What was your inspiration for "100 Keys" by Big Sean?
Hilton: It was just really a session as usual. Brian started the session and sent it to me in Atlanta. As it was getting done, Sean said that he wanted to add Rick Ross and Pusha T. He was looking to add some street edge to the song.
Brian: It came, organically. The inspiration derived from our upbringing in Detroit and our advancement from one point to the next. Big Sean was one of the writers on the record, as well, so he also drew from his experiences.
How did you get the opportunity to work with Big Sean? And how was your experience working with him?
H: We've been working with Sean since 2006. We met him through a mutual friend by the name of "Jay John Henry." Sean said, "Yeah, we working with Kanye," and we just took it and ran with it. He didn't have any deal, just the promise of Kanye. He came through and showed Brian pictures of him with the Rocafella chain. Sean was going over to Brian's house and that's where things got really cooked up. He inked his deal with G.O.O.D. Music, then he took four songs that we produced into a meeting with Def Jam and signed his deal.
B: Jay John, who's an affiliate of mine, brought him to the studio in Detroit. He was there, checking out tracks for about two days. We asked him to rap and then, from there, we just began to create.
What are you working on, currently?
H: Mike Posner's new album, Sky High. We're also working with Karmin, the YouTube sensation. And Big Sean; he's already working on his next album. We're also doing alot of stuff in Nashville. ASCAP has their annual Pop Music workshop, and they selected me to come out here, so I'm working with some great writers.
B: We're just working on building our catalog.
Where are you from, originally?
H: We're from Detroit.
How did you come up with the name WrighTrax?
H: Well, our last name is Wright. We chose WrighTrax Productions as our company name. "Wright" means "craftsmen." So, it's like a play on words. You know, we write tracks.
Who is your musical mentor and why?
H: Angelo Bond. He wrote alot of songs for Motown back in the day. In terms of mentor - like going to talk to someone - I would say Angelo. I also look up to George Martin, J Dilla, Timbaland, Quincy Jones, The Neptunes, Raphael Saadiq, The Beatles and any other great record producer.
B: I would definitely have to say Quincy Jones and Pharrell Williams because of how they are heavily involved in their projects. They have a visual approach to their music, which is similar to how we work.
What was your first introduction into the music industry?
H: Before we started producing, we were artists. We were rapping and shopping our music locally. Industry-wise, our first introduction was probably going to New York for the first time to a "Dynamic Producer" conference in 2005. We took a few meetings and participated in a couple of beat battles.
B: We got our official introduction into the music industry when we got a call from Kanye West to produce a track for Big Sean on the Can't Tell Me Nothing mixtape, back in 2007. We were about 19 or 20 years old then.
For more information on WrighTrax, follow them on Twitter at @WrighTrax, @deuceWT, and @b_wright.