Sign Language: 5 Songs You Didn't Know Ty Dolla $ign Wrote

Ty Dolla $ign's ascent to hook master and forefather of RnBass has been a gradual one, to the point that the first time hearing him on record could vary drastically from person to person. The truth is, you could have been hearing Ty's voice and not have even known it, his writing voice that is.

Ty's father, Tyrone Griffin Sr., was a session musician throughout the 90s, appearing in the fine print of many Death Row recordings for his trumpet playing, and Ty Jr. is certainly following in his footsteps. As is the standard in L.A., Dolla $ign is constantly collaborating in the studio, and while many of his contributions haven't been documented as well as they could have (mainly due to the lack of credits on mixtape cuts), Ty has found himself in the liner notes of a few notable hits.

Today, we're looking at five of his biggest looks. Some you may know, while others may surprise you. Either way, it's safe to say that this is only beginning of the many hits the singer will be involved in, and now his name is in the large print.

Trey Songz- Fumble

Songwriters: Alagy "Buddashampoo" Sanneh, Chuck Gibson, Darius "Phonix Beats" Barnes, Lady G, Nate Welch, Tremaine Neverson, Troy Taylor, Tyrone Griffin

Trey Songz has recently found a regular collaborator in Ty Dolla $ign, but he's been dipping into the singer's songwriting well since pretty early on. Their first (credited) work together was the 2012 ballad, "Fumble", and from one listen, it's clear that Dolla $ign's melodic sensibility and Trey's technical vocal skill are an unstoppable combination.

They've since appeared together on record for the cheater's anthem, "Dead Wrong", and Ty also contributed to the rap-informed melodies of the singer's Jeezy collaboration, "Ordinary", which feels the most indebted to Ty's established style. According to Dolla $ign, there's a couple more in the bank, and hopefully at least one will land on Free T.C.

YG- Really Be (Smokin N Drinkin) (Feat. Kendrick Lamar)

Songwriters: K. Jackson, T. Griffin, M. Barrow, B. Moore, K. Duckworth

If you're a newer Ty fan, you may know him primarily as a vocalist, but he's just as accomplished as an instrumentalist as he is a singer. Working with his team, D.R.U.G.S., Ty did most of the production on his early releases, as well as records from Chris Brown, Iggy Azalea, Pink Drugz, and more (You may also know the work of fellow co-founder DJ Dahi). He plays just about every instrument (guitar, bass, drums, MPC, etc.) except brass, or as he says, anything "that has to do with lips," which is interesting considering his father's history as a trumpet player.

The production credits on YG's My Krazy Life are often overlooked, as DJ Mustard is generally assumed to have helmed the majority of the record, but one of the album's most effective numbers was provided by none other than Ty Dolla $ign himself. While much of the beatwork we've heard from Ty over the years was either proto-Mustard snap ("Toot It & Boot It") or EDM-leaning R&B ("My Cabana") -- which again, he was very early on -- "Really Be" proves another aspect of his versatility, providing one of the grittiest beats on the album. He channels the G-Funk sounds his father contributed to in the 90s, and mixes them with a chunky Mustard bassline, building on the already established feel of the album so well, you probably didn't even realize they'd switched producers.

Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa- Young, Wild, And Free (Feat. Bruno Mars)

Songwriters: Calvin Broadus, Chris Brody Brown, Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine, Peter Hernandez & Cameron Thomaz (T. Bluechel, M. Borrow, T. Griffin, K. Jackson, N. Lee & M. Newman)

"Young, Wild, & Free" is an important moment for Ty Dolla $ign, as it earned him his first Grammy nomination. Judging by the arrangement of the credits, it seems that Ty was involved in the production of the song, rather than writing melodies (though if he was in the studio, it's quite possible Mars and the gang bounced some ideas off of him). Here he teams up with the Smeezingtons, the unfortunately named, but quite talented Mars-helmed songwriting team behind Cee-Lo's "Fuck You", as well as countless Bruno hits. The song was featured in Snoop and Wiz Khalifa's stoner comedy, Mac & Devin Go To High School, which also finds Ty among the credits, listed as "Smoker 1" (YG is "Smoker 2")

Chris Brown- Loyal (Feat. Lil Wayne & Tyga)

Songwriters: Bobby Brackins, Chris Brown, Dwayne Carter, Mark Kragen, Michael Ray Nguyen-Stevenson, Nicholas Balding, Tyrone Griffin

The first time hearing "Loyal" was confusing. How was it so good? And how was its infectious catchiness able to transcend the goofy misogyny at its core? The secret ingredient turned out to be Ty Dolla $ign. No stranger to writing great hooks, and getting away with some sometimes questionable views on women through his playful charisma, Dolla $ign was the only man for who could make the concept work.

Penning both the first verse and hook, another look at Ty's contributions leaves us wondering how we didn't see it sooner. The way Brown rides one note with measured staccato stabs is straight out of the Dolla $ign playbook, as is "white girl with some fake titties/ I took her to the Bay with me". 

The song was originally intended as either a Ty or a Bobby Brackins song (their accounts seem to vary), with the latter also contributing to the songwriting process, but Chris scooped it up and ran with it. While hearing Ty's rendition would be a dream come true, putting Brown's name on it gave the song some legs that Dolla's name didn't have at the time. It makes you think what may have happened if "Paranoid" had been shopped around.

Songwriters: Dallas Austin, Dave Longstreth, Elon Rutberg, Kanye West, Kirby Lauryen, Mike Dean, Noah Goldstein, Paul McCartney, Ty Dolla $ign

Kanye West is known to create a very collaborative environment in the studio, to the point that if you're brought in for a session, you could end up contributing to a huge number songs -- though whether they'll ever see the light of day is another question. This is exactly what happened with Ty Dolla $ign, who reported that he had worked on nine records with both Kanye West and Paul McCartney.

We first heard Ty Dolla $ign's voice on "Only One", with the singer contributing some heavily manipulated backing vocals to the ballad. When Rihanna, Kanye, and Paul's "FourFiveSeconds" dropped, many were eager to see the writing credits, and as usual, they were lengthy and full of surprises. This time, Ty was credited as a writer rather than a performer. 

As with most Ye-helmed songs, it's impossible to know what Ty put into the record, but we'd like to imagine that he and Paul bonded over their love of bass guitar, and maybe collaborated on some melodies and chord progressions, but we'll save that for the fan fiction.