Inside The Credits 045: Conductor Williams
The Top 20 Conductor Williams Produced Songs (On Streaming)
Conductor, we have a problem. Some of your beats aren’t on streaming platforms and I’m trying to put the best of them all together! This includes JID’s “30 Freestyle,” the second half of “7 Minute Drill” by J. Cole, both of the new Joey Badass “diss” records, and the “Fighting Irish” Drake freestyle. I’ve wanted to make a playlist and breakdown of Conductor Williams’ pinnacle work since I heard his opus last year, Across The Tracks, with perhaps the best catalogued rapper of the 2020s, Boldy James. Now felt like a great time to do so, as it seems he is building towards a special year in 2025. It feels right to chronicle his rise before he reaches even more stratospheric moments.
My list below ranks what I hear to be the best songs produced by Conductor Williams on streaming services (for playlist purposes) with a single caveat—only one song per rapper or singer allowed. What I’ve found in listening to his catalogue front to back, is that he lives up to the name he labeled himself with. At his strongest, he guides rappers into natural pockets of rhythm never quite achieved by them before with crystalline precision. The way he chops samples is not dissimilar to the way Leonard Bernstein maneuvered his baton. His prowess lives within the way rappers feel on his beats—like they have awakened a new part of their character.
20. “Blu Elephantè Ballon Animals” by Stik Figa
Stik Figa is Conductor’s earliest disciple. They have three total bodies of work together and their most illuminating song came on the very last one. What jumps out about this beat is how the samples glide into one another allowing for Figa to flow right in the cross section between effortless and punchy. This is best rapping on any of the duo’s three projects together because Figa transforms into more of a broad stroke painter assisted by knife carving clarity like Maynard Dixon.
19. “Hear Me When I Pray” by Jabee
Some of Conductor’s best beats provoke 2 minute-ish wonders for rappers. Jabee flows through an epiphany here contextualized with a soulful burst behind him. It feels like Conductor challenged himself to do his own version of an early Kanye chipmunk flip.
18. “The Look of Love” Termanology
This beat is fuller sounding than a lot of Conductor’s beats but fits Termanology like a glove. The way the vocal in the sample is chopped up against that string sequence makes me wish Conductor could score a movie set in the early 90s in NY.
17. “Melo Chip and a Brick” by Stove God Cooks
This is the first beat on the list that displays Conductor’s more grimy snaggle-toothed side. The big band looming sample lifts Stove God’s rasp like Benny Goodman backing Billie Holiday. Shit sounds like it’s got the grain filter on 100 on photoshop.
16. “Chrome Magnum” by Rome Streetz
The beat here sounds contemplative and philosophical which is a cool contrast to Rome’s more flex laden raps. Conductor maneuvers his content into the illusion of feeling more sophisticated, which in tandem highlights Rome’s proficiency in lyrical acrobatics.
15. “Space Heater” by Domo Genesis
This is the best song on Conductor’s recent compilation album Conductor We Have A Problem, Pt. 3. It’s one of the few tracks Conductor has produced for a west coast MC and only makes me hope more of that comes in the future. The beat sounds like a Northeast sample chop funneled through the mist coming off the Pacific ocean on a drive along the PCH on the central coast.
14. “Higher” by Conway The Machine
Here we have another two minute wonder that juxtaposes Conway’s rugged delivery with a sweet toned sample chop. It sounds like effervescent ginger beer mixed with spiced dark rum in a dark and stormy. It sounds like a stunning lady whispering in the ear of her mob boss partner telling him which numbers to pick at the roulette table.
13. “Vic” by Villa feat. El Camino
This is the introduction to Conductor's very essential melancholy side that I think he could explore even more of. I had never heard of Villa before this search but this song hit me like a ton of bricks because of how much you can hear his tone match the rain cloud that the beat cues.
12. “Bad Girl” by Wynne
This song is proof that Conductor not only needs to produce more for women MCs, but that his sound is something that is mostly missing within that lane. Honestly, I’d love to A&R a Conductor tape with all women spitters. Shoutout Wynne for killing this shit and spurring the idea. What’s so cool about this beat is that the sample has this strange warped feeling to it. I’m honestly not sure what he’s doing to make it sound like that, but it sounds like it’s laced with Star Trek dust.
