Artist

WatchTheDuck

  • BASED IN LOS ANGELES, CA


Biography

“Everyone sees the Duck traveling smoothly on top of the water, but no one sees how hard he’s kicking under it to stay afloat.”

Hailing from Alabama, WatchTheDuck (WtD) boldly fuses electronic music and soul to deliver a unique and pioneering sound to the global music community. Led by founding/performing members Jesse Rankins (vocalist – aka the Voice) and Eddie Smith III (producer/DJ aka the Sound), WtD is a force to be reckoned with, demolishing genre boundaries and setting new benchmarks in modern music.

“Everyone sees the Duck traveling smoothly on top of the water, but no one sees how hard he’s kicking under it to stay afloat.”

Hailing from Alabama, WatchTheDuck (WtD) boldly fuses electronic music and soul to deliver a unique and pioneering sound to the global music community. Led by founding/performing members Jesse Rankins (vocalist – aka the Voice) and Eddie Smith III (producer/DJ aka the Sound), WtD is a force to be reckoned with, demolishing genre boundaries and setting new benchmarks in modern music.

WtD has experienced critical acclaim due to their fresh take on production. Atlanta hip-­‐hop legend T.I. tapped WtD to lend their talent to “Light Em Up,” the track Billboard hailed as ‘Paperwork’s’ “darkest and strongest cut.” The duo has also collaborated with Beyoncé, The Dream, SchoolBoy Q, Afrojack, Crookers, Young Jeezy, Tricky Stewart, Sevyn Streeter, and Pharrell Williams, among others.

Their remixes of Beyoncé’s “Partition” and “Drunk In Love” as well as T.I.’s “All About The Money” have garnered hundreds of thousands of plays on SoundCloud, where they have a loyal and substantial fan base. But the boys are not only masterminds in the studio, they’re also bosses in the live arena. Their high-­‐energy performances have captivated the festival stages of SXSW, Counterpoint, Number Fest, Parklife, BeatPatrol, AWOL, and TomorrowWorld.

Their tunes have also successfully crossed over to the silver screen, as their single “Poppin’ Off” was featured in the summer smash film ‘DOPE’ as well as in TV’s ‘Banshee,’ ‘One Life to Live,’ VH1’s ‘Love & Hip Hop New York,’ ESPN’s ‘First Take,’ and even in the video game ‘Saints Row IV. WtD is also celebrated for their distinct and lively music videos, which have garnered MTVu Freshman of the Week honors as well as Top 10 slots and performances on BET.

Having already accrued a stellar rolodex of releases including the ‘Black Music On Molly ReMixtape,’ ‘Anatidaephobia EP,’ and the critically acclaimed ‘Don’t Watch Me’ mixtape, WtD is primed to debut their groundbreaking EP on Dim Mak / Epic Records. Executive produced by Pharrell Williams, T.I., Steve Aoki and Tricky Stewart; ’The Trojan Horse’ will be released on November 20. The EP will also feature SchoolBoy Q, AfroJack, T.I. and a few more guest surprises.

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