For the past few years, co-producers have become a more significant part of rap production. Looking at the credits of today’s biggest hits, you might see big-name producers like Metro Boomin, Murda Beatz, or jetsonmade. But you’re also likely to see lesser-known names like CuBeatz or Outtatown next to them. That’s because loops have changed the sound of rap.
The influx of loop makers has opened the door for European producers to make waves in the rap industry in ways never seen before. That might explain why artists like Outtatown and Cubeatz have smaller profiles; they hail from The Netherlands and Germany (respectively). This brings us to Ugur Tig, a.k.a. VOU, a 22-year-old producer based in Germany with Turkish roots who has been making noise for the past few years.
“I got a few placements in Germany,” said VOU. “But I was never interested in playing a big role in the industry in Germany since I always looked up to big producers in the USA.”
VOU has been making a splash in the US thanks to his working relationship with Southside of 808Mafia. He teamed up with Southside to produce two songs on Offset’s solo debut, FATHER OF 4. Since then, he’s also worked with the likes of Tory Lanez, JACKBOYS, and EARTHGANG.
Most recently, he secured production credits on three tracks off Future ’s latest No. 1 album, High Off Life. VOU worked on Future’s “Ridin Strikers,” “Hard to Choose One,” and “Too Comfortable” alongside his close collaborator Southside. Genius recently caught up with VOU over the phone to discuss his relationship with Southside, breaking into the US music scene, and his work on Future’s High Off Life.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Interview by Shy Ink.
Genius: You’ve had some success with placements for the likes of Offset, JACKBOYS, and EARTHGANG. I wanted to know a bit about how you first got into music?
VOU: To be honest, I don’t really know how I got into music. But I remember when I was around 16, I started playing drums. Since I have Turkish roots, I played the Turkish guitar. I was always interested in music and tried to produce my own music and came to find FL studio. I’ve been producing since I was 16. I’m 22 now.
How did you start getting your music out there? How did you manage to end up reaching massive artists like Travis Scott?
I started really sending my sh-t around two or three years ago. I started in Germany, sending my sh-t to German producers. I got a few placements in Germany, but I was never interested in playing a big role in the industry in Germany since I always looked up to big producers in the USA.
Through Instagram, I met a few people who connected me with Southside, and we started working. The big ones I got now are almost just with Southside. I got a few here and there with EARTHGANG, with my homie Edsclusive, or the Tory Lanez one I did with my guy Foreign Teck and Nick Dean, who is also a European producer.
How come you think you and Southside work so well together?
I think what Southside likes the most is the really dark sound, like the down and moody kind. My samples and loops are very dark, so he f-cked with the music and liked my stuff. We kept it going. He is always a fan of that dark trap, dark choir sh-t.
So, you mainly send out melodic ideas to producers.
The work between me and Southside, I’m doing a bunch of loops and samples and sending him the whole pack. He’s doing like the whole beat—then he’s trying to place them.
So, going on to your more recent placements then, how did you get involved with Future’s High off Life?
It’s the same way we always work. I worked on a big pack and sent it over, he f-cked with some of the samples and made a lot of beats with them. Luckily, we landed a placement with Future.
So, you didn’t know when sending that pack out, that it was going to be for Future?
No, [Southside] was in contact with me, we texted each other. He told me that he’s working with Future, but I didn’t know that we got like three on the project. I just thought about one or maybe two.
When did you start sending the ideas out for the Future project?
I don’t know, to be honest, but I think it was a pack around 2018 or the beginning of 2019.
Can you tell me a bit about “Ridin Strikers” and how you went about creating that melody?
So “Ridin Strikers,” to be honest, I don’t really remember all the melodies, because they are the older ones. I think it was a guitar. I worked on the sound design a bit, affecting the shape. It was like a Chinese instrument. I don’t know what it’s called, Koto or something. I found that instrument and tried to play some unique sounds and it became “Ridin Strikers.”
What I noticed about that melody and a lot of your other melodies is that the strings are quite delicate and soft, but they cut through really well. How do you find the right balance between getting that soft-sounding pluck, but also making sure it’s got presence within a hard beat?
I always try to find unique sounds and try to edit them to sound more unique or like something that wasn’t released before. I try to experiment, man. It’s all about experimenting. It’s all about trying new things, trying new plugins.
Speaking of experimenting, let’s talk about “Hard to Choose One.” So that melody, is that an arpeggiator or did you play those keys?
Yeah, that’s a piano I played and made faster. I didn’t really play in this BPM. I just sped it up and then edited it. It’s a piano. Sometimes I play simple ideas in a slow tempo and when I don’t like it, I speed it up and try to make it more interesting.
Future recently dropped the visuals to that track. Did the vibe of the visuals match what you were going for when you were making that melody?
When I make melodies, I don’t really think about any artists. I just make what I feel like in the moment, it’s more about the feeling. But I was always a big fan of Future, I liked the visuals obviously. I don’t see visuals when I make melodies.
What do you remember about making the melody for “Too Comfortable”? How did that melody come about?
“Too Comfortable” is a guitar, which I played on my broken knee guitar, which had only four strings. I can’t really play the guitar, but I try to sometimes play some notes and chords.
How did you break the guitar?
I don’t know, it was an old one. I can’t really play the guitar, but it was in the corner of my room. I just pick it sometimes to make some unique effects in my melodies, but I can’t really play. So, it was broke. I don’t know why, but it had only like four strings.
So, is that something that you try to do when you’re making a melody is to find a unique instrument to start off an idea?
Yeah, exactly. I try to find new instruments and maybe just some simple tonal sounds, which aren’t even instruments. I try to tweak it in my software and affect it, so it sounds like something weird or something interesting, so I can make something unique.
When did you find out that you landed three songs on the project?
It was the day on which it dropped. I ran through the album and then found out that he used three of my melodies. I didn’t know beforehand that he was going to use three of my samples for Future. Luckily, he took three of them and made some great music, man.
What was your reaction when you realized? Was it a mini celebration?
Yeah. It’s always a pleasure to have music with artists you’ve heard before, and you were always a fan of. It’s amazing. I still can’t believe that I’m working with people in the USA. In Germany, they always think that it’s kind of impossible to reach out to the USA or work with US artists.
Which of the three songs would you say is your favorite?
I guess it would be “Too Comfortable” because of the story behind it with the broken guitar and the melody. It shows you don’t really have to have a musical background and you don’t need to have very good guitar skills. You just need a simple idea and something in mind you want to do. There can always be a new idea that can pop up.
Have you got any artists that you’d like to work with in the future?
I’m always a big fan of R&B and those kinds of artists, soul vibes. I would love to work with Bryson Tiller, Chris Brown, and I’m a huge fan of Travis Scott. To work with him on his track would be a big dream. Some of my goals are Meek Mill, always a big fan [of his]. He’s one of the more real rap guys. That’s a few of my goals.