11. “The Cycle” by Remy Banks
This song begins with some code raps to live by. The beat exudes wisdom like it was concocted inside the mind of a professor. There’s also the first emergence on this list of pockets that wrap around a melodic hook which is something Conductor has continued to experiment more and more with in recent history. Just like I’d like to A&R a women MC album for Conductor, I’d also love to help him put together an R&B project. We could call it Midnight Train To Kansas City as an homage to Gladys Knight that also references Conductor’s hometown.
10. “Nightmares and Dreams” by Your Old Droog
This joint sounds like strolling around downtown Brooklyn in a fitted and a peacoat smoking a black and mild wine wood tip. Droog uses Conductor’s canvas to paint a layered intense color like burgundy, reminiscent of classic Rothko.
9. “Makrel Jaxon” by Mach-Hommy
An unexpected Mach-Hommy x Conductor pick I’m sure because of the breadth of their work thus far. From his still most lauded Pray For Haiti album, this is still one of his less appreciated numbers due to its short length. Yet, it’s an airtight punch packing interlude where Conductor provides Mach with a whirling twang to wax through. “Thought you was the best on the drums? Meet Ringo,” is about the sickest salute any rapper can make to their producer.
8. “Legend Freestyle” by Russ
Next time Russ drops another edition of his Chomp series, I’m sure Conductor will be on it. Their chemistry is clear and he spurs metaphors from Russ’ pen like Harry Potter spurs power from the sword of Godric Gryffindor. The beat feels like Conductor doing his version of an early 2000s 50 Cent laid back joint.
7. “Spirit of Excellence” by Rei The Imperial
Easily the most underrated Conductor album is his one from last year with the New Orleans spitter Rei The Imperial. Hearing a southern MC with a laid back drawl on semi-drumless boom-bap feels completely fresh. The billowing trumpet sample puts Rei in one of the craziest flow patterns of anyone on this list. I’ve literally never heard a delivery that sounds exactly like it.
6. “El Palo” by SD Kong & El Camino
This song is my favorite new discovery from making this list. The way the sounds of the samples move in harmony here are baffling. I can’t ever recall another hip hop beat before being led by both string bass and what sounds like jazz bells. The beat sounds like a picturesque scene of an empty south Philadelphia street at night with a single street light flickering. The way the flows have a slight hesitation to them feels completely spurred by the instrumental in the coolest way. Then surprise, the back half has crazy raps in Spanish.
5. “Feelings On Silent” by Leon Thomas feat. Wale
That Conductor R&B album I wrote about earlier…here’s the example of just how well it could work. This was one of the super high points on the Leon Thomas album for me. Leon sounds completely natural and smooth and Wale sounds invigorated. Conductor also has very few guitar led beats in his catalog and wow is this proof he needs to explore those sounds more.
4. “Glory Glory” by Little Brother
Hearing Phonte and Big Pooh on this track makes me wish they collaborated with Conductor on a whole project so bad. It makes me feel like there’s elements of Durham and Kansas City that just understand each other. This may also be Conductor’s cleanest sounding beat. It sounds like he took a year and a half to make the sequences sound like they’re covered in silk.
3. “8 am in Charlotte” by Drake
Which Drake x Conductor song to choose really took a fuckin while. “Stories About My Brother” was my favorite song on the extended clip ep for For All The Dogs. The thing though at the end of the day, is this beat sounds like reaching the pearly gates and being ushered into a permanent state of inner peace. Also, as much as I love the energy on the other song, the first verse here may be Drake’s best of the last three years, still. Mr. Williams evoked that.
2. “Michael Irvin” by Westside Gunn
Beat so fire Tyler jacked it for his own shit. If for whatever reason you’ve only heard this sample on the intro for Tyler, The Creator’s best album, welcome to the original. The most mafioso instrumental in Conductor’s arsenal has a strange sound that matches Westside Gunn’s voice like a gold grill matches gold framed Cartier glasses. Then when the clarinet-led (?) sonic sequence enters, all you can do is throw your hands up and bow to the genius.
1. “Terms and Conditions” by Boldy James
This song was the lead single to the Boldy album for a reason. It’s arguably the best beat Boldy has ever rapped on. Alchemist and Nicolas Craven both have an argument, but so the fuck does Conductor. It’s as spiritual as it is grimey, as potent as it is composed. What really takes this joint over the edge though is how much of a complete song it is. The beat is orchestrated with the perfect amount of space for Boldy to have a strong a set of verses as well as one of his most distinct hooks. Hearing him spit, “Fiends dancing to the beat of my drum was my favorite tune,” against Conductor’s pulsating splashes of percussion feels particularly euphoric.
Inside The Credits 045: Conductor Williams- The Playlists
Great post