of commitment to supporting single mothers and families.
Following the presentation of the Key to the City, Mayor Jones declared December 14th as Leland “Metro Boomin” Wayne Day in St. Louis, a proclamation that was not only a public acknowledgment but also a heartfelt dedication to Metro Boomin’s late mother, Leslie Joanne.
In a surprise move, another proclamation was made, designating December 14th as Leslie Joanne Single Mothers and Caregivers Appreciation Day in honor of Metro Boomin’s mother. The artist shared this special moment with his four siblings: Leah, Landon, Lauren, and Logan, who joined him in commemorating their beloved mother.
Later in the day, the city witnessed the grand “Leslie Joanne Soirée,” a thoughtful initiative orchestrated by Metro Boomin and Boominati in collaboration with Rung for Women and presenting sponsor Amazon Access. Rung for Women is an organization dedicated to supporting women on their journey toward sustained independence through career coaching, skills training, and coordinated resources at no cost.
This year marked the reimagining of the annual ‘Single Moms are Superheroes’ holiday event, now transformed into the “Leslie Joanne Soirée” for its 7th year in St. Louis. The event saw the participation of 250 single mothers who shared heartfelt stories of strength and resilience on stage.
Notable attendees included Senator Brian Williams, Police Chief Ryan Tracy, Mayor Tashaura Jones, and Ali Hogan, the owner of Rung for Women. Also present were Chris Zimmerman, owner of the Blues Hockey Team, and Houston Commissioner Rob Ellis, all expressing their support for Metro Boomin’s philanthropic endeavors.
The evening featured a surprise performance by the iconic artist Brandy, who delivered a memorable set of her best hits, including “Baby,” “Sittin’ Up In My Room,” and “I Wanna Be Down.” The attendees were treated to a night of celebration and empowerment, receiving commemorative “Leslie Joanne Foundation” pins and leaving with totes containing gifts from Amazon and bags from Telfar.
Sponsors for the event included Amazon Access, SALXCO, YCFU, Live Nation, Republic Records, and Boominati, contributing to the success of the “Leslie Joanne Soirée” and Metro Boomin’s continued commitment to making a positive impact on the lives of single mothers and caregivers.
Metro Boomin’s production has defined a generation. In an era where producer tags have been memorized by listeners, Metro’s is one of the most recognizable. Most recently, clips from Metro’s appearance at the Red Bull Symphonic performance have gone viral. The orchestra accompanied him to perform multiple songs from his illustrious catalog. John Legend, Swae Lee, NAV, and Roisee also made appearances during the performance. His dedicated fans have always praised his cinematic and sonically layered production, so this performance felt long overdue.
Metro Boomin has done production for chart-topping artists like Travis Scott, The Weeknd, Migos and many more. He has also continued to make music with his day-one collaborators, like Future, Young Thug and 21 Savage. So far, he’s dropped two solo albums and several collab albums with a wide array of hip-hop’s finest. As Metro’s career has progressed, his sound has expanded. Originally known for creating catchy trap anthems, he has since elevated to a new level while maintaining the essence of trap music. His ability to bring eerie or grandiose-sounding melodies is one of his signature techniques. Sometimes, he even weaves in gospel samples to paint his soundscapes. In this list, we’ve gathered some of the best examples of his production style.
This was the first song with Metro’s signature “If young Metro don’t trust you, I’m gone shoot you” tag. Metro Boom’s production is all over Drake and Future’s collaborative project What A Time To Be Alive. This is the most popular song from that album and it received quadruple platinum certification by the RIAA. The song’s energetic hook and flows from both artists are a key reason for its success but Metro’s production plays a vital role too.
“Mask Off” – Future (2017)
Metro Boomin’s production of this song became a source of humor and praise at the same time. The track comes from Future’s 2017 self-titled album. It was the second single from the album and significantly more successful than the first single, “Draco.” The track reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and has been certified nine times platinum by the RIAA. The song’s lead flute melody quickly became an earworm and was just as popular as the song’s simplistic yet catchy hook.
Surrounded by trap drums, the song’s solemnly melancholic production creates an atmosphere that simultaneously combines feelings of hype, relaxation and reflectiveness. Amongst these emotions, Metro’s creativity remains at the center. He got the flute sample from “Prison Song” by Tommy Butler, a track from the soundtrack for the stage play Selma. The flute melody inspired other producers to do their take on the sound with tracks like Drake’s “Portland” and A$AP Rocky’s “Praise The Lord (Da Shine),” both released after “Mask Off.”
“Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1” – Kanye West Ft. Kid Cudi & Kelly Price (2016)
Metro Boomin’s production joins forces with several other heavy hitter collaborators like Mike Dean, Rick Rubin and Kanye himself on this track. Noah Goldstein, Allen Ritter and DJ Dodger Stadium, legends in their own right, also contributed. The track comes from the “living, breathing changing creative expression” that was Kanye’s The Life Of Pablo. The song’s gospel sample intro precedes Metro’s iconic beat tag, providing a complete tonal shift. The gospel sample continues throughout the song and its blending with the other sounds of the production make it a truly special listen for many fans.
Metro Boomin’s production undoubtedly helped transform this record into one of the most popular rap songs of modern times. His production on “Bad and Boujee” combines with production from G Koop and leans more into a glitzy sound as opposed to an eerie one. This lines up well with the lyrics which find Migos and feature Lil Uzi Vert speaking on their extravagant lifestyles. One surprising aspect of this song is how long it is, clocking in at almost six minutes long — a rarity for a radio single. Still, it reached the ears of people who previously did not listen to rap at all which only helped expand the fanbase of all the contributors to the track.
“Ric Flair Drip” – Offset & 21 Savage & Metro Boomin (2017)
This song captures core elements of Metro Boomin’s production. Like “Jumpman,” the eeriness of the production is present on the track but there’s still a certain accessibility to it. This song comes from his collab project with Offset and 21 Savage, Without Warning. The snappy bounce that Metro provided makes the song easy to dance to which the artists and Flair himself do in the music video. This sound may remind some listeners of the work of DJ Mustard, who was known for his snap and clap based club anthems. It also made some listeners think of the subgenre of snap music, which was popularized by Atlanta in the early 2000s.
“Superhero (Heroes and Villains)” – Metro Boomin Ft. Future & Chris Brown (2022)
The Metro Boomin production on this song is a testament to the cinematic and grandiose sound he has developed as his career has progressed. This is the second track from his second solo album, HEROES & VILLAINS. The entire album is full of seamless transitions like this, a testament to the intentional cinematic presentation Metro was going for with it. This track highlights Metro Boomin’s production by showcasing two beats in one song. The portion with Future features blaring trumpets that make Future sound like an ominous villain. Meanwhile, Chris Brown’s portion features no trumpets but a solemn yet still cinematic piano, practically making him sound like a hero. Metro’s ability to bring these two sounds into one track and paint a contrasting auditory picture of a hero and villain highlights his skill as a curator, composer, and producer.
“Runnin” – 21 Savage & Metro Boomin (2020)
Metro Boomin’s production has been a large part of 21 Savage’s career since it began. This song comes from their collaborative album Savage Mode II and is the epitome of their collaborative sound. Metro Boomin’s production on this song features a dark piano melody and an eerie vocal loop. These aspects are commonplace in his work with 21 Savage and pair well with his dark lyrics. Multiple other trap artists have used this type of sound in their work but Metro’s techniques have taken it to a different level due to the way he layers his sounds together. He’s made the sound accessible to larger audiences without comprising key aspects of it.
Metro Boomin is at the pinnacle of his career right now. After dropping to commercially successful records, the producer from St. Louis is pretty much untouchable. HEROES & VILLAINS and the soundtrack for Spider-man: Across the Spider-verse both have some of his best tracks on them. While each project is truly special, the hitmaker is nowhere near satisfied. Over the past few months or so, Metro has been ruthlessly teasing two projects with some of the most in-demand talents in the game.
Long-time collaborator, Future, and the “new guy,” JID both are going to have projects with him. There are no confirmations on titles, tracklists, or release dates, but they are hopefully coming soon. Future’s seems to be the focus right now for Metro as he has been hyping it up constantly. Beats have been lost, but nothing is preventing the duo from delivering more classics together. It will be interesting to see where they do with the material, but we might have some indication of how it might sound.
According to HipHopDX, a recent Twitter user tweeted at Metro, asking him to make an album similar to Kanye West’s highly-regarded 2010 album. That would be My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and it seems we could be receiving something similar to that. He replied, “yeah my first album after the heroes trilogy is more of that vibe.. the title is [fire emojis] too.” We are not for certain if he means the Future, JID, or some other tape, but that has us very excited.
