WondaGurl
WondaGurl | |
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Birth name | Ebony Naomi Oshunrinde |
Born | Scarborough,Toronto, Ontario,Canada | December 28, 1996
Origin | Brampton,Ontario,Canada |
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Occupations |
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Instruments | |
Years active | 2009–present |
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Ebony Naomi Oshunrinde(born December 28, 1996), professionally known asWondaGurl,is a Canadian record producer, songwriter and record executive.
Early life
[edit]Ebony Naomi Oshunrinde was born on December 28, 1996[4]at theScarborough Grace HospitalinScarborough,Toronto, Ontario,Canada, to Josefina Oshunrinde.[5][6]She lived with her mother inNorth YorkandMississaugabefore eventually setting inBrampton.[7]WondaGurl started producing on her keyboard with drum pads at age 9.[8]She also credits a Casio keyboard gifted to her by her grandmother as influencing her musical trajectory.[9]According to WondaGurl, she started making beats seriously when she discovered the digital audio workstationFrooty Loopsaround age 11 or 12.[8]
Her musical tastes also developed in relation to her family, with her mother turning her on toBiggie SmallsandP. Diddyand her brother introducing her toDipsetandhip hopmore generally.[9]She credits her mentorBoi-1dafor the name "WondaGurl," saying "I got my name from his name, I just switched it around."[9]
Career
[edit]At age 15, WondaGurl entered the 2011 and 2012 Battle of The Beat Makers competition inToronto,Ontario,where Canadian record producerBoi-1dawas present as one of the guest judges at both years. She won first place in the latter year, earning herself a trophy and aRoland SH-01 Gaiasynthesizer.[8]
WondaGurl became a protégé ofBoi-1dashortly after the competition, and around 2013, started to closely work with American rapperTravis Scottat 16 years old, whom she also signed to years later. She also garnered one of her first high-profile music placements that same year, with rapperJay-Zon his twelfth studio albumMagna Carta Holy Grail,working on the track "Crown" with Travis and record producerMike Dean.[6]This led to her working with other major artists and producers since then, producing her firstTop 40hit single"Antidote"by Travis Scott in 2015, which was co-produced by Canadian record producerEestbound.She would soon after go on to sign Eestbound to a production deal at the time, becoming her first co-producer.[10]His deal with her later ended around 2016, leaving them to go their separate ways.[11]
In 2018, she was featured in the Music category ofForbes30 Under 30.[12]She is one of the youngest women to add production to a platinum-selling hip hop album.[13]
In July 2020, WondaGurl signed a worldwide publishing deal with Travis Scott'sCactus Jack PublishingandSony/ATV Music Publishing,in conjunction with her own record label and publishing company, Wonderchild Music.[14]
At theJuno Awards of 2021,WondaGurl won theJack Richardson Producer of the Year Awardfor her work on the songs "Aim for the Moon"(Pop Smokefeat.Quavo) and "Gang Gang"(JackBoysandSheck Wes).[15]She was both the firstBlack Canadianwoman to win the award, and the first woman ever to win as a producer for other artists rather than as an artist self-producing her own work.[16]
Production discography
[edit]Singles produced
[edit]Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US | AUS | BEL (FL) |
CAN | FRA | GER | IRL | NZ | SWI | UK | |||||
"Bitch Better Have My Money" (Rihanna) |
2015 | 15 | 14 | 27 | 11 | 3 | 17 | 39 | 10 | 7 | 27 | non-album single | ||
"Antidote"[19][20] (Travis Scott) |
16 | 75 | 38 | 120 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Rodeo | |||
"No Limit"(Remix) (UsherfeaturingA$AP Ferg,Master P,Travis Scott) |
2016 | 32 | 45 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Hard II Love | ||
"Braille"[23] (Ab-SoulfeaturingBas) |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Do What Thou Wilt. | |||
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
References
[edit]- ^"Wondagurl Interview: Producer Talks Don Toliver and Travis Scott".Billboard.April 2, 2020.
- ^Berry, Peter A. (6 May 2020)."Wondagurl Speaks On Working With Travis Scott, Lil Uzi & More".XXL Mag.
- ^"Hit Producer WondaGurl Signs Global Co-Publishing Deal With Sony/ATV, Cactus Jack".Variety.July 21, 2020.
- ^Daniel, George Modokpe (February 27, 2018)."Meet the Nigerian-Canadian WondaGurl behind hip-hop's loudest beats".Glazia.RetrievedJanuary 17,2019.
Born December 28, 1996 in Ontario, Canada to Josefina Oshunrinde
- ^"Wondagurl: Already Graduated - NOISEY".10 July 2014.Retrieved1 July2016.
- ^ab"16-Year-Old 'Magna Carta Holy Grail' Producer 'Wondagurl' Now Working on Beats for Drake".The Hollywood Reporter.13 August 2013.Retrieved2016-02-24.
- ^"Toronto's Ebony 'WondaGurl' Oshunrinde looking to reveal her own sound".Toronto Star.17 September 2020.
- ^abc"WondaGurl (Ebony Oshunrinde)".Retrieved1 July2016.
- ^abcJu, Shirley (2023-04-22)."PRODUCER SPOTLIGHT: WondaGurl Talks the Importance Of Women and Non-Binary Producers, and Best Advice From Boi-1da - The Source".Retrieved2024-07-10.
- ^"Eestbound Is the Man Behind Travis $cott's" Antidote "and the First Producer Signed to Wondagurl - NOISEY".10 August 2015.Retrieved1 July2016.
- ^"Eestbound Announces He Is Not Currently Signed To Wondagurl".June 27, 2017.
- ^"WondaGurl".Forbes.Retrieved2019-03-19.[dead link]
- ^"5 poppin' female producers you should know by name in 2018".Kulture Hub.2018-04-25. Archived fromthe originalon 2019-04-23.Retrieved2019-04-23.
- ^"Sony/ATV and Cactus Jack Sign WondaGurl to Global Publishing Deal".Music Connection Magazine.July 21, 2020.
- ^Holly Gordon and Andrea Warner,"Here are the 2021 Juno Award winners".CBC Music,June 4, 2021.
- ^Paul Grein,"The Weeknd Wins Three 2021 Juno Awards on First Night of Ceremony".Billboard,June 4, 2021.
- ^Ryan, Gavin (July 18, 2015)."ARIA Singles: Meghan Trainor and John Legend Spend 4th Week On Top".Noise11.RetrievedSeptember 5,2017.
- ^"New Zealand single certifications – Rihanna – Bitch Better Have My Money".Recorded Music NZ.RetrievedSeptember 5,2017.
- ^"Antidote - Single by Travis Scott on Apple Music".Apple Inc.Retrieved5 September2017.
- ^"WondaGurl Producer Profile on WhoSampled".WhoSampled.Retrieved2017-09-05.
- ^"Single Accreds 2017".ARIA Charts.Retrieved5 September2017.
- ^@chartdata (February 6, 2019)."US Certifications (@RIAA): @trvisXX, Antidote 4x Platinum (4,000,000)"(Tweet) – viaTwitter.
- ^"Braille (feat. Bas) - Single by Ab-Soul on Apple Music".Apple Inc.28 October 2016.Retrieved5 September2017.
External links
[edit]- 1996 births
- Living people
- Black Canadian musicians
- Canadian hip hop record producers
- Canadian people of Nigerian descent
- Women hip hop record producers
- Canadian women hip hop musicians
- Black Canadian women
- Jack Richardson Producer of the Year Award winners
- Canadian women record producers
- Canadian women songwriters