Bizkit’s melodic flow and brash delivery is spellbinding. Naturally, the multifaceted creative has always had a passion for music, tracing back to his childhood, when he first picked up a saxophone in the 4th grade. A prolific emcee, there’s never a dull moment throughout Bizkit’s day-to-day life.
The 4x Grammy-nominated producer has curated hits for the likes of Miguel, Neyo, and most notably John Legend, breaking into the spotlight with producing Legend’s timeless strain “Tonight” (Best You Ever Had). “As a saxophonist, I’ve toured with John Legend for 7 years, so I’ve seen the world twice already.” From touring with John Legend, to candid conversations with Quincy Jones out in Switzerland, Bizkit’s life has been the furthest thing from normal since he traded in his trumpet aspirations for woodwind living.
He didn’t cut any corners on the road to success. With a faith-based outlook on life, the power of manifestation is what fueled Bizkit’s passion mobile long before the money and accolades. “I’ve been very heavy on manifesting, because when you don’t really have anything else going on, all you have is manifestation until you get there,” he shares. In an industry where boardroom decisions prompt occasional bouts of internalized uncertainty, it’s encouraging to know that for some, credence outweighs perception, no matter what challenges may be present.
After a half-hour conversation with the Philly native, I came to the realization that life is all about finding balance. It’s so easy to get caught up in the moment and lose sight of what’s most important, living out your truth — and truthfully speaking — Bizkit isn’t just a saxophonist, he’s an architect of sound ushering in a new era of music. More than anything, Bizkit is blunt, buoyant, and bold, a trailblazer in his own right.
Our conversation, lightly edited for context and clarity, follows below.
From my understanding, you initially picked up the saxophone in the 4th grade. Out of all instruments, what made you gravitate towards the sax?
My grandma used to have this record she would listen to, and it has this saxophone player – I really liked how that sounded. When I was in fourth grade, the band instructor came around to each classroom asking if anyone wanted to play, or was interested in learning an instrument.
At first, I wanted to do a trumpet, because they scream or whatever – but they didn’t have a trumpet, they only had other instruments or whatever. I chose the sax because of that. What’s crazy is that that guy ended up being my teacher.
The sax sounds like it has its own voice.
With your high school days tracing back to CAPA (the high school for Creative and Performing Arts) – in retrospect, do you feel more equipped as an artist with immersing yourself in that environment as a scholar?
I feel so, because I really got a chance to learn a lot about fairy. I was in a sax quartet, I was in the Jazz band and I started my own band in high school. So yeah, it helped me learn how to play live, it helped me with getting my tone right, competition and everything. Cuz’ this was the best in the city. It was only like 600 students in the whole school, so yeah – it was definitely a great experience.
I feel like with me going to that high school, I didn’t really need to go to college for music. Boyz II Men went there, Jazmin Sullivan graduated a year after me, so we definitely have some heavy hitters from there.
Here’s the thing, growing up, I thought if you did music, you had to know music. I didn’t know that you didn’t have to know music in order to do music, that doesn’t make any sense. Like Lebron James, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan, you look at them as one, one, and one, the best — but the reason why you look at them like that is because they put in all of the hard work and they became champions because of it. Why do musicians and people who do music feel like they don’t have to do the hard work to be the best? I’ve never understood that concept. Being a producer, we learn how to engineer, how to record, how to mix, how to produce, how to do the whole thing, so if you come to my studio, with me and my partner Butta, we do the whole thing.
What do you feel like has been your defining moment as both a producer and saxophonist?
As a saxophonist, I’ve toured with John Legend for 7 years, so I’ve seen the world twice already. We’ve performed in Philly in front of 2 million people on the fourth of July. We’ve performed in front of 80,000 in Africa — I never thought picking up a saxophone would have me here. So that was that.
As a producer, I was working with John. We came into the studio [BNB] and I didn’t know he was in a meeting with, but he was playing a bunch of his songs that he had been working on. And then he played ‘Tonight’ and we heard somebody screaming, “play that again, play that again,” we was like who is that!? So, John comes out of the room and he’s like, “Hey man, these are the guys, these guys produced it,” and then it was L.A. Reid. I’m like oh shit. From there, he was like, “Man, I wanna live this song – I love this song.” I’m like okay. He [L.A. Reid] was like, “I’m definitely putting this in the next movie we’re working on,” and it was ‘Think Like A Man’. We ended up going to the screening, and as we’re watching the movie, we heard it in the screening like 6 times, and we thought it was a joke at first. We’ve never heard a song in a movie played 6 times before.
In terms of in-studio dynamics, what was it like working with John Legend to produce ‘Tonight’ ? That’s a timeless record.
