Crada (producer)
| Crada | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Christian Kalla |
| Origin | Marktleuthen, Bavaria, Germany |
| Genres | Hip hop, RnB |
| Occupation(s) | Record producer |
| Instruments | Keyboard, drum machine |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Website |
crada |
Christian Kalla, better known as Crada,[1] is a Grammy-nominated German producer, instrumentalist, mix engineer and songwriter from Marktleuthen, Germany. He has produced and written for artists and groups such as Drake, Alicia Keys, Kid Cudi, Kendrick Lamar, Emeli Sande, Tinie Tempah, Conor Maynard, Clare Maguire, Jay Rock, Talib Kweli, The Lox, La Fouine, Tim Bendzko among others. He is currently one of the most sought-after producers in Europe.[2]
Early life
Born and raised in a small town in northern Bavaria, he started DJ-ing at the age of 13. By the age of 18, without any formal musical training, he started using the Magix Music Maker beat-making program. A few years later, he produced his first major record on the very same producing software. After leaving his hometown he studied music at Mannheim's University of Popular Music and Music Business, where he graduated in 2009.
Crada was influenced by many kinds of music including uk breakbeat records, rap and electronic music in general.[2]
Career
Crada was producing and djing in a three piece band called Sceptic from 2001–2005. After the group split up he went on to work with his mentor Ali Rasul (formerly front man of rap group Square One) on his 'Opium' Mixtape series. In 2005 Crada enrolled at Germany’s most prestigious music school Popakademie Baden-Württemberg in Mannheim. He also worked with several other German artists by that time including Samy Deluxe, Curse, Olli Banjo. Following the collaboration with Ali Rasul he was introduced to his managers DJ Kitsune and Markus Ernst who he worked with ever since. In 2008 Crada started doing several writing/production trips to New York. Crada's first US Single Release with The Lox is known to be a direct result of those sessions. In the following years he contributed music for the debut albums of Drake and Kid Cudi and gained international recognition.
Crada has received 1x US Platinum Award, 1x US Gold Award, 1x Platinum Award Germany, 3x Gold Awards Germany, 1x Platinum Award Canada, 2x Gold Award UK, and 2x Platinum Award France until 2012.
On November 20, 2013 Crada signed to Starting Lineup Music Publishing/BMG Rights Management (Berlin) for an exclusive worldwide publishing deal.[3]
In 2015 he announced via Facebook and Instagram that he became a voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.[4]
Discography (excerpts)
| Song | Artist | Credit | Album | Release Date | Charts | Certification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Left, Right" | Jordin Sparks | Writing/Production | Right Here, Right Now | May 2015 | #11 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums | - |
| "Left, Right (Snippet)" | Jordin Sparks | Writing/Production | ByeFelicia | November 2014 | - | - |
| Entire album (13 songs) | Cassandra Steen | Writing/Production/Executive Production | Spiegelbild | October 2014 | #34 Germany | - |
| "America", "Runaround", "Body Language" | Marlon Roudette | Writing/Production | Electric Soul | August 2014 | #16 Germany | - |
| "Unter die Haut" | Tim Bendzko feat. Cassandra Steen | Production/Keys/Arrangement/ | Unter die Haut (Single) | December 2013 | #16 Germany | - |
| "Tears Run Dry" | Tinie Tempah ft. Sway Clarke II | Production/Keys/Writing/Arrangement | Demonstration | November 2013 | #3 UK | Gold |
| "Programmiert", 'Vergiss es', 'Noch nie', 'Um jeden Preis', 'Give a little' | Tim Bendzko | Production/Keys/Writing/Arrangement/ | Programmiert (Single) | August 2013 | #21 Germany | - |
| "Ich steh' nicht mehr still", 'Ohne zurück zu sehen', 'Programmiert', 'Es geht wieder vorbei' | Tim Bendzko | Writing/Arrangement | Am seidenen Faden | May 2013 | #1 Germany | Platinum, 3x Gold |
| "See you soon' | Jake Miller (rapper) | Production/Writing/Arrangement | The roads less traveled | April 2013 | #6 US Billboard Charts | - |
| "Donne Moi" | La Fouine | Writing/Production/Keys | Drole De Parcours | February 2013 | #1 France | Platinum |
| "Drowning" | Conor Maynard | Writing/Production/Keys/Mix | Contrast | June 2012 | #1 UK | Silver |
| "Fly Away" | Talib Kweli | Writing/Production/Keys | Attack the Block | September 2012 | - | - |
| "My Everything" | Jonathan McReynolds | Production | Life Music | September 2012 | #4 US Billboard Gospel | - |
| "Das Leben Ist Sch..." | Die Orsons | Writing/Production/Keys | Das Chaos und die Ordnung | September 2012 | #12 Germany | - |
| "Morgen Fliegen", "Hands Up" | Culcha Candela | Writing/Production/Keys | Flätrate | November 2011 | #17 Germany, #25 Swiss, #44 Austria | Gold |
| "Freedom" | Clare Maguire | Writing/Production/Keys | Light After Dark | February 2011 | #7 UK | Silver |
| "Du Bout Des Doigts" | La Fouine ft. Leila | Writing/Production | La Fouine vs Laouni | February 2011 | #1 France | Platinum |
| "Diary of a Broke N***a" | Jay Rock ft. Kendrick Lamar | Writing/Production | Black Friday | November 2010 | - | - |
| "General" | Culcha Candela | Writing/Co-Production | Das Beste | October 2010 | #18 Germany | Platinum |
| "Fireworks" | Drake ft. Alicia Keys | Writing/Co-Production | Thank Me Later | June 2010 | #1 US, #1 Canada | Platinum, 2x Gold |
| "Hyyerr" | Kid Cudi ft. Chip tha Ripper | Writing/Production | Man on the Moon: The End of Day | August 2009 | #4 US Billboard | Gold |
| "Get That Paper" | The Lox | Writing/Production/Keys | No Security | May 2009 | #3 US Rap Albums | |
References
External links
- Official Crada website
- Crada at MySpace