Rodney Jerkins
| Rodney Jerkins | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Rodney Jerkins |
| Also known as | RJ, Darkchild, Rodney Jerkins, DC |
| Born | July 29, 1977 |
| Origin | Pleasantville, New Jersey, United States |
| Genres | R&B, hip hop |
| Occupations | Musician, record producer, songwriter, rapper |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Associated acts | Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, Toni Braxton, Brandy, Fred Jerkins III, LaShawn Daniels, Rhona, Joy Enriquez, Ray J, Kirk Franklin, Justin Bieber |
| Website | www.darkchild.com, www.musicmogul.com, www.myspace.com/Darkchild_joy, www.blazetrak.com/Darkchild |
Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins (born July 29, 1977) is an American songwriter, record producer and musician. Mostly known for his work with Brandy, he has collaborated with a range of popular artists, including Jennifer Lopez, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Justin Bieber, Whitney Houston and Britney Spears. He has won four Grammy Awards, and received numerous nominations.[1][2][3]
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Biography
Jerkins' father was an Evangelical pastor and he began playing piano at 5 years of age, following his brother and father who both played at church gatherings. At the age of 14, Jerkins was mentored by his idol, Teddy Riley, but he did not accept a contract offer to work with the producer due to an aspiration to build an "empire" without such support.[4]
Jerkins' first recorded output was a "gospel rap" collaboration with his brother, Fred Jerkins III, entitled On The Move. He later incorporated the name "Darkchild", at the age of 17, subsequently accepting a worldwide publishing deal with the EMI music corporation. The producer then proceeded to establish a commercial music career, initially working with artists such as Joe, Mary J. Blige and Brandy.[4]
Jerkins has been married to singer, Joy Enriquez, since April 4, 2004, with whom he raises two children. Their first child, Rodney David Jr., was born on May 28, 2008, and their daughter, Heavenly Joy Jerkins, was born on November 17, 2009.[5] On October 19, 2012 Rodney and Joy welcomed their third child, Hannah Joy Jerkins.[6]
Production
Jerkins has produced for Joe, Toni Braxton, Lindsay Lohan, Will Smith, Keyshia Cole, Monica, Brandy Norwood, Michael Jackson, Cher, Jessica Simpson, Jennifer Lopez, Aaliyah, Britney Spears, Mary Mary, The Black Eyed Peas, Destiny's Child, Spice Girls, TLC, Janet Jackson, Danity Kane, Beyoncé, Linda Király, Lady Gaga, Cascada, Tamia, Pussycat Dolls, Whitney Houston, Natasha Bedingfield, Mary J. Blige, Lionel Richie, JYJ, Wonder Girls, Austin Brown, Kanye West, Katy Perry, Utada Hikaru, Brian McKnight, PLΛTINUM and LMFAO.[5][7]
He's currently producing songs for Mariah Carey, Leona Lewis, Justin Bieber, JLS, Nelly Furtado, Kylie Minogue and The Saturdays forthcoming albums. Jerkins was a music producer and mentor on season 10 of American Idol.[8]
Record labels
In 1999, Jerkins joined Sony/Epic Records to promote power vocalist Rhona, Pop/R&B girl group So Plush and rapper Fats. Fats appeared on two tracks Jerkins produced for Michael Jackson's Invincible album and So Plush released the single "Things I've Heard Before". Subsequently, So Plush's singles, "Damn" and "Things I've Heard Before", were pressed and made available as promos, and Rhona's album was even released in Japan. In 2005 Darkchild Records reappeared when Jerkins signed brand new acts including Shamari Fears formerly of R&B group Blaque, female MC Asia Lee, Dancehall artist Atiba, and Gospel singer Anesha Birchett.
In 2006, he was appointed VP of Artists & Repertoire (A&R) for The Island Def Jam Group. Jerkins released his wife Joy Enriquez's second album Atmosphere Of Heaven, which features a religious direction, on his independent gospel imprint JoyFul Child Records. The Darkchild name has been loaned to Darkchild Gospel, a record company run by Jerkins' brother, Fred Jerkins III.[9] which released the latest album from Virtue - Testimony.
Music Mogul, Inc.
In late 2008, Jerkins joined Nicholas Longano, Ray Brown, and Jonathan E. Eubanks in creating Music Mogul, Inc.[10] MusicMogul.com represents an entirely browser-based online destination where celebrity artists can unite with their fans. Aspiring artists, songwriters and producers have a chance to be discovered as the next superstar. It is responsible for discovering up and coming producer/songwriter Keri Malena out of Dallas Texas who is making a good name for himself producing quality music. As a result of this exposure, Mr. Malena, as he is called, is now appearing on major label releases such as, Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Keyshia Cole, Jamie Foxx, among others. Each quarter, members vote for the best video performances.[11] The top performers are then flown to Los Angeles to compete in front of a panel of celebrity judges. The winner gets a demo deal with Darkchild Productions.[12]
Singles discography
See links for extensive discography.
Appearances And Production Discography
Notable Productions
- 1998: Brandy And Monica - "The Boy Is Mine"
- 1998: Brandy - "Angel In Disguise"
- 1998: Monica - "Angel Of Mine"
- 1998: Whitney Houston - "It's Not Right (But It's Okay)"
- 1998: Brandy - "What About Us?"
- 1999: Destiny's Child - "Say My Name"
- 2000: Toni Braxton - "He Wasn't Man Enough"
- 2000: Spice Girls - "Holler"
- 2001: Michael Jackson - "You Rock My World"
- 2001: Britney Spears - "Overprotected (The Darkchild Remix)
- 2002: Brandy - "What About Us?"
