Photo credit: Murda Beatz/Instagram

‘How They Spend It’ is a column that explores what money means to successful people. This week, 25 year-old record producer, songwriter and artist Murda Beatz talks about his path to financial literacy.

While he played Coachella for the first time earlier this year—”Biggest stage I played on yet”—the Canadian producer Murda Beatz had yet to perform in Toronto before his lively set at VELD Music Festival with a little help from Canadian rappers Booggz and Baka Not Nice.

“Coachella was lit. I’m from Fort Erie. I’m from a town of 40,000 people. So I got the chance to play in front of 60,000 people at Coachella,” says Murda Beatz about his biggest show to date. “That’s two times the amount of people where I’m from.”

Still, growing up just outside the city meant he always looked up to the music scene in Toronto. He was supposed to play in Toronto last year with rapper G-Eazy’s tour but a last minute cancellation meant the performance never made its way to the city, making his performance at VELD this year all that sweeter as his first-ever in the city.

Apart from Coachella, the Ontario-born producer and DJ—who built his career off producing records with Atlanta-based Migos—says his best shows are always in his home country. His “littest” show was at Western University’s homecoming, where a man broke down a barricade, and he’s also played Ottawa Bluesfest. “Everytime I play in Canada, it’s literally the craziest crowd ever,” he says.

With early success in his career at a young age, Murda Beatz is now maturing into his own. For the next phase of his career, he would like to focus on more performing, collaborative albums and an upcoming North American tour with A$AP Ferg this fall.

Bay Street Bull caught up with Murda Beatz just before his set at VELD to talk about his fiances, his first big splurge and the power of money.

What did you do with your first big cheque?

I blew it.

What did you buy with that cheque? 

I bought a car, a laptop, all my VSTs and plugins to make beats, and jewellery.

Do you have a financial advisor now? 

Yeah.

How has your mindset about budgeting changed?

I don’t know if it is the right way to do it but I feel like everyone has to experience spending money. You don’t want to go through life regretting [not spending] and something happens to your wellness. You made all this money in your lifetime and you can’t even get a chance to have fun and spend it. You gotta enjoy life—tomorrow’s never promised.

What are the most expensive things you’ve bought? 

Investment property, my Lamborghini and probably this watch [from Richard Mille, seen in above image].

What have you learned? 

I’m doing my best. I feel like I’m growing up now. I spent a lot of money on jewellery and all that stuff but I’m over it now. Just being smarter [with money], growing up and making more property investment. I’m playing monopoly now.

What’s the best financial advice you’ve gotten? 

Always put away money for taxes.

If  you had to give financial advice to someone, what would you say?

Save money for taxes. Every big cheque you get, put away 30-50 percent of it for taxes. The rest, you should split between investments and savings.

Any closing thoughts on money? 

Money is the root of all evil.

Why do you say that? 

It brings a lot of bad stuff. Money’s good [to have]. People say money doesn’t bring you happiness but when you have a lot of money, it leaves you comfort and freedom—and freedom is happiness. I want to be free and do whatever the fuck I want to do. If I want to go fly to Fiji tomorrow, I can to do it.  That’s happiness. That’s good but it’s evil too because the more money you have, the more problems you have. Problems you never though of ever having like close people and family turning on you. It all comes with it.

This interview has been edited and condensed.