PETERSBURG, Va. — A Petersburg native is now a Grammy Award winner.
Xavier "ZayBans" Barid discovered his passion for producing at just 14 years old after being given a piano.
For more than a decade, Zay has combined his love for dynamic tempos and old school R&B to create thousands of beats.
"When I’m in the studio with a artist my energy is so energetic, like I’m really hype in the studio, like I love to make good music," he said.
It’s a level of love and dedication that earned him an honor he never thought possible.
"I used to daydream about being in the studio and working with my favorite artist and stuff but I never thought I would get a Grammy," Zay told CBS 6.
He won a Grammy for his contributions to the song "BLOOM" on Doechii’s album "Alligator Bites Never Heal."
He told CBS 6 it was a monumental moment from life's mix tape he’ll forever have on replay.
"When Cardi said the name, she didn’t even say the whole name, she just said 'Alli-,' and was was turned up, we was so hype screaming, yelling," he recalled. "It felt like it was a win for them, my people calling me, everybody was like, 'Yo, you did it, you did it!'"
Like many victories in life, the win followed what felt like a period of defeat.
"I was going through a lot of stuff last year, and I had to move back to VA and ever since then a lot of good stuff just started happening," Zay said.
He'd been nominated for a Grammy the year before for his work on Sean Paul's album "Scorcha" in the Best Reggae album category. "The Kalling" by Kabaka Pyramid ended up taking home the trophy.
"From last year having the nomination and we didn't win but it was just like, 'Alright cool, I’m calling it out next year,'" Zay said.
Despite the recognition this year's big win has brought, Zay says his true motivation to continue creating comes from his hope to help other.
"The only way I’m going to be satisfied is if I get somebody else a win, if it ain't just about me it’s about them now. Just being able to put people in that position for them to win," he said. "I done had a lot of times where I felt like I wanted to quit but, like I said I just had people around me that kept me going, I just had that fuel, I always thought to myself, 'I came so far, why stop now?'"
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