The Heatmakerz

Born in Mandeville, Jamaica, Rsonist moved to the Bronx, New York at the age of four. Talking about his childhood, Rsonist told Genius, "My parents had reggae music – that's it. That's all I grew up listening to. Whether it was Beres Hammond, whether it was Garnett Silk, whether it was Bob Marley – whoever it was, it was just reggae music." After high school, Rsonist attended Howard University in Washington, D.C. While there, he also worked as a DJ and developed a friendship with Young Guru, who would go on to work with many of the top artists in hip-hop, most notably becoming Jay-Z's engineer for many years. Shortly into his tenure at the school, Rsonist was expelled from Howard University and forced to move back to The Bronx without any viable options and a newborn baby on the way. Rsonist soon made his way into beat making as a last resort. It was at this time that the name and the team of the Heatmakerz came about. "So people understand the dynamic of The Heatmakerz and why it's still called Heatmakerz, Heatmakerz was my team growing up," he explained to The Hip-Hop Museum. "Me, Thrilla, my cousin, a bunch of people I grew up with. Me and Thrilla were the only two that physically made music." Thrilla had bought an MPC and when he went out of town, he let Rsonist borrow it. During that time, Rsonist made two beats. Those beats eventually reached Todd Terry, a Brooklyn-based producer and DJ who was working with top artists at the time. Terry was intrigued and asked if he could purchase the tracks. "I made a joke and said, 'Give me a stack ($1,000) for each beat'," Rsonist told Genius. "He was like 'Aight, bet,' goes in the other room, goes in his safe, brings me back $2,000." Afterward, Terry asked for more beats, to which Rsonist replied that he lacked the equipment to do so. Terry then sent him $20,000 worth of gear to get him started. == Early career (2000–2007) ==

The Heatmakerz' first major label placement was the track "The C-Quel", which opened Canibus' 2000 album 2000 B.C. (Before Can-I-Bus) on Universal Records. That was followed up with Ghostface Killah's "Ice" off Bulletproof Wallets in 2001. According to Rsonist, the duo's breakthrough occurred after they made contact with Cam'ron's manager and used the connection to pass several beats along to Cam'ron himself. Rsonist continued writing and producing as a solo artist, but continued using the Heatmakerz moniker. == Rsonist solo (2007–present) ==

After Thrilla's departure, Rsonist continued to write and produce on various projects across the hip-hop world for the next decade plus under the Heatmakerz brand. He made an album with Lil Wayne and Juelz Santana titled ''I Can't Feel My Face'' which was never released. Over this time, The Heatmakerz distinct sound was heard on various records including with artists Fat Joe, Asher Roth, Slaughterhouse, Jim Jones, the Diplomats, Cam'ron, and Joell Ortiz. In 2015, Desiigner's hit single "Panda", which went on to reach number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop songs, was recorded in Rsonist's Diamond District Studios in midtown Manhattan. The following year, the Fat Joe and Remy Ma single featuring French Montana's "All the Way Up", which reached number four on the US Rhythmic Billboard chart was also recorded at his studio. Rsonist became known as the main producer of 2011 XXL Freshman class member and fellow Bronx native, Fred the Godson. The pair released critically acclaimed tapes, even teaming up with Joell Ortiz for the album Gorilla Glue in 2019. In 2019, Rsonist was the executive producer on the Jim Jones album El Capo, on which he also produced every song. Jones talked about the creation of the album with Revolt, saying: "I got this thing where every night before I walk out, the last 30 minutes of the session, I always record a verse. I'm like, 'Yo, pull that up. Let me record before I leave out.' This [album] is the result of all of those records I recorded before I left the studio. Rsonist called me one day like, 'You got a lot of these records with dope verses on them. You might as well finish these records. Let's do a project. The Heatmakerz regularly produce songs for Joell Ortiz, including his group work with fellow Slaughterhouse founder, KXNG Crooked. In 2024, The Heatmakerz wrote for the J. Cole album Might Delete Later on the song "Ready '24" which featured Cam'ron. In 2025, The Heatmakerz were back lending the classic New York sound to the Joey Badass single "Pardon Me". The Heatmakerz are currently continuing to collaborate with Joey Badass on upcoming releases, contributing to the Game's Documentary 3, working with Jim Jones on El Capo 2, some new work with Bishop Lamont, as well as a new M.O.P. project, he confirmed to Hot 97. Rsonist then went on to state: "When I made 'Dipset Anthem,' I was in my mother's basement, broke, and channeling that raw aggression into the music. Now, I'm in a different place in life, and my music reflects how I'm living and feeling in the moment. I never create tracks with a specific artist in mind; I make what feels right, and whoever connects with it, does." ==Discography==