Grammy-nominated producer 'Gitty' Gitelman on R&B, musical legacy and more

A Connecticut Yankee producer speaks passionately to The Tennessean about his recent success on Music Row.

Jeff "Gitty" Gitelman, 41, the creator in question, was actually born in Moldavia before moving to New Haven, Connecticut, as a child.

Thus, most stereotypical notions of what defines country music's culture and stylings mean little to the former member of the "psychedelic soul" band the Stepkids.

He's also both a 2019 nominee for Grammy's Album of the Year award for working on H.E.R.'s album "I Used to Know Her" and 2024 Record of the Year and Best R&B Song Grammy hopeful for R&B star Victoria Monét's "On My Mama."

His current Nashville calling card, Alabama-born teen upstart Jessie Murph and breakout country-crossover performer Jelly Roll's acoustic guitar-driven ballad "Wild Ones," is experiencing success similar to his award-nominated work with Monét.

Improvisation meets inspiration

"I grew up loving the Beatles and my father told me that the foundation of American music was in the blues, jazz and Gershwin's standards," Gitelman tells The Tennessean.

His appreciation for country music arrived not laden with stereotypes but understood as — alongside the blues and jazz — just another form of traditional American music.

Gitelman describes playing 2000s R&B sounds and aided by Atlanta's soulful '90s era pop dominance — Murph instinctually discovered the instrumental's bouncing pocket.

"Subconscious improvisation meets instantaneous inspiration," jokes the acclaimed producer.

Country culture-defined music with a rap-style flow

Dig deeper into the realms of how Gitelman's musical IQ influences his work in modern country and the gems of knowledge are profound.

He's keen to note that the average classic hit pop song contains 50 words. However, extend the definition of pop to an era where rap has redefined expectations, and two to three times as many words are involved in hit songs.

Place that definition into the context of phrasing and song styling by an artist like Murph, whose vocals are influenced by trap-style rap and timeless country songs.

"Jessie, likely without trying, can sing with a rap-style flow that conveys imagery and storytelling melodically and rhythmically," he says. "That ability to create songs that authentically combine so many cultures is currently unique to her."

Gitelman's greatest current motivation is making music with more substantive sonic content.

Thus, he's the type of creator willing to sit behind a production console and ask, "What if Bob Dylan made R&B music?"

Gitelman arrives at this point because his past work saw him spend time with artists like Chance the Rapper, H.E.R., Mac Miller and Anderson .Paak, as well as a guitarist, touring with Lauryn Hill and Alicia Keys.

'On My Mama' and the future

"Tapping into (the previously mentioned) artists' authentic passion inspired my love of music. From there, I become like a 'free jazz' artist. My process might seem chaotic, but I'm working within the confines of tightly defined compositional systems I've learned and studied."

For his work with Monét, he continued to work within those systems. However, in a space where music distribution and genre expectations have democratized themselves, songs like Monét's "On My Mama" emerge as earthquakes along a thin, vast landscape. More a carefully organized and ubiquitously impactful slice of the zeitgeist than a "pop hit," it delivers.

Even if Gitelman isn't successful in his Grammy gambit in 2024, it's entirely possible that his next mega project could yield his globe-trotting and musically curious journey that level of success.

Alongside Rogét Chayed and HitBoy, he's a co-writer and executive producer for Jennifer Lopez's forthcoming album "This Is Me ... Now." Out on Feb. 16.

It's the 2000s-era icon's first release in a decade.

"I love making sounds that are culturally popular and musically timeless."

Gitelman working with Lopez means his various avenues of creative freedom have yielded a mantra that also defines his future and the early earmarks of a legacy.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Jeff 'Gitty' Gitelman crafts hits for Victoria Monét, Jessie Murph