Producer J Mike Says The “Only” Beat Was Custom Made For Nicki Minaj

Production Credit: J Mike

Words Eric Diep

Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in the Winter 2014 issue of XXL Magazine, on stands now.

Baltimore native J Mike, a.k.a. Jeremy Coleman, has seen big success already in his budding career. The 24-year-old producer studied under the wings of Kane Beatz and Dr. Luke, perfecting his own style of beat-making that blends pop and hip-hop. After contributing to big records like T-Pain’s “Reverse Cowgirl” and Nicki Minaj’s “Super Bass” during his early career, J Mike is back this year to add his flair to the third single from Nicki Minaj’s The Pinkprint. As one-third of the production team alongside Dr. Luke and Cirkut for Nicki’s “Only” featuring Chris Brown, Drake and Lil Wayne, it appears J Mike is finally getting his just due.

XXL: So what would you say you have learned from Dr. Luke?
J Mike: Luke is a king. He’s one of the hardest working producers I’ve ever met. He’s got all those hit records and he’s still in the studio every day, all day. Cooking up and working. The way he handles business, it’s just incredible to watch. Just being such a boss and just running shit. When I’m in the room, I try to ask as [many] questions as I can. He’s one of the legends.

How did "Only" come together?
Luke hit me up one day to make some beats. It was me, Luke and Cirkut, [we] all did the beats together. That was actually a beat made custom for Nicki. That was one of the ideas we started. I was throwing drums and he was throwing melodies. We just passed it back and forth. When we work, one person does something—adds to it. Next person will add a kick. Next person will add a snare. He gave her the beat and the rest was history. When I heard those verses [and] all of them artists brought that A-plus game on it? It was legendary.

Nicki's single "Anaconda" was more pop than hip-hop. Which one do you like more?
She has the appeal for everybody. She’s a worldly artist. You can’t just expect her to only want to do rap stuff or to want to do pop stuff. I like them both. I am a Nicki fan first.

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