We try to create classics. We can make the microwave songs or whatever, but then it’s like why not make a classic. You got all these new producers getting placements and everything, but it’s like, how can you call yourself a producer and put yourself in the same conversation as Quincy Jones. Like, Quincy did everything, and that’s what I wanna do. Like today, Mali Music just came out and we produced one of the songs on his album and the album is Billboard No. 1, on the Gospel charts this week.
I’ve been very heavy on manifesting, because when you don’t really have anything else going on, all you have is manifestation until you get there. I was really manifesting, preaching, and saying it over and over again, that we want to be the best, we wanna get all the charts — man, we got a smooth Jazz record going up right now and we got Mali Music in Gospel, so I’m already touching two charts I’ve never touched before — during COVID, during a whole pandemic, winning.
How does your spirituality factor in musically?
I’m only where I’m at because of my faith in God. This game will chew you up, swallow you, regurgitate you and spit you out again. Then step on you, pick it up, eat it again, shit you out, flush you down the toilet into the sewer and the ocean for the sharks and whatever else to eat you. I’ve been through everything. I had a girlfriend man, who I was putting on and I got this girl Grammy-nominated, all kinds of stuff. I’m sleeping next to the enemy man. We are in the middle of negotiating a pub deal, and this girl goes and signs a pub deal with another company, while my lawyer and her lawyer are in negotiation to do a deal. She signs a deal with another company and invites me and my partner to her party. We’re trying to figure out what part of the game is this.
So wait, are you two still together?
What’s crazy, after that happened, we were together for two years. Maybe the business side is a little messed up, but I shouldn’t end a relationship off of business. So, I tried it, but then the girl jumped off the balcony, all types of crazy stuff, you gotta watch out for these devils in this game man haha.
This didn’t happen in vain. Everything happens for a reason. I met the girl for a reason, I met people through her for a reason. There’s a reason why we broke up and why some things had to stop. I became an artist after that relationship, I wasn’t an artist before that. I had stories to tell after that relationship. And now, I’m a whole Zaddy, I don’t have a girlfriend or anything.
What exactly does it mean to be a ‘Zaddy’
This OnlyFans thing is big, girls are getting a lot of money, especially during quarantine. I know some girls that started an OnlyFans because they had to figure out. I know somebody that made $35K their first two months. I feel like girls call their boyfriend Daddy or whatever, but I look at Zaddy — they the ones who giving em’ the money.
I just be taking life and making songs about it man.
What does being a 4x Grammy-nominated producer do for your ego?
What’s crazy is that I don’t really have that much of an ego. I just believe that I have a purpose. I believe that my purpose here is to usher in the next generation of greats, because I feel like no one is really encouraging anyone to be great anymore. Lot of things are mediocre, everything is about bullshit and microwaveable stuff.
People get one record and can’t find another record to save their lives. I just wanna be the reason for the next generation of greats to come in. I feel like that’s what Quincy [Jones] did. He helped usher a lot of greats. Helped em’ with their sound, help steer that sound — and that’s what I feel like my purpose is.
Musically, is Quincy Jones one of your biggest influences?
Well, I met Quincy, that’s a whole nother conversation. I met Quincy when I was in Switzerland.
From that conversation alone, what was the most tangible takeaway?
I was with John [Legend] and we were at the Montreux Jazz Festival. We were in the back, and Quincy was around there with John, that’s his boy and everything. I somehow ended up in a room, by myself, with him. I was like, “Hey man, I’m a producer and I’m trying to do this and that.” — he was like — , “Aw yeah, that’s great man.” So, I was like, “How’d you do everything?” — and he was like — It’s the music. Music is everything.” Women love music, and he made sure that women loved the music and everything haha, but it wasn’t that long of a conversation. But I just looked at it as a line of things for me to see and be around. I feel like, how can you really manifest things if you don’t see them. The fact that I’m sitting here in front of Quincy Jones was enough for me.
Outside of the accolades, fame and notoriety, what drives your ambition?
I think that what drives my ambition is my purpose. My grandma, my grandpa, rest in peace — my mom, she’s bipolar, and I grew up with that — my grandparents made sure I was always busy and into something. The one my mom would never let me quit was the saxophone. Props to her for never letting me quit that, because I definitely wanted to quit so many times.
It’s evident music plays an integral role in your day-to-day life, but when you’re alone – what consumes your thoughts?
I never really thought about that. I guess it’s just the realization that everything that I’ve been through, everything happens for a reason. I was signed to John and then I wasn’t signed to John. I was working with a lot of different people and then I wasn’t working with em’. Felt like I kind of got blackballed in this industry or something, some person, some force or something, I have no idea.
It took for me to become depressed for me to find myself. I had to lose everything to gain it all. I think those still moments, and those quiet moments is why everything is the way it is now. I’ve been very humble my entire career, and as of late I’ve became very ra-ra. It seems like ever since I became ra-ra, people have started to respect me.