What are your initial thoughts on these latest comments from Metro Boomin about his upcoming project saying it has similar traits as Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy? Do you think whatever tape he is referring to will now be his best album after that statement? Where does he rank for you amongst all of the best producers in hip-hop history? We would like to hear what you have to say about all of this. With that in mind, be sure to leave all of your hottest takes in the comments section below. Additionally, always keep it locked in with HNHH for all of the latest breaking news around Metro Boomin. Furthermore, stay with us for everything else going on around the music world.
But, as with many ambitious artists, even that hasn’t been enough for him — and unfortunately, his aspirations have put him into conflict with one of his equally successful peers. Fans are convinced that Metro has beef with Drake after the producer tweeted his frustration at Heroes & Villains being overshadowed by Drake’s 2022 album with 21 Savage, Her Loss. “Her Loss still keeps winning rap album of the year over H&V,” he wrote in response to a conversation about the disparity between the two albums’ streaming totals. “Proof that awards shows are just politics and not for me. [I don’t care] about awards honestly, the true award and reward is knowing that the music I spend so much time on brings joy to peoples everyday lives.”
While it’s unclear just which “rap album of the year” nod Metro is referring to (several publications had already posted their “Best Albums of 2023” lists at the time of the now-deleted tweet), a recent post on Drake’s Instagram Story was interpreted as a response. Posting a clip from Jay-Z’s 2001 Blueprint standout “Heart Of The City (Ain’t No Love),” Drake higlighted one line in particular. “Damn, little mans, I’m just trying to do me,” Jay raps. “If the record’s two mil, I’m just trying to move three.”
the Drake and Metro Boomin rumored beef continues, Drake posted this on his Instagram story after a tweet and delete by Metro about Her Loss beating his album pic.twitter.com/PeJ7YSTEKU
Does this consitute beef, per se? Not in my book (or Biggie’s, or Yasiin Bey’s, for that matter), but y’all like to see people argue on Twitter. Have fun with that. Meanwhile, Uproxx’s Best Albums of 2023 list is out now, so maybe you’ll get even more intenret play fights to keep you entertained.
Metro Boomin has been racking up tons of awards over the past year. Both of his recent albums are still doing crazy streaming numbers. While he does have a lot of big songs, with some getting radio play, they do not have your typical “bubblegum” feel to them. When you break down his productions detail by detail, there is certainly a lot of intricacies that you will catch.
You can have superstar artists on your beats, but that alone is not enough. It is a big reason why more underground names have been dominating 2023. They do not necessarily need big names attached to their works. Artists like Danny Brown, JPEGMAFIA, Black Thought, and more put a lot of effort into what they do. Metro has certainly done that now with HEROES & VILLAINS, for example. But, he really has done it throughout the entirety of his career. That was a topic covered in his recent interview with Variety.
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY – SEPTEMBER 12: Metro Boomin and Future perform onstage during the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards at Prudential Center on September 12, 2023 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for MTV)
The publication recognized him as their producer of the year. AllHipHop grabbed some quotable excerpts from the talk and one of them takes a shot a cash-grabbing artists. The St. Louis native said, “I feel like people can just tell I care. At a time when everybody has their hand out — like, ‘Let me do this for cash; let me make a dance for TikTok’ — you can hear all the details and thought behind my music.” He brings up an interesting point and a prevalent one at that. While there are definitely benefits to platforms like TikTok, a lot of listeners have their reservations about them.
What are your initial thoughts on Metro Boomin’s comments about why he feels he is at the top of the game right now? Do you agree with the fact that there are a lot of artists making low-effort songs for cash? Is Metro the best producer in the game right now? We would like to hear what you have to say about all of this. With that in mind, be sure to leave all of your hottest takes in the comments section below. Additionally, always keep it locked in with HNHH for all of the latest breaking news around Metro Boomin as well as everything else going on around the music world.
Over Thanksgiving weekend, Metro Boomin took to X (formerly Twitter) to reveal he wants a bigger presence on YouTube. This sparked a conversation that unveiled his perspective on something he thinks is “ruining” music.
On November 25, the producer (who’s behind hits like Post Malone’s “Congratulations” and The Weeknd’s “Heartless”) tweeted, “About to start uploading regularly to my YouTube again like back in the days.. what type of videos do you guys want? (I don’t like the word content, it’s annoying now).”
About to start uploading regularly to my YouTube again like back in the days.. what type of videos do you guys want? (I don’t like the word content, it’s annoying now)
In response, Nav shared the tweet and replied, “finally a musician who ain’t trying to be mysterious and sh*t.” Metro replied, “The fake mysterious sh*t with artists is ruining the game!! Everybody too cool.”
