Noah James Shebib (born March 31, 1983), better known by his stage name 40, is a Canadian record producer, songwriter, record executive, and former child actor from

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. He is best known for his production work with fellow Toronto native

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals and creatures * A male duck * Drake (mythology), a term related to and often synonymous with dragon People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family ...

, having extensive involvement on the entirety of Drake's discography since 2008. Shebib's production style, often described as

downtempo Downtempo (or downbeat) is a broad label for electronic music that features an atmospheric sound and slower beats than would typically be found in dance music. Closely related to ambient music but with greater emphasis on rhythm, the style may ...

and ambient, has become synonymous with Drake's sound. His other production credits include

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer and songwriter. A classically trained pianist, Keys began composing songs at the age of 12 and was signed by Columbia Records at 15. After d ...

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...

Action Bronson Ariyan Arslani (born December 2, 1983), professionally known as Action Bronson, is an American rapper and television presenter. Born and raised in Queens, he released his debut mixtape ''Bon Appetit ..... Bitch!!!!!'' in January 2011 and indepe ...

, and Jamie Foxx. Shebib and Drake are two of the three co-founders of the

OVO Sound OVO Sound (short for October's Very Own) is a Canadian independent record label, founded in 2012 by rapper Drake, producer 40, and manager Oliver El-Khatib. The label operated as a subsidiary of Warner Music Group until 2022, after which it ...

label, which was launched as an imprint of

Warner Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...

in 2012. Shebib has won two

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

s from 20 nominations.

Early life

Noah James Shebib is the son of Lebanese Canadian film director

Donald Shebib Donald Everett Shebib (27 January 1938 – 5 November 2023) was a Canadian film and television director. Shebib was a central figure in the development of English Canadian cinema who made several short documentaries for the National Film Board ...

and actress Tedde Moore, who is known for appearing in the 1983 film ''

A Christmas Story ''A Christmas Story'' is a 1983 Christmas comedy film directed by Bob Clark and based on the 1966 book '' In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash'' by Jean Shepherd, with some elements from his 1971 book ''Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories ...

''; she was pregnant with him during the production of that film. On his mother's side, he is the grandson of actor and educator Mavor Moore, the great-grandson of Canadian theatre figure Dora Mavor Moore, and the great-great-grandson of Scottish-born economist James Mavor. His father is of partial Irish descent. He has three older sisters, Zoe, Suzanna, and Chaunce. As a child he attended school at Royal St. George's College and Humberside Collegiate Institute.

Acting career

Shebib began as a

child actor The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage, television, or in film, movies. An adult who began their acting career as a child may also be called a child actor, or a "former child actor". Closely associa ...

, playing roles in television shows and films. His first role was in the 1996 "Go Eat Worms" episode of the '' Goosebumps'' television series. He also played a consistent role on the

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's English-language television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in t ...

-winning television series, '' Wind at My Back''. His best-known role came in his teen years, when he was featured as one of the lead males in the critically acclaimed '' The Virgin Suicides''. He also had smaller roles in '' The Last Don'' and '' Perfect Pie''; the latter was his last movie before he retired from acting.

Music career

Early in Noah's career, before he started crafting beats, he DJ'd under the name DJ Chilly and performed alongside MC Elite (Everett MacLean). Shebib eventually made the shift from DJ to music producer, working with local Toronto artists like Empire, Knamelis, Stolenowners, and Christopher Morales, and Saukrates. He earned the nickname "40 Days & 40 Nights" (which was later reduced to "40") early on in his career, as he would work in the studio throughout the night, with no sleep. He began working with then '' Degrassi'' star

Aubrey Graham Aubrey Drake Graham (born October 24, 1986) is a Canadian rapper, singer, and actor. Regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, he is credited with popularizing R&B sensibilities in hip-hop music. Drake first gained recognition ...

(Drake) in 2005. He was shown producing with Drake on ''Degrassi Unscripted''. When Shebib first started working with Drake, he was originally just a recording and mixing engineer, providing no songwriting or production input at all. However, after the third day of work, Shebib decided to build an exclusive relationship with Drake, proclaiming that they were "going to take over the world together." Shebib's big break came in 2009, when he executive produced Drake's mixtape '' So Far Gone'' with Toronto-based producer,

Boi-1da Matthew Jehu Samuels (born October 12, 1986), known professionally as Boi-1da (a play on Boy Wonder) is a Canadian record producer and songwriter based in Toronto, Ontario. He is an in-house producer for Drake's OVO Sound label and has prod ...

. He recorded and mixed every song off the mixtape, and also produced a few notable tracks such as "The Calm", "Houstatlantavegas", "Bria's Interlude" and " Successful", all of which ended up defining Drake's sound going forward.Noah "40" Shebib interview on Take Care by Drake
"GQ". Accessed on August 14, 2013. He also worked on Drake's debut album ''

Thank Me Later ''Thank Me Later'' is the debut studio album by the Canadian rapper Drake. It was released on June 15, 2010, by Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records, and Universal Motown Records. Production for the album took place at various record ...

