Exclusive: Beyonce & Rihanna Writer Prince Charlez Bares All On New Music

Published: Saturday 18th Feb 2017 by David
prince-charlez

That Grape Juice‘s latest feature ‘Meet The Makers’ spotlights the gifted names who engineer the spectacle in all facets of entertainment. Music, TV, and beyond.

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Today we celebrate the work of Prince Charlez, the brains behind Rihanna’s ‘ANTI’-lifted single ‘Needed Me.’

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Our conversation with Charlez takes place as he celebrates the release of his new project ‘Black & Gold‘, an eight-track set now available to spin here.

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Of course, there’s little doubt that the project will attract the attention of Rihanna loyalists who have him to thank for the aforementioned Grammy nominated number ‘Needed Me.’

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I started out when I was 16 and began working with the producer Red One after a friend introduced me to him. As a child  I was fortunate enough to be around great writers and that inspired me to pick up the pen myself.

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Once in One’s camp, Charles penned numbers for Usher’s sixth studio album ‘Raymond v. Raymond’ making him one of the industry’s most sought after scribes.

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Then, keen to find inspiration to write fresh hits, the singer/songwriter made his way to Europe to take a break from the demands of the fast-paced industry.

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While there, he stood as one of several up & coming R&B songwriters invited to pen material for Beyonce who, after witnessing the rise of Electronic Dance Music on the charts, sought to create fresh opportunities for lyricists in her genre.

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I was in Milan when I got a call asking me to return to Los Angeles to work on Beyonce’s self-titled surprise album. I was sent the instrumental for the song which would become Ring Off. Bey didn’t like the first one so my publisher asked me to send another one. At first I was discouraged because the practice of writing songs and trying to get them onto albums is tough because there are a million other writers submitting songs for the same albums. However, I  gave it another shot, freestyled over the beat, sent it back and got a call from Big Jon (Beyonce’s A&R collaborator) who told me that he wanted it. That’s how ‘Ring Off’ happened. I didn’t think about the songwriting process because I  wanted to express myself. My mother went through it so I wrote something that I know she’d would have appreciated. It’s a song encouraging women to stand up for they are and to fight what they believe in. Roc Nation heard it and so they called me in to work with Rihanna.

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Your thoughts?

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    • Lana Del Fan February 18, 2017

      OH MY GOD! Elfixlsndjdoskfjfh. I WAS AT WORK. THANK YOU SOOO MUCH ( I was just thinking about where the hell she’s been the other day. I Hope it slays!!)

    • Lana Del Fan February 18, 2017

      Hes pretty. The video isn’t is cute. BUT the song is a resounding No. Not sure if he wants to Be MJ or RiRi. I’ll listen to his second single , but if it’s wack I’m over it.

  1. Kyle February 18, 2017

    Seems cool & talented!

    • Welp… February 19, 2017

      What language is he speaking? I couldn’t seem to figure it out

      • Career Ender February 19, 2017

        he’s speaking flop language, hes gonna flop like Elijah Blake, Trey Songz, Rita Ora, Chris BRown, Usher,August Alsina, Camila Cabello, Nicole sherjsfhgfhbvhs etc.

  2. Fashion Icon February 18, 2017

    And you have me thinking all this times that Beyoncé wrote Ring off…thought she was telling her mother story…
    The desilusion i am facing…
    So she basically the same in the studio as Rih darling

    • B2B February 18, 2017

      Not at all BEYONCÉ can sang for starters. Stop trying to put Rih on that level when home girl is nothing more than a cute bop… STOP IT in 2017!

