YOGI Interview- song w/ Skrillex, courted by Dr. Dre
Born and bred in Brent Cross, North west London, Yogi existed in his own world. But having lived in Los Angeles for the past several years, Yogi’s upcoming debut album is centered on his personal connection between the two cities. He’s been coming back and forth for the past five or six years as an in-house producer at Interscope, the label founded by Jimmy Iovine – and through which he ended up meeting and signing a production deal with the legendary Dr. Dre, and an artist deal with Skrillex’s OWSLA to release his own music.
These connections became the catalyst for Yogi’s journey across the Atlantic. And it’s these relationships Yogi fostered that’s put him in a position to bring the likes of DRAM and Kid Ink, together with UK acts such as Ray BLK, Lady Leshurr on his debut album for Epic Records/Ministry of Sound, successfully marrying the tone of two of the world’s most iconic cities into one unique, jet-setting sound. His production credits include some of the best in the game at the moment. Names like Rita Ora, Stormzy, Tinie Tempah, AlunaGeorge, Kid Ink, Professor Green and Santigold, are only a testament to Yogi’s strength as a powerhouse producer and his demand is sure to sky rocket. Yogi produced Wretch 32’s single ‘Traktor’ which came in at No.2 on the UK Official Charts. Yogi describes his upcoming album as “a driving album” – one built around memories of cruising around London and Los Angeles, the different feelings each place evokes and the tunes he would play along the way. In a nutshell: “I wanted to aspire make something like the Chronic 2001 of 2018,” he says, before going on to explain how the album is a marriage between LDN and LA. There’s also one final point he wants to get across – which is that the album is also going to have the kind of bumping tracks that hark back to his days as a DJ and could easily be played in a club.
