GRAMMY Nominees Hit-Boy, Davido, D’Mile, and special guest Tay Keith joined BMI‘s How I Wrote That Song event in West Hollywood to dissect their most popular tracks from Leave The Door Open to Sicko Mode and spilled producer secrets and behind the scenes information.
Out of the nominees who joined BMI for the event were Hit-Boy, with 11 previous GRAMMY nominations and 3 wins, nominated this year for Producer of the Year (Non-Classical). Afro-beats artist Davido makes his GRAMMY debut with nominations for Best Global Music Performance, Best Global Music Album, and Best African Music Performance for his self-produced album “Timeless.” D’Mile, a five-time GRAMMY winner and 17-time nominee, was up for Record of the Year for On My Mama, with the chance of adding to his streak of four consecutive wins.
PHOTO CREDIT: Prince Williams for BMI
In an engaging discussion led by BMI’s VP Creative, Catherine Brewton, the hit-makers answered questions and revealed the creative process behind their popular tracks. Some songs, they revealed, took years to craft.
As the snippets from the iconic songs played, the crowd sang and danced along, their energy mirroring the music’s spirit.
PHOTO CREDIT: Prince Williams for BMI
D’Mile brought up his produced tracks such as Leave the Door Open for Silk Sonic, drawing inspiration from Bruno Mars’s style and incorporating Mars’ own pre-existing ideas for the hook and chorus. Originally not intended for Silk Sonic, the song took shape over a year, with D’Mile developing 20 different versions before its final form was presented.
Beyond Leave the Door Open, D’Mile’s production credits include hits like Victoria Monét’s Ass Like That, where she’s playfully credited as “Vicky” reflecting their close collaboration, and Beyoncé’ and Jay-Z’s powerful BOSS.
Among Davido’s hits, UNAVAILABLE (Official Video) ft. Musa Keys was played. The song’s music video features a dance created just the day before the music video shoot. The choreography came from a young woman who happened to be at the gym with Davido, highlighting the spontaneous creativity that fuels his music.
Davido also reflected on If, a personal song that marked a significant turning point in his career. He described it as his breakthrough hit, coinciding with his signing to Sony.
PHOTO CREDIT: Prince Williams for BMI
During the game, Hit-Boy kept the energy high with crowd-pleasing hits like Feeling Myself by Beyoncé and Nicki Minaj. Brewton highlighted Hit-Boy’s impressive producing career, mentioning how his work has garnered a “Super Bowl” of nominations and collaborations. The set also included Travis Scott’s SICKO MODE ft. Drake, a track with numerous drafts before arriving at the fan-favorite version we all know and love.
The conversation concluded with the artists taking questions and compliments from the enthusiastic audience. They acknowledged the positive reception of Hit-Boy and Bighit’s father-son dynamic and offered valuable advice for aspiring creatives.
After the discussion, producer Tay Keith joined the panel on stage for an award ceremony hosted by Brewton. The event concluded with a relaxed atmosphere, complete with DJ music, popcorn and opportunities for audience members to mingle, congratulate the stars and even capture photo memories.
PHOTO CREDIT: Prince Williams for BMI