      • Fashion Icon February 18, 2017

        As i wrote above “In the studio” i did not say on stage

      • Career Ender February 19, 2017

        @Discount and Streaming Icon
        .
        Beyonce STILL SINGS in the studio, and without enhancement from drugs, ganja and alcohol too

    • BYE February 18, 2017

      Beyoncé has been writing and arranging songs since the beginning of her career she’s also always been open to hearing people’s songs, making them her own or keeping them the same if they’re bomb enough. The main job is to correlate the story to your life, Beyoncé mother was cheated on and got 2 side kids to clearly the song correlated to her life a lot, which is why she probably wanted it

  3. Credits February 18, 2017

    There is no denying the talent of an accomplished songwriter but what is that gibberish he released? What is he saying and what does it mean?

    • Career Ender February 19, 2017

      LOL

  4. Jackx February 18, 2017

    yall not gonna post about Selena and Kygo new song it ain’t me???

    • Abel Minaj February 18, 2017

      Who and who??

  5. The Wig Snatcher February 18, 2017

    I really like his story. I hope people find inspiration in his journey.

  6. Melanin God February 18, 2017

    “Bitty” is a certified mess I don’t understand how he can write all these bops and then do that bs.

  7. mikey February 18, 2017

    There the Beehive was thinking Beyonce wrote Ring Off…lmaoooooo

  8. Your Mother February 18, 2017

    Ring Off is trash and so is Bitty. LMAO

  9. tori February 18, 2017

    …Buuutttt….I thought “Ring Off” was written for and about Tina, Matthew and Tina’s new husband. I thought it was about her hard marriage but finding new love…I guess she wanted to make the song “personal”.

  10. Grapejuice fan February 18, 2017

    That song though ? Trying to be a thug but clearly a queen smh

  11. King B February 19, 2017

    Needed Me has Rihanna in its writing credits. But according to this, she asked the producer to write it, and she just recorded the song. I guess Sia wasn’t lying. But at least, she was there during writing session?

    • Musickidd February 19, 2017

      Artists “buy” into getting credit in order to insure they get royalty check. This is why writing your own material and owning your masters is so important over all as an artist

    • Career Ender February 19, 2017

      LOL

  12. Sahsa_T February 19, 2017

    GURL!!!!! NO MA’AM!!!!

    • Career Ender February 19, 2017

      lol

  13. VOTERS SAW THROUGH THE PROPAGANDA February 19, 2017

    So Beyonce’s personal album was made picking from housands of writers submissions, so she can “arrange” the vocals and get Songwriting Credits.

    • Career Ender February 19, 2017

      why not comment under your usual username you coward ghetto trick?

      • VOTERS SAW THROUGH THE PROPAGANDA February 19, 2017

        Oops, did I hit a nerve LMAOOOOO

      • Career Ender February 19, 2017

        you cannot hit anything besides the last position in your class thats why the only thing you posess in your life is your birth certificate ONLY
        .
        hold this L and go think about your life full of failures and poverty!

  14. Career Ender February 19, 2017

    I love Needed Me but Live she didn;t do it justice
    .
    i see she was using Beyonce’s echoes(the ones Navi dragged Beyonce for using live and she still failed)
    .
    she sucks live but she has good music

  15. Jamie February 19, 2017

    So basically what dude said was the process of writing for Rihanna is better and more lucrative than for Beyoncé. Where have I heard this before?…Oh, Soundz, the producer when he was talking about how Beyoncé takes a percentage of a song she never even wrote–how she just changes a few words and gets songwriting credit. Then that was the last we heard of him .smh That’s why payback ate her last Sunday.

    • Career Ender February 19, 2017

      you are as irrelevant as your gravatar despite being the same age as Madonna (but in visiting this site)
      .
      .
      bye irrelevant

      • Jamie February 19, 2017

        I’m just as irrelevant to you as you are to me because we don’t know one another, and personally judging by your intellect or lack thereof for that matter, I don’t even care to know you. Facts are facts! She didn’t write anything but that tired “Thank You Speech” she thought she was going to use for ALBUM, SONG, and RECORD OF THE YEAR…Those of which she lost on last Sunday. Remember?

      • Career Ender February 19, 2017

        riddle me why your paragraphs keeps expanding, such anger bxtch sxch angerrrrr!!!!!
        .
        you know me and you care about me!!!!!!
        .
        to me you’re nothing just like your faves existence to the GP
        .
        seetheeeeee!!!!!

