Ice Spice Producer RIOTUSA Inks Publishing Deal With Warner Chappell Music: Exclusive
Written by djfrosty on June 15, 2023
RIOTUSA, the hitmaking producer behind Ice Spice, has signed a publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music, Billboard can reveal.
“Warner Chappell showed me respect and made me excited to build,” said RIOTUSA in a statement. “Ryan [Press, president, North America at Warner Chappell Music] values my vision and goals as a creative, and I know what he’s brought to the table for other artists. I want to inspire others to chase their dreams, and Warner Chappell will help me achieve those goals.”
Press added, “Riot has quickly become one of the most exciting and in-demand producers to emerge from New York’s legendary hip-hop scene. He’s creating hit after hit with Ice Spice, and we’re super lucky to get to support him at this stage of his journey. I’ve had the opportunity to work with some of hip-hop’s biggest music producers during the early stages of their careers, and I know Riot is well on his way to being one of the best producers of his generation.”
During his interview for Ice Spice’s Billboard cover story in May, RIOTUSA said he started making beats on GarageBand at 10 years old and was inspired by his father — WQHT (Hot 97) New York DJ/radio personality DJ Enuff — to chase his own musical dreams. In 2021, he began producing songs for Ice Spice, whom he met while attending State University of New York (SUNY) Purchase. He has since played a key role in her rapid rise to fame.
RIOTUSA produced Ice Spice’s breakout, gold-certified single “Munch (Feelin U)” and executive produced Like..?, the 2023 EP that featured the track. Like..?, which reached No. 5 on Billboard‘s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, also contains the hit singles “In Ha Mood” and “Gangsta Boo” (featuring Lil Tjay), the latter of which became Ice Spice’s career-first Billboard Hot 100 entry.
RIOTUSA has since earned credits on two top 10 hits on the Hot 100: Taylor Swift‘s “Karma” remix featuring Ice Spice (No. 2), which he co-wrote, and “Princess Diana” by Ice Spice and Nicki Minaj (No. 4), which he produced. He has also topped Billboard‘s R&B/Hip-Hop Producers chart for one week, the Rap Songwriters chart for two weeks and the Rap Producers chart for four weeks.
“After he scored multiple Billboard Hot 100 entries and radio hits, we knew it was the right time to find a publishing admin partner to support RIOT’s works in syncs, licensing, and collection,” said James Rosemond Jr., CEO/founder of Mastermind Artists and manager of both RIOTUSA and Ice Spice. “Ryan Press understood RIOT’s goals, vision, and worth, and this next chapter with Ryan and the global Warner Chappell team, as part of our extended family, is only going to amplify RIOT’s reach and raise his efforts to another level in this competitive space.”
In addition to his other credits, RIOTUSA produced Ice Spice and Nicki Minaj’s upcoming “Barbie World” track with Aqua from Barbie: The Album, the soundtrack to Greta Gerwig’s forthcoming big-screen feature Barbie. The track is slated for release on June 23 with an accompanying music video.