'', and second album ''

Take Care ''Take Care'' is the second studio album by Canadian rapper Drake (musician), Drake. It was released on November 15, 2011, by Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Republic Records. The album features guest appearances from the Weekn ...

''.Noah Shebib Credits
"AllMusic". August 14, 2013. On the latter, Shebib co produced almost every song, alongside his usual duties of recording and mixing the entire album. Shebib also produced the song "I'm Single" from

's " No Ceilings" mixtape, " Un-Thinkable (I'm Ready)" for

and " Demonstrate" for JoJo. Shebib, along with Drake and Oliver El-Khatib, founded the OVO record label in 2012. Music produced under the imprint is uploaded to the label's blog site for streaming, before the album is officially released. One example is the single " Marvins Room", which was first posted to the blog site five days after its conception, before it was even slated to be a single off the album. Recently Shebib has helped produce Drake's newer material, co producing the lead single " Started from the Bottom", among other records. Shebib also worked on Drake's third album, ''

Nothing Was the Same ''Nothing Was the Same'' is the third studio album by the Canadian rapper Drake (musician), Drake. It was released on September 24, 2013, through OVO Sound, Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records, and Republic Records. Work on the record ...

'',Drake's New Album
"The Huffington Post". Accessed on August 14, 2013. his fourth studio album '' Views'', and ''

Scorpion Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the Order (biology), order Scorpiones. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by a pair of Chela (organ), grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward cur ...

''.

Production style

Shebib has been instrumental in creating

's music, and together their "atmospheric, brooding sound has shaped the landscape of hip hop moving forward."Noah '40' Shebib: Recording Drake's 'Headlines'
"Sound On Sound". Accessed on August 14, 2013. Shebib's production is described as "sparse, ambient, slow-jam-like tracks dominated by brooding synths, minimalist piano or guitar parts, stripped-down, often muffled drums, and cinematic atmospheric treatments." An example is the song " Marvins Room", where Shebib mixed the record so that it is "very dark and quiet and muddy and with the vocals cutting through like a razor" and is notorious for being heavy on the low end.

Personal life

In 2005, at the age of 22, Shebib was diagnosed with

multiple sclerosis Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelinthe insulating covers of nerve cellsin the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to Action potential, transmit ...

.Noah "40" Shebib: The rap on MS
"National MS Society". Accessed on August 14, 2013. His personal story is prominently featured on the National Multiple Sclerosis Society website, where he outlines his experiences with the disease, hoping that by creating awareness and "improving connections and knowledge about MS, we can end the disease". His mother was also diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. During the last weeks of his father's life, he and Zella Wolofsky were his dad's primary caregivers. He was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Laws (LLD) from

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

on October 12, 2022.

Discography

Singles produced

Awards and nominations

Grammy Awards

The

s are awarded annually by the

National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. (NARAS), doing business as The Recording Academy, is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is widely kno ...

. , - , rowspan="1",

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, ''

'' , Best Rap Album , , - , ,

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, '' Loud'' , Album of the Year , , - , rowspan="2",

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, ''

'' , Best Rap Album , , - , " The Motto" , rowspan="3", Best Rap Song , , - , rowspan="3",

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

, " Started from the Bottom" , , - , "

Fuckin' Problems "Fuckin' Problems" (also censored as "Problems" and titled on the clean version "F**kin' Problems") is a song by American rapper ASAP Rocky, featuring Canadian rapper Drake and fellow American rappers 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar. It was release ...

(Explicit)" , , - , ''

'' , Best Rap Album , , - , rowspan="2",

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, " 0 to 100 / The Catch Up" , Best Rap Song , , - , ''

'' , Album of the Year , , - , rowspan="1",

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, '' If You're Reading This It's Too Late'' , Best Rap Album , , - , rowspan="3",

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

, '' Views'' , Album of the Year , , - , "

Work Work may refer to: * Work (human activity), intentional activity people perform to support themselves, others, or the community ** Manual labour, physical work done by humans ** House work, housework, or homemaking ** Working animal, an ani ...

" ,

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without re ...

, , - , " Come and See Me" , Best R&B Song , , - , rowspan="4",

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, ''

'' , Album of the Year , , - , rowspan="3", " God's Plan" , Record of the Year , , - , Song of the Year , , - , Best Rap Song , , - ,

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, " No Guidance" , Best R&B Song , , -

References

{{authority control 1983 births Canadian hip-hop record producers Canadian male child actors Canadian male television actors Canadian people of British descent Canadian people of Irish descent Canadian people of Lebanese descent Canadian people of West Asian descent Canadian people of Scottish descent Canadian people of Swiss descent Grammy Award winners Living people Male actors from Toronto Musicians from Toronto OVO Sound artists People with multiple sclerosis Academy of Art University alumni Canadian people with disabilities