As for Metro’s original question about the kinds of videos he should make, he got some good answers. Responses included, “Would love a breakdown of some of your most iconic beats + stories of how the songs came around in the first place,” “Videos on beats & producing (tutorials & creating beats for videos & explaining the process),” “Post Randomly rare vids of u and musicians. Mainly freestyles or just havin fun,” and, “I want a whole video series where you talk about sound choice and design. You’ve always had some of the most curated sounds out there.”
Would love a breakdown of some of your most iconic beats + stories of how the songs came around in the first place.
I want a whole video series where you talk about sound choice and design. You’ve always had some of the most curated sounds out there. Gotta get Ethan on there too.
With just a couple of days to go until Thanksgiving, Billboard has released its year-end charts (the music industry, much like all those turkeys, pretty much dies with the holidays, so it is usually best not to count the last month of the year, which Mariah Carey rules with an iron fist anyway). Those charts tabulate all the sales and streams up til the second week of November (including, last year’s December stats), then tell us what we’ve listened to the most collectively (like Spotify Wrapped but for the US as a whole).
While country music, pop, and the rap-R&B of SZA dominated as a whole, the top hip-hop track of the year (at No. 5 overall) was Metro Boomin’s take on a mid-2000s classic. “Creepin’” featuring The Weeknd and 21 Savage covers Mario Winans’ 2004 hit “I Don’t Wanna Know,” which itself sampled the Fugees’ 1996 song “Ready or Not,” which in turn sampled Enya’s 1987 song “Boadicea.” Released on January 27 as a single from Metro’s then-latest album Heroes & Villains“Creepin’” peaked at No. 3 on the Hot 100 on February 6. It currently has over 1 billion streams on Spotify and 86 million cumulative views on YouTube across its visualizer, official music video, and audio stream (not including the seemingly dozens of bootleg streams).
Of course, if you don’t want to count that as the “top rap song” of 2023 since it only features a rap verse from 21 Savage, the next qualifying track also includes 21 Savage. “Rich Flex,” from Drake and 21’s joint album Her Loss also ranked near the top of the year-end list, coming in at No. 14. Sorry, Pusha T stans and Drake haters (same difference, right?) — it doesn’t look like The Boy has lost his touch just yet.
Other top tracks include “All My Life” by Lil Durk feat. J. Cole, “Just Wanna Rock” by Lil Uzi Vert, and “Fukumean” by Gunna. Also, Ice Spice really did prove to be the reigning princess of rap, appearing no fewer than four times on the list — the most of any female rapper.
Over this past weekend, Andre 3000 put out something that many fans had been yearning for. That was his first-ever solo album. However, after over a decade of waiting a lot of people were severely disappointed when he announced there would be no rapping. But, there was still a large amount that excited, regardless that three stacks would be playing woodwind instruments across the record. After listeners have had some time to sit with the idea and New Blue Sun being released, the music world is loving it. Leading up to it, his interviews had some wondering about his other solo contributions and Metro Boominwas one to take advantage of that.
We are referencing Andre’s sit-down with GQ, in which he said this. “I’ve actually played some wind things that I’ve put out in the world that I called myself another name under different artists that are out there that, you know, I was just kinda testing it out in a way. From known artists, and they’ve been cool about keeping it secret.” Because of this Metro thought he could be a little tongue in cheek. He claimed that Andre played the flute that you hear on him and Future’s smash hit, “Mask Off.”
AUSTIN, TEXAS – OCTOBER 20: Metro Boomin attends Jack Daniel’s Garage: A Pit Stop Experience at Austin Grand Prix 2023 at The Sunset Room on October 20, 2023 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Rick Kern/Getty Images)
However, we now know that it was all jokes. According to Uproxx, Metro cleaned up the mess he created by addressing an Instagram post from Complex. It included a video of Metro claiming that one-half of OutKast was on the flute for the track. The media publication took it further, making it out that Andre did have a hand in the production. The super producer had enough and maybe took a debatable shot at everyone who thought he was serious. Under the post, he commented, “How are you all even considered a real news outlet?”
What are your initial thoughts on Metro Boomin officially putting the rumors of working with Andre 3000 to rest? Do you think his response was valid, or a little out of pocket? Should these two work together in the future? We would like to hear what you have to say about all of this. With that in mind, be sure to leave all of your hottest takes in the comments section below. Additionally, always keep it locked in with HNHH for all of the latest breaking news around Metro Boomin and Andre 3000. Furthermore, stay with us for everything else going on around the music world.
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