Creating a record to top the success of Rihanna’s “Rude Boy” is a challenge Alex Da Kid is willing to take on. The 26-year-old producer has been crafting beats for the Bajan singer’s’ forthcoming album.

Rihanna may be in the early stages of recording her fifth opus, but she’s already calling on Alex to craft records to her liking. In the past, the London native made beats specifically thinking about the pop star’s tastes. “When I first started working with [Rihanna], I was doing that,” reveals Alex, who produced “Love the Way You Lie,” her collaboration with Eminem.

As time progressed, the “Airplanes” producer took a more organic approach. “I don’t try to directly mold [a record] to her ’cause you never really know what she’s thinking,” he tells staging-rapup.kinsta.cloud. “She wants input from other people . She doesn’t always want to come up with the ideas. She wants talented people to help come up with ideas. I just do what feels natural.”

Alex has teamed up with Rihanna on several records, none of which he can name nor describe yet. “We’ve done a couple,” he admits. “We’ve got a few good ones that will probably end up on the album.”

When brainstorming ideas to make a beat, Alex’s approach is rather simple. “[Artists] never want to do something like their last album; they want to do something fresh and new,” he states. “I just do whatever I feel like is a hot song.”

–Georgette Cline