  16. Insider.tru February 19, 2017

    Prince Charles is a song stealer him & captain cuts stole the melody off
    Another writer she called all them out on instagram??? Y r u not reporting on that??? Huh

  17. Career Ender February 19, 2017

    the lessers are mad and seething!!!

  18. Career Ender February 19, 2017

    i see Bruno Mars is outselling ANTI already

    • VOTERS SAW THROUGH THE PROPAGANDA February 19, 2017

      NEWSFLASH!!!!
      Marketingyonce submitted songs in the pop. Rock, country and rap field and lost all those categories.

      • Career Ender February 19, 2017

        you are still irrelevant in a blog
        .
        bye keke

  19. Career Ender February 19, 2017

    and by the way, there is this delusional rabid fanbase who are running loose and wild like hyenas , meanwhile they faves is nothing but a struggling discount artist (smoke and mirrors)
    .
    i am ready for them

    • VOTERS SAW THROUGH THE PROPAGANDA February 19, 2017

      The hive claimed lemonade was a master piece but I just found out it lost the Grammy for Music Film, Smokeandmirrorsyonce didn’t even win that.

      • Career Ender February 19, 2017

        random bxtch bye!

      • Thetrealist February 19, 2017

        Rollingstone and every other outlet, including adele said that it was a masterpiece. That’s whats wrong with dumb muthafluckas today, can’t be happy for no one. ya’ll take that whole navy and beyhive s*** to serious. I love both bey and rih, but bey is the better vocalist to my ears but rih def make good music.

  20. XYZ February 19, 2017

    Oh that song’s really not good…and why is he trying to do. in that Video? Strutting around like Rihanna and trying To be a gangster parallely?

    Whatever – good luck

  21. VOTERS SAW THROUGH THE PROPAGANDA February 19, 2017

    Beyonce is soo amazing and creative, she just open her email account and pick her favourite songs, then “arrange” the vocals and that’s it, her name is on the writing credits, soo ethical and honest.

  22. Career Ender February 19, 2017

    its 2017 and your faves still hasnt sold Platinum

  23. Career Ender February 19, 2017

    BTW, who’s that Santana old fragile dried out biltong looking as$?
    .
    what claim to fame does he have?
    .
    what’s his networth and his achievemnet?
    .
    its a good thing he apologised for his words like all other has-beens and never was’s always do
    .
    #BowDown

    • Jasmine February 19, 2017

      That “has been” is a TWO time AOTY Grammy winner(if you include his contribution on Lauryn Hill’s album) an award your fave has failed to win three times in a row.he has won 8 Grammy awards in one night a record he holds with MJ.He is selling artist who has sold over 100 million records during the 40+ years of his career. Ask more question since you are clueless as usual

      • Jasmine February 19, 2017

        A diamond selling*

      • Career Ender February 19, 2017

        we still don’t know him nor his songs, what kind of a slaying non slayer????

  24. Career Ender February 19, 2017

    this bxtch Jasmine looks over worked and pressed , stay mad fat as$!

    • Jasmine February 19, 2017

      Lmao I’m the one that’s pressed when you’re the one that’s leaving multiple comments on this thread all because I answered your question.
      I wouldn’t expect you to know his music because his music doesn’t cater to peasants with an IQ that’s lower than their shoe size like you.

  25. Career Ender February 19, 2017

    so this ho Jasmine is worked over some Mexican-American has-been who had 1 very successful era in their entire resume
    .
    more flops than success
    .
    no wonder we don’t know them
    .
    bye!

  26. junior February 19, 2017

    WTF was that!? Naw man! i mean your a talented writer but that song dude, is just bad! video idea was cool but still just bad man! best of luck dude! No Bueno!

  27. Junior in Jamaica February 20, 2017

    Some people should stay behind the pen…OMG what?

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