He produced Kodak Black’s big hit this year. In Miami he announced his plans to rap
It’s nearly 1 a.m. on a Wednesday and ATL Jacob is about to make a toast.
As everyone in the room shifts their attention to Jacob, who rented out Komodo Miami’s second and third floors for a four-course dinner, the 23-year-old begins rattling off thank yous. He thanks his mom and sisters. Future, or “Big Pluto” as Jacob calls him, gets a shoutout — “That’s all you, man,” a grinning Future replies — as does Young Scooter, the voice behind the infamous “ATL Jacob ATL Jacob” tag, and a half a dozen others. Then comes a startling revelation:
“It’s just the start of something new in my career,” Jacob said to the crowd, “and we’re going to keep going.”
Having gone from selling beats for $90 to production credits alongside Kanye West, Future and Drake, ATL Jacob is one of the hottest producers in hip-hop. He produced two of the summer’s hottest tracks in Kodak Black’s “Super Gremlin” and Future’s “Wait For U,” which earned him special recognition at the BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards, which took place in Miami in early September. But as Jacob alluded to during his brief speech at Komodo, he’s ready to embark on a new career as a recording artist.
“Rapping, producing go hand in hand with each other,” Jacob later said from Palm Villa Studios in North Dade. “They not even brothers and sisters — they twins. Rap overall is production so I’m still a producer. I’m just using my voice now.”
It’s now a few hours before the BMI Awards and Jacob stands behind the control board, cycling through some of his unreleased music. That Jacob chose Palm Villa for the interview is fitting considering he and Kodak recorded “Super Gremlin” there in 2021. Kodak, a Pompano Beach native, banged out the song in two takes.
The two songs that Jacob plays, however, sound nothing like “Super Gremlin.” One song with a heavy 808 bass sounds like something that Future would rip. The second track, a tender, R&B-inspired jam that samples Snoh Aalegra, is a standout and resembles “Wait For U.” It’s clear that Jacob is excited about this second track, which he deems part of the “new wave” he’s trying to usher in.
“It’s just a vibe that you’re going to connect with,” Jacob says. “You can’t fake it. It’s gotta be like really how you feel. Like every song that I make is really like how I feel.”
A compilation album that will showcase Jacob’s rapping and producing chops is in the works, though no release date yet. Although Jacob wouldn’t reveal anything about the project, his manager, Iren “IG” Golder, confirmed that a single featuring Big Sean and Fredo Bang is due sometime in October. Golder, who has known Jacob for roughly a decade, says he’s well-suited for the artistic shift.
“He has the drive,” Golder adds. “He doesn’t have any issues. He doesn’t smoke or drink.”
Born Jacob Canady in Atlanta, Jacob knew music was in his future from a young age.
“My dad said I had a rap song called ‘I Just Farted,’” Jacob recalls, flashing his wide, gap-toothed grin. “I guess I was in second grade or something.”
As Jacob recalls the song’s intricacies, he asks his mom, Valencia, seated a few feet away, if she remembers. The room — which also includes Golder, publicist and sisters Jamaya Williams and Jakeiry — erupts in laughter at the memory.
“I’d be rapping with it then in the middle of rap, I’d make a fart sound like I just farted and rhyme it with whatever,” Jacob says, still grinning. “I don’t even know. It’s crazy. So it’s like I knew that I always wanted to rap and make beats.”
From there, Jacob began exploring various instruments from the piano to the xylophone to the timpani to the bass drum. He was even alto saxophone first chair in eighth grade before discovering beat-making in high school, which he says was influenced by him wanting to rap. As a senior, Jacob met Future and the relationship blossomed due to their shared work ethic.
Jacob’s humble beginnings and willingness to try new things are what endeared him to another Atlanta-based producer in Polow Da Don. The two met in 2018 and Polow could immediately tell Jacob was “student” of the game.
“He just has a humble spirit,” Polow said in a phone interview. Although songs like “Pimpin’ All Over the World” and “Throw Some Ds” earned Polow respect in hip-hop circles, it was tracks like “Buttons,” “London Bridge” and “Forever” that really turned heads. In Jacob, Polow sees a kindred spirit. “You don’t find many producers who can have hits just as big as one another — top 100s, crossover records, urban, they basically checked off all the boxes — yet they’re so different from one another.”
The night before the BMI Awards, Jacob and Polow reconnected at a pre-show mixer sponsored by the latter’s YoCo Vodka. Polow made sure to bring Jacob to the front, instructing the DJ to cycle through “Super Gremlin,” Wait for U” and the Atlanta native’s untitled, bass-heavy track. Heads bobbed to every track, the crowd not missing a beat.
