Popping Up: Becky G

Becky G Pops Up

Popping Up is our recurring look at new artists making noise on the music landscape. Because, hey - Madonna and Britney were once unknown, too.

Dr. Luke is arguably the biggest producer in pop music, so when he hand-selects an artist to mentor and develop, there’s gotta be something big there - even if it comes in a small package. The superproducer’s latest protege is Becky G, a multi-talented singer, rapper and songwriter who’s already got the talent and experience of industry vets twice her age. (She’s 15, for the record.) Having already lent her vocal chops with Cody Simpson and Cher Lloyd on singles, and with a will.i.am collaboration featured prominently on the new Hotel Transylvania soundtrack, Becky is poised to break big.

Becky’s been hard at work in the studio working on an as-yet untitled album (no details on that yet), while continuing to satiate her fans’ appetite with YouTube covers (her big break was when a label exec saw her cover of Kanye West and Jay-Z‘s “Otis”), so we sat down with her to find out more about her story. Watch the interview up top, and head below for more info about Becky G, plus her video for “Problem (The Monster Remix)” featuring will.i.am.

FULL NAME: Becky Gomez

AGE: 15

HOMETOWN: Inglewood, California

SOUNDS LIKE: Her collaborator Cher Lloyd, with a little bit of Ke$ha‘s pop-rap swag and vocal chops like Selena Gomez

INFLUENCES: Becky cites “powerful women in the industry” as being important sources of inspiration for her: She lists off Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez, Christina Aguilera and Selena. But looking through her YouTube covers of tracks by Kanye West, Jay-Z and Frank Ocean, it’s clear that there’s also a pervasive hip-hop influence in her sound.

AUSPICIOUS BEGINNINGS: After Dr. Luke saw one of Becky G’s covers, he demanded to meet her in person. “From what Luke told me,” Becky explains, “he was instantly, like, ‘Oh my God, I need to meet this girl.’ So literally the day after he saw the music video, I met him. And he was like, ‘I’m in.’”

HER SONGWRITING STYLE: As impressively precocious as she is, Becky recognizes that there’s still a lot to learn, and when she’s in the studio, she’s trying to inhale as much new information as possible. “I like to think of myself as a little sponge,” Becky says. “When I’m in sessions with [Luke] or his team - his producers and writers - I’m always taking things in.”

A “MONSTER” REMIX: A longtime fan of animated films, she says a career highlight (so far) was watching the new film Hotel Transylvania and hearing her song with will.i.am, “Problem (The Monster Remix)” featured in the film. “It was really cool to go to the screening for the first time and to watch the movie - and then my song! My voice in the theater, and seeing all these people bopping their heads to the music.” Given the track she’s currently on, it probably won’t be the last time.

What do you think of Becky G? Tell us in the comments below, or on Twitter and Facebook.