RL Grime

Los Angeles' producer Henry Steinway, a member of the collective WeDidIt with djs Shlohmo and Ryan Hemsworth, began as Clockwork with the Martian tribal single Ayoo (2011), followed by the similar Squad Up (2012) and by the sinister polka Titan (2012), all in the electro/house mode. Under the new moniker RL Grime, he established himself as an innovator of the wonky genre with the single Die 4 Me (2011) that mixed an upbeat melody, pitch-shifted vocals, ethereal drones, and trap-tinged hard-hitting beats, included in the EP Clipz (2011), followed by the club hit Trap on Acid (2012), with the bass melody reminiscent of LMFAO's hit Sexy and I Know It (2011). RL Grime pioneered the "chilltrap" sound with the EPs Grapes (2012) and High Beams (2013), containing the clownish Pockets and Heard Me and especially the feverish quasi-dub Shells, and was then lumped with the "future bass" movement after the albums Void (2014), torn between trap and electro, and Nova (2018), and even more varied collection, which includes one of his most emotional singles, Reims (2017), with stately, symphonic electronic drones and beats.