- 2002: Monica - "All Eyez on Me"
- 2006: Beyonce (featuring Jay-Z) - "Deja Vu"
- 2008: Brandy - "Right Here (Departed)"
- 2008: The Pussycat Dolls - "When I Grow Up"
- 2008: Beyonce - "Scared Of Lonely"
- 2009: Lady Gaga - "Telephone"
- 2012: Leona Lewis - "Shake You Up"
- 2012: Alicia Keys - "Listen To Your Heart"
- 2012: Ciara - "Got Me Good"
- 2013: Girlicious - "The Life of Pie"
Guest raps
- 1995: Hodge - "Head Nod" (Darkchild Remix)
- 1996: New Edition w/ AZ - "Something About You" (Darkchild Remix)
- 1997: Tasha Holiday - "Just The Way You Like It (Darkchild Remix)" w/ Lil' Cease, Peter Gunz and Mike Nitty
- 1997: MQ3 - "Everyday"
- 1997: Immature - "I Can't Wait" with Mike Nitty
- 1997: Mary J. Blige - "Everything (Darkchild Remix)" w/ Fat Joe
- 1997: K-Ball - "On The Weekend", "Love Matters"
- 1998: Kirk Franklin & The Nu Nation Project - "Revolution"
- 1998: Keith Washington - "Bring It On (Darkchild Remix)"
- 1999: Brandy - "Top of the World" (Darkchild Remix) with Fat Joe and Big Pun
- 2000: Natalie Wilson & The S.O.P. Chorale - "Act Like You Know" with LaShawn Daniels
- 2001: So Plush - "What You Do To Me" with 50 Cent and Fats, "Ain't My Fault"
- 2001: Rhona - "Satisfied (Another Darkchild Remix)" with Fats
- 2002: Jay Mathis - "Kiss" with Pain and Fats
- 2002: Mary Mary - "He Said" with Fats
- 2002: K-Young - "Ballinest Player" with Lil' Zal
- 2002: K-Young - "Ooh Wee"
- 2002: Shawn Desman - "Sexy"
- 2003: Natalie Wilson & The S.O.P. Chorale - "Good Life"
- 2004: Kierra "Kiki" Sheard - "You Don't Know"
- 2005: Joy Enriquez - "Don't You Let Go"
- 2005: Anesha Birchett - "Get Ready" with Mase
- 2005: Atiba - "Flossin" with Francisco
- 2006: The Darkchild Allstars - "We Are Family"
- 2008: The Pussycat Dolls With Diddy, Lil Wayne, & Fatman Scoop - When I Grow Up (Darkchild Remix)
Video cameos
- 1996: Gina Thompson (featuring Missy Elliott) - "The Things That U Do (Bad Boy Remix)"
- 1997: No Authority - "Don't Stop"
- 1998: Kirk Franklin & The Nu Nation Project - "Revolution"
- 2001: So Plush - "Things I've Heard Before"
- 2001: Rhona - "Satisfied"
- 2002: Brandy - "What About Us?"
- 2002: Monica - "All Eyez on Me"
- 2006: Natasha - "Hey, Hey, Hey" and "So Sick"
- 2006: Shareefa - "Cry No More"
- 2006: J. Holiday - "Be with Me"
- 2008: Brandy - "Right Here (Departed)"
Webseries
Jerkins is currently starring with Johnny Wright in a number of episodes of the YOBI.tv Take The Stage webseries.[13][14][15][16][17]
References
- ^ Robbie Daw. "Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins Working On Unreleased Michael Jackson Material | Music News, Reviews, and Gossip on". Idolator.com. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
- ^ "Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins — Vision". Darkchild.com. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
- ^ "Rodney Jerkins Nominated for a Grammy - re> NEW YORK, Feb. 1 /PRNewswire/". New York: Prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
- ^ a b Felicia Lowenstein (31). "Rodney Jerkins Passing the Freshness Test". BMI. Broadcast Music, Inc. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
- ^ a b "Rodney Jerkins Music Videos". Ovguide.com. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
- ^ "Rodney Jerkins and Wife Joy Enriquez Welcome Daughter Hannah Joy". hollywoodlife.com.
- ^ "Max-Schneider.Org // The Largest Max Schneider Fan Resource On The Web // Daily News // News Content & Much More". Max Schneider. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
- ^ "NELLY FURTADO Announces New Album & Releases 'Big Hoops' Lyric Video". The Daily BLAM!. Retrieved 2012-05-17.
- ^ "Darkchild Gospel". Darkchild Gospel. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
- ^ Billboard.biz[dead link]
- ^ Iwatani, Yukari (2008-11-14). "Wall Street Journal". Online.wsj.com. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
- ^ November 14, 2008 (2008-11-14). "Virtual World News". Virtualworldsnews.com. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
- ^ Shaw, Lucas. "MySpace Meets 'American Idol' In New Singing Competition 'Take The Stage'". TheWrap.com. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- ^ Hampp, Andrew. "Johnny Wright, Rodney Jerkins Talk New MySpace Competition Series 'Take The Stage'". Billboard.biz. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- ^ Wieselman, Jarrett. "Building the Perfect Reality Competition". TheInsider.com. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- ^ "Take The Stage Singing Contest Webseries". Retrieved 28 August 2012.
- ^ "Take The Stage". Retrieved 28 August 2012.
External links
- Rodney Jerkins on Twitter
- Rodney Jerkins on Myspace
- Rodney Jerkins on Beatbuggy
- Ebony Magazine Interview
- AllHipHop.com Interview[dead link]
- MixOnline Technical Interview
- Darkchild official website
- MySpace Page of Darkchild Music
- Fred Jerkins' Darkchild Gospel
- Darkchild Fansite (inc. discography)
- Thermal Soundwaves Show interview
- Le groupe SoulRnB.com consacré à Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins
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