Background and career
Leland Tyler Wayne (born September 16, 1993), known professionally as Metro Boomin, is an American record producer. Widely acclaimed for his dark and cinematic production style, he is regarded as one of the most influential producers in contemporary hip-hop and trap music. He has most notably worked with a string of artists including Future, 21 Savage, Migos, Gucci Mane, Kanye West, the Weeknd, Young Thug, Drake, and Travis Scott. Born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, Wayne began his career in music production in 2009 at the age of 16. He moved to Atlanta to attend Morehouse College in 2012, during which he worked extensively with various Atlanta-based artists. Wayne gained wider recognition for co-producing the 2014 single "Tuesday" for iLoveMakonnen, which peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100. He was credited on a string of similarly successful singles throughout 2016, including "Jumpman" by Drake and Future, "Father Stretch My Hands" by Kanye West, "Low Life" by Future, and his first number-one production, "Bad and Boujee" by Migos. This was followed by the diamond-certified (14× platinum) "Congratulations" by Post Malone, "Tunnel Vision" by Kodak Black, "Mask Off" by Future, "Bank Account" by 21 Savage, and his second number-one production, "Heartless" by the Weeknd. As a credited lead artist, Wayne's debut studio album, Not All Heroes Wear Capes (2018), and its follow-up, Heroes & Villains (2022), both debuted atop the Billboard 200, along with his two collaborative albums with Future: We Don't Trust You (2024) and We Still Don't Trust You (2024). Heroes & Villains spawned the single "Creepin'" (with the Weeknd and 21 Savage), which peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and within the top ten of several countries. We Don't Trust You spawned the single "Like That" (with Future and Kendrick Lamar), which became his first number-one song on the chart as a lead performer. In addition, he has released the collaborative projects Savage Mode (2016) and Savage Mode II (2020) with 21 Savage, DropTopWop (2017) with Gucci Mane, Perfect Timing (2017) with Nav, and Double or Nothing (2017) with Big Sean.
Leland Tyler Wayne was born on September 16, 1993, in St. Louis, Missouri, where he attended Parkway North High School. He is the son of Lamont and Leslie Joanne Wayne. He has four siblings. After a brief stint playing bass guitar in his middle school band, he turned to making beats in the seventh grade at age 13. This happened when his mother bought him a laptop and he got a copy of the music production software FL Studio, then known as FruityLoops. Metro is mostly self-taught, and in high school, he produced five beats a day. Initially, Wayne wanted to rap, and started making beats so that he could have music to rap over. However, he eventually turned his full attention toward hip-hop production. As he continued to hone his production skills in high school, he began to utilize social media platforms including Twitter to network with more established rap artists, as well as beat submissions for potential music placements.
During high school, Wayne's mother would often drive him for over eight hours from St. Louis to Atlanta, Georgia, to collaborate with artists he met with online. One of the first artists he worked with was Bricksquad Monopoly rapper Tay Don, which led to Wayne's acquaintance with label cohorts OJ da Juiceman and Gucci Mane. He soon met Atlanta-based rapper Future, who became one of his frequent collaborators. Upon his high school graduation, Wayne moved to Atlanta to attend Morehouse College, studying business management. He took a hiatus from school after one semester, due to the struggle of balancing his production and schoolwork. During this time, Wayne became acquainted with burgeoning Atlanta-based rapper Future. The two first worked together on the song "Hard", which was included on DJ Esco's mixtape Welcome 2 Mollyworld (2012), and following Future's debut album, Pluto (2012), they reunited for his second, Honest (2014). Wayne produced the album's lead single, "Karate Chop", the title track alongside DJ Spinz, and its fifth single, "I Won", which features Kanye West.
In May 2013, Metro announced his debut mixtape, 19 & Boomin. Following several singles, featuring artists such as Trinidad James and Gucci Mane, Metro released the mixtape on LiveMixtapes, on October 7, 2013. The mixtape, all original songs, included "Maison Margiela", featuring Future, and "Some More", featuring Young Thug, both of which were subsequently released as music videos. In March 2014, Metro and Young Thug announced that they would release a collaborative album, performed and released under the moniker "Metro Thuggin". The album was to be self-titled and was planned to be released sometime in 2015. Along with the announcement, the duo released the collaborative track, "The Blanguage". Photographer Cam Kirk claimed to have a copy of the complete, finished album. A few leaked tracks from the project were found circulating the internet in late 2015, yet an official mixtape has never been released. In 2014, Metro made an appearance on Nicki Minaj's third studio album, The Pinkprint, producing the track "Want Some More". In October 2014, Metro executive produced Future's Monster mixtape. This spawned the first appearance of the single "Fuck Up Some Commas". The song became a single a month after the album was released. Metro served as executive producer for Drake and Future's collaborative mixtape What a Time to Be Alive, released on September 20, 2015. In addition, he produced or co-produced seven of the 11 tracks on the mixtape. Metro served alongside DJ Esco as executive producer for Future's 2016 mixtape, Purple Reign. In 2016, he won Producer of the Year at the BET Hip Hop Awards. In 2016, Metro Boomin was credited with produced charting hits such as "Jumpman" by Future and Drake, "Bad and Boujee" by Migos ft. Lil Uzi Vert, "Low Life" by Future ft. The Weeknd, and the 21 Savage collaboration "X" ft. Future. That year, he contributed to Kanye West's The Life of Pablo, and he and 21 Savage released the EP Savage Mode. In 2017, he produced the top 10 hit "Tunnel Vision" by Kodak Black, "Bounce Back" by Big Sean, "Mask Off" by Future, and the top 20 hit "Bank Account" by 21 Savage.
On June 23, 2017, Metro produced "Hammer Time" by Christian rappers Lecrae and 1K Phew. On July 14, 2017, Metro and fellow record producer and rapper Nav released two singles, "Perfect Timing (Intro)" and "Call Me", the dual lead singles from their collaborative mixtape, Perfect Timing. The mixtape was released by Boominati Worldwide, XO, and Republic Records, one week later, on July 21. It features guest appearances from Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, Offset of Migos, 21 Savage, Belly, and Gucci Mane. On October 31, 2017, Metro and rappers 21 Savage and Offset released their collaborative studio album, Without Warning, as a surprise release. On the same day, "Ric Flair Drip", performed by Metro and Offset, was released as the lead single. The album features guest appearances from Travis Scott and Quavo of Migos. On November 3, 2017, Metro and rapper Big Sean released a single titled "Pull Up n Wreck", featuring rapper 21 Savage, the lead single from their collaborative studio album, Double or Nothing. The project was released on December 8, 2017. It features guest appearances from Travis Scott, 2 Chainz, 21 Savage, Kash Doll, Young Thug, and Swae Lee. On February 13, 2018, "So Good", featuring Kash Doll became the lead single.
In January 2018, Metro Boomin was featured in a Gap campaign with singer SZA, alongside a self-produced remix of "Hold Me Now". The remix was released to digital platforms on the same day as the campaign. In an interview with XXL, explaining the campaign with Gap and the remix, he stated;
