IzyBeats On Making Hits And Finally Putting Out His Debut EP ‘Edgehill’

In late 2018, IzyBeats considered changing career paths. The Jamaican producer born Andron Cross began making beats in 2001, and though he established a local buzz in Miami and scored a few songs with Vybz Kartel, he still hadn’t found the hit he was chasing. His faith was the piston of his endurance, but as he approached two decades in the industry, second thoughts were weighing heavily on his mind. Still, he pressed on.

A few months later, an email attachment accidentally sent to Walshy Fire led to one of his beats ending up in the hands of a rising star from Spanish Town. So when he received an early version of Toast, with Koffee‘s voice gliding through his work, he was surprised. And when the release of the completed song shot both Izy and Koffee into global renown, that feeling only grew.

In the three years since, his songwriting has earned him over a billion streams worldwide. The sharp turn of fortune belies the years of thankless work that he put in, as evidenced by the few hundred plays attached to the first song he posted on Soundcloud, nine years ago. 

The success of Toast primed Izy for his follow-up blockbuster, Be Honest, with Jorja Smith and Burna Boy. His adaptability allowed him to leap across styles with work for Alicia Keys, Wisin & Yandel, Sean Paul, and Masego. The pendulum of his sound swings far and frequently — consider the contrast between the slow-burning brilliance of Blessed by Sevana and the racing and hallucinogenic Elevated by Jaz Elise. He’s consistently proven that he can craft songs as various as they are globe-trotting.

Now, he’s ready to chart a new path for himself. On his forthcoming debut EP, Edge Hill, Izy will take center stage as both producer and artist, while tapping talent like Stefflon Don, Protoje, and Masego for support. The project’s first single Up Deh features Konshens and furthers Izy’s genre-blending agenda.

He talked to DancehallMag about his new music, his creative process, and where he’s looking to for inspiration.

How’s it feeling to have this new music dropping?

Man, it always feels good to have new music coming out because I love when people finally get to hear it. I love to see the response. It sounds good to me, but I created it. But to hear other people respond to it, it’s amazing. 

Why did you choose to lead the EP rollout with this song?

I went with this one because the energy and the vibe were good. When you’re in the studio with certain people, you have a certain energy. And I felt like it was right to kick it off with this one because Konshens and I were vibing really well, and he was so open and willing to help. He was so ready to push for anything I needed. Because of that comfort, I just felt like I should take it there. 

So what was your mindset going into this project and how did that evolve the further you went into the recording process?

It started off with me basically reflecting on the fact that I’m always helping other people with their projects. I’m always giving everybody the sauce and doing things for them. And people have always told me, you should try something, you should try it. And I used to just turn it down like, eh, I don’t know. I’m more of a background guy. I’m chilling. 

But when I decided to do it, I was thinking like, man, you know what? I don’t wanna be one of those guys who looks back and says, “I wish I did that.” I wanted to at least know that I tried and attempted to put my own music out at some point. My mindset was just that the whole time. It was always let’s do this and do it right.

And with this project, you’re still working with other artists and producers, but I’d imagine that for your own work you have the final say when it comes to creative decisions. How do you think that impacted your process?

Usually, you’d have to wait around to approve certain things. But now, it’s me going in and doing what I want. I got to explore my mind, how I feel, my creative space. It’s a great feeling. I felt like there was a weight lifted off of my shoulders — I felt free. Like I just get to create my own art, whenever. 

What’s your approach to songwriting like? Are you starting with a feeling, a melody, lyrics, or something else?

It’s always the feeling first. No matter what. Once you feel it, that leads to the melody. Once the melody kicks in, that opens the gates for everything else to happen. But sometimes it can happen that you hear the drums and you’re just like yo, dem drums yah bad! And from deh suh you just find it. 

The vibe is so important. Like once you go into the room and you feel a certain energy, you know that this session is gonna turn out crazy. The song’s gonna be crazy. The energy in the room always reflects on the song. 

So tell me about those different vibes that you’re bringing with this project. 

With my style of music, you know me love fi mix up di ting. You know when you mix up food a Jamaica, it nice. So that’s the whole idea behind my style. Being that I was born and raised in Jamaica, and then me come a Miami, mi get the R&B and the hip-hop flavour, and it’s like I found a way to just blend everything with the Dancehall. 

So that was the whole idea behind the album, different cultures just mixing up in one. 

Yeah, in another DancehallMag interview you talked about the influence of both Sly & Robbie and Dr. Dre on your work. 

And Timbaland. It’s crazy because I idolised Timbaland growing up, and I used to listen to his beats, just studying the stuff. Now I’m at the point where I’m actually working with him, and I look at that and I just go crazy. How am I gonna end up in a room with Timbaland, this person that I’ve been studying since I was ten? It’s wild.

A seemingly unique part of your process is that you research artists before you go into a session with them. What kinds of things are you looking for?

I listen to the type of music they’re working on, the type of music that they love to do. Then I go ahead and research the key that they have most of their songs in, like what key they’re usually sitting in. Once you know that, you know their comfort zone.

If you do research, you’ll see the little pieces to the puzzle. And then once you put it together and you get in the room, you’re way ahead of them. So when you start playing things that you’ve already worked on in that key, they hear it and they’re like, oh, I wanna do this. This is dope. And they might not even know that they sit comfortably in that space! So that’s just one of the little things that I do.

You’ve said that this project is a tribute to your late father, who supported you and encouraged you from day one. What role do you think he played in the direction of your life?

He played a major role. He pretty much raised me. My mom raised me too, but he was there when I was in Jamaica. For the whole of primary school and high school, he was the one bringing us. He was never late. We never missed a day of school — ever. 

And so, being a little older now, I understand how difficult that was. When you’re a likkle yute, you don’t really care ‘bout dem ting deh, you know?

And the title EdgeHill is a reference to your former address in Hellshire Beach, back when you lived in Jamaica. What kind of music was playing around the house in those days? 

Man, I remember my father used to play like country music sometimes. Some real country on Sundays. Soul and country. Then there was the old school Peter Tosh and di old school Reggae tunes dem. 

You know dem Reggae deh when you a drive through Kingston and you hear the sounds dem a tune dem daytime loud speaker? Like dem a use that old school Reggae fi tune di sound. It used to be that kinda style deh. 

And now, what kind of music are you checking for? Are there are regional sounds that you’re excited about?

London loves me for some reason. So I listen to a lot of London stuff. I’ve learned a lot of their different sounds like drill and garage music. 

Right now, I’m very, very, very into amapiano, which is South African-style music. It’s crazy.

Tapped in all over the globe.

Tapped in, bredda. I have to be, because I take little pieces from everybody’s tings and mix it with the Dancehall. That’s the vibe. I’m doing research every day.