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Rice N’ Peas produce music to help you get through those sad days
Rice N’ Peas, a Grammy-nominated producer duo comprised of Mike Woods and Kevin White, frequently curate mesmerizing soundscapes that pair warm piano chords with subtle hi-hats and other lively instruments.
At the same time, these two know how to up the tempo. Just listen to “Make My Love Go (feat. Sean Paul)” by Jay Sean or “Star” by Bazzi.
To box them into one genre is entirely impossible. As you listen closely, you’ll hear their production take on many musical stylings, including soulful/alternative R&B and pop.
All of Rice N’ Peas’ beats have one common denominator: melody
To them, this component is what drives production to great heights.
Rice N’ Peas are also behind the production board for Bazzi’s 2018 and 2019 mega hits “Mine” and “Beautiful.”
They co-produced Bazzi’s entire album as well, which has surpassed two billion streams, a platinum album, two multi-platinum singles, and two top 10 American Radio hits.
Not to mention, they’ve produced G-Eazy‘s 2016 platinum single, “Some Kind of Drug,” and Kiana Ledé‘s latest album, KIKI. Case in point, Rice N’ Peas are go-to producers for artists who are looking for a blend of smooth transitions and acoustic arrangements.
Kiana Ledé snapped on KIKI
Kiana Ledé is Rice N’ Peas’ long-term friend. The three met when Rice N’ Peas made their way to Los Angeles, and they’ve been inseparable since. In summary, they are each other’s backbone and are apart of every musical process of hers.
Rice N’ Peas knock on opportunity’s door
Rice N’ Peas’ name stems from their time working for a production company in 2011. This company also brought the two together. Although both of them were in college, their musical journey began differently.
Mike scored a great opportunity with this production company after speaking to his roommate about pursuing music. Ironically, Mike’s roommate had a close friend who was the daughter of the man who owned the company.
Thus, his roommate told him that he should go to New Jersey to work.
On the other hand, Kevin learned about this opportunity from his mentor, who just so happened to work as a creative director at Def Jam. As time progressed, his mentor put him in contact with individuals who worked for this production company.
Kevin recalls his mentor telling him, “It’s not going to be like the typical internship, but you’ll learn a lot and be more involved.”
So far, their musical experience has been great! But like any career path, it has ups and downs. Regardless of whatever life throws at them, they wouldn’t trade it for anything else.
“You just gotta be prepared to let things happen,” they add.
Before they go into the studio, Mike and Kevin like to do adventurous things like hiking or playing basketball.
Off of Bazzi’s album Cosmic, Kevin enjoyed making “Myself,” whereas Mike liked creating “Sober.” As a collective, however, they agree that “Mine” and “Beautiful” were fun to put together.
“I hope that people enjoy it [our music]. The goal is to have the music help them on a sad day or any other situation they’re facing. We want fans to get enjoyment out of listening to our sound.”
Moving forward, expect more singles from producer duo Rice N’ Peas! Their advice to aspiring producers is to encompass yourself around like-minded people and not to follow the money.
“Be a part of something you’re passionate about.”