PX Music’s production wizard, Irish drill’s beatsmith and a hit maker from Wexford.

Frequently producers don’t get the same shine as rappers or singers on tracks. This is despite the fact they help create the backbone of many tracks and their input is vital for birthing hits. Where would Outkast be without Mr. DJ, where would hip hop be without Dilla, would we even have some of the artists we have today without Rick Rubin?

The importance of the genre’s production maestros cannot be understated and with that said we have counted down the best in the genre from the emerald isle.

10. Dok Beats

Lemon Pie Collective member Dok Beats frequently produces haunting instrumentals reminiscent of that of Flatbush Zombies’ Erik Ark Elliott. Most notably gaining attention with his collaborations with Base Life’s C.O.B, the producer is perhaps one of the lesser known names on the list, not for long though.

9. Mankyy

County Clare’s Mankyy is one of the heads behind the rise of PX Music’s status as one of the most prolific outfits in the country. Having dropped a number of impressive beat tapes over the years, the producer frequently provides the glitchy, astral sounding backbone of many tracks coming out the south west. Most recently he collaborated on a few tracks off GavinDaVinci’s superscumbagmode.

8. sivv

It’s hard to keep up with how many members NUXSENSE comprise of. The eclectic hip hop group owes much of its production to sivv and he routinely delivers instrumentals that capture the attention long enough to allow a number of artists to spit their verse over. Most recently the twinkling PRT-LUV illustrated his ear for head nodding instrumentals.

7. AKIA 

Sometimes it’s best to just listen to the music. A prime example of the electric production that AKIA has routinely produced is illustrated on ‘String Theory‘. Featuring Strange Boy Nature the track features a fat bassline and entices the Limerick MC to flex his ability to keep up with the relentless instrumental.

6. Mixed By Simba

If you are in any way inclined to listen to Irish hip hop you have no doubt heard Simba’s tagline across a number of tracks. The producer glides between a plethora of genres and sounds while maintaining his own stamp across his work.

Some of the names I’ve worked with over the past few months. I’m certain alot of the names on this wall will push the scene further. Can you spot a name you know here? pic.twitter.com/Cx7ZqPv4nM

— MixedBySimba (@Simba_Bianchi) September 26, 2019

5. Prod.LukeFly

Irish drill is one of the more interesting musical phenomenons to emanate from the island in recent years. With artists like AC-130, Reggie and JB.2 racking up serious numbers online it logically followed that there would be a number of producers from Ireland behind many of the hits. One such musical architect goes by Prod.LukeFly and he is behind cuts such as Exotic Finish and Max Thademon’s ‘Speak On It/For The Gang’ that has nearly reached 1 million views on WORLDSTARHIPHOP.

4. Gaptoof

One of Soft Boy Record’s finest beat connoisseurs should be no stranger to anyone vaguely interested in hip hop in Ireland. However for those unfamiliar he is the instrumental wizard behind tracks such as ‘Paris, Texas’ and recently featured in a boiler room set with a few of the other boys from the label.

3. CBAKL

Portrush’s own CBAKL has steadily been making waves online the past few years and now he’s emerging as one of the country’s standout beat smiths. Having progressively built his profile through collaborations and a plethora of dusty, sample heavy heaters, the Class Craic Records head honcho recently released his album ‘Wisdom Is Misery’ to widespread acclaim. One of the island’s most prolific producers, keep your eyes peeled for more from the production maestro.

2. New Machine

The production credits for New Machine are absolutely stacked. Having worked with Chip, Kano, Wretch 32, Plan B the Wexford producer has more recently worked on tracks with Skripteh and produced ‘Phoenix’ on ‘Green Diesel‘ demonstrating he can cook up anything from a mean drill beat to a piano led hip hop track.

1. J a r J a r J r

Having amassed nearly forty thousand followers and millions of plays on Youtube, Cork’s Jar Jar Jr very much made his name in the stereotypical bedroom producer way. However he’s since evolved his sound, producing a number of cuts alongside the Soft Boy crew on Kojaque’s ‘Deli Daydreams’ in 2018 and followed this with a number of live slots over festival season. His use of vocal samples and jazzy chops have created tacit agreement in the hip hop community of his status as the Island’s best producer.

Photo Credits: Jordan hearns