Malibu Babie On Producing a No. 1 Hit For Nicki Minaj With ‘Super Freaky Girl’
Written by djfrosty on December 13, 2022
2022 was a breakout year for the producer, as she landed her first major credits — and made history. Now, the “Beat Barbie” is the first and only woman this century to debut at No. 1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs as a producer with Nicki Minaj’s “Super Freaky Girl.” The Olympia, Wash., native reveals how she created the hit with one of hiphop’s biggest stars.
How did the beat for “Super Freaky Girl” come together?
I was [working] with two of my favorite collaborators, and we were just having fun. When we landed on [Rick James’ “Super Freak”], we were like, “OK, this is a big sample.” We spent several hours fine-tuning the beat and it ended up in the hands of LunchMoney Lewis. It gets played for Nicki Minaj and within like 24 hours, she writes the whole song. I get a phone call of her rapping the whole song, like the original recording, and I was like, “Holy f–k, is that Nicki’s voice?” It all happened so fast. She’s such a phenomenal writer that she just saw the vision and took it all the way for us.
Why was “Super Freak” a prime song to sample?
It’s just so iconic, and I felt like the way that it had been produced in the past really lent itself to being reinvented. I felt like we could really get a big multigenerational audience. We just had a gut feeling that it would be a smash.
What’s your favorite memory of hearing “Super Freaky Girl” since its release?
Honestly, it probably was the night that it came out on Aug. 12. All of us work so hard, and it’s such a grind in the creative industry where it looks really glamorous. It was such a unifying night to see. Everyone was so excited and understood the gravity that it meant for us to have achieved that level of cut.
How did you celebrate it going No. 1?
When I found out the morning of, I think I went into a state of shock because it just felt so big. People are reaching out that I never had access to. As far as celebrating, I have a vacation scheduled at the end of the year. Since I found out, you wouldn’t believe how insane my schedule has been. I have just been in the studio 24/7.
Why do you think “Super Freaky Girl” was able to top the Hot 100?
I think it was a magic combination of the sample and Nicki’s writing over the sample. There was just an X factor in how she went with it. I do think we did a great job in production, but I think there was also the timing of that moment in her career that just all lined up. It was like the stars aligned.
This story originally appeared in the Dec. 10, 2022, issue of Billboard.