Nigerian music producer turned artiste Pheelz has signed a deal with Warner Records, an American record label, following the success of his latest single, ‘Finesse’.
“Having my music get that kind of attention and open that door for me is a blessing. I still have whiplash,” Pheelz told Billboard. He added, “I haven’t been able to process everything.”
Speaking further in an interview with the magazine, the producer, born Philip Moses, recounted that the ‘Finesse’ video was recorded with an iPhone, after which he shared it on TikTok.
“I made the ‘Finesse’ video. I made it right here in my studio with just my iPhone, and I posted it on TikTok. That’s the kind of power we have as creatives now, and it’s amazing, it’s beautiful,” he said.
Nonetheless, Pheelz admitted that “it has its challenges.”
The producer also expressed his wish to collaborate with American rapper Cardi B, Kanye, Rihanna or Drake on the remix.
“I know she’s a rapper, but I think Cardi B can do something amazing on ‘Finesse’,” he told Billboard. “I think Ye as well — definitely Ye. If I get Ye on ‘Finesse’, I’m going to lose my mind. Cardi, Ye — and the third one would be between Rihanna and Drake.”
Warner Records, with over 90 signees, including Omah Lay, and Madonna, said, “Mr Pheelz the Producer” and his DIY mentality was an attractive draw for the record label.
It noted that the president of A&R Black Music and Associated Labels at Warner Records, Steve Carless, made a beeline from Paris to London for a meeting with Pheelz to show their commitment.
“What was so compelling about Pheelz when we first met was his passion and affection for music and the Web3 space. He’s creating his own NFTs and graphic art, which aided in the launch and popularity of ‘Finesse’,” Steve said.
With the infiltration of Afrobeats into a worldwide market and with over 14 million streams on Spotify, ‘Finesse’ featuring BNXN (Buju) initially began as a training session with his new producer on Ableton Live (A beat making app) until trended all over TikTok and then the national and international music space.
‘Finesse’ currently sits at Number 5 this week on Billboard’s U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart.
