In Metro we trust.

Before he sent the world on a wild goose hunt over who are his most-trusted confidantes, producer Metro Boomin was an aspiring beatsmith hoping to one day get the belief of musicgoers around the globe. So with a dream and his momma’s Camry, young Leland Wayne looked forward and never turned back. Now the wunderkind of St. Louis is a marquee act with a story to tell and on this month’s issue of The Fader, appropriately called “The Producers Issue,” Metro does just that in his first-ever cover story.

“I started making beats when I was 13,” he says in the in-depth feature write-up. “And I’m about to be 23. That’s 10 years. Between the ages of 13 and as he approaches 23, Metro travelled a journey that went from toying with production softwares like Fruity Loops to gaining OJ da Juiceman’s ear, producing for Gucci Mane and striking a hit with Future on “Karate Chop,” dropping out of Morehouse College to land on high-profile works for the likes of Drake and Kanye West. Not bad for a 10 year stretch, huh. “And it’s just now starting to pay off,” he points out.

In addition to piecing together his story, Metro, whose name is credited to da Juiceman (He’d always say ‘I’m booming!’,” says the producer) and St. Louis’ subway system, also divulges into a few other topics, like the friendly competition between his peers Future and Young Thug. “Somebody gotta be number one,” he says about the brewing competitiveness between the two stars. “Neither one of them are the type to settle for number two. I feel like they both motivate each other, and it’s good for the culture and the music — just as long as it stay at that.”

Elsewhere, Metro gets serious on the topic of his late friend and rising Atlanta star, Bankroll Fresh.

Last month, Fresh was shot to death outside a recording studio in Atlanta. Days later, Metro wrote a heartwarming tribute on his Instagram page. “People die, people get murdered all the time. But Fresh? How can somebody so live die,” he asks. “He’d be at my house like, ‘Man, once I start getting my show money up, I’m pulling up right back here, I’mma just start giving you money. Ten thousand dollars, fifteen thousand dollars—boom boom boom!’”

For more on Metro Boomin’s Fader cover story, head here. Also, as a good bonus, check out Uncle Murda had to tell REVOLT about Metro’s ubiquitous drop, which originally debuted on his 2015 street sweeper “Right Now.”