“My fallout with Kanye used to really mess me up mentally. It made me feel people could tell you to your face how dope you are but still not want to fuck with you because they’ve got personal issues.”

After more than a decade of living up to his moniker, Hit-Boy has shown out as the most important hip-hop producer of 2020. But he’s trekked a long career road—and had to learn how to rely on self to arrive in his current position. In an interview with William E. Ketchum III for LEVEL, the 33-year-old prodigy opens up about the secret sauce of his beats, mistakes he’s made along the way, and his soured relationship with Kanye West. Read it here:

Learning How to Be Self-Sufficient From the Most Important Producer of 2020