External links
- Darkchild official website
- Myspace of Darkchild Music
- Fred Jerkins' Darkchild Gospel
- Ebony Magazine interview
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Rodney Jerkins | |
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| Birth name | Rodney Roy Jerkins |
| Also known as | Darkchild |
| Born | July 29, 1977 Pleasantville, New Jersey, U.S. [1] |
| Origin | Orlando, Florida, U.S. [2] |
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| Years active | 1993–present |
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| Website | www |
Rodney Roy Jerkins [3] (born July 29, 1977), better known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists.
Jerkins has won two Grammy Awards from 19 nominations. [4] Among his most successful productions are "The Boy Is Mine" by Brandy and Monica, "It's Not Right but It's Okay" by Whitney Houston, "Say My Name" by Destiny's Child, "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez, "Déjà Vu" by Beyoncé, "He Wasn’t Man Enough" by Toni Braxton, "Telephone" by Lady Gaga, and "As Long as You Love Me" by Justin Bieber. [5] [6] [7]
Jerkins' father, Frederick, is an Evangelical pastor and his mother was a housekeeper. Jerkins began playing piano at age five. He would follow his brother and father, who both played at church gatherings.
Raised in Galloway Township, New Jersey, Jerkins is one of four children: two boys and two girls. His brother is fellow producer Fred Jerkins III. [8] Jerkins attended Absegami High School, and identifies as a Christian. [9]
At age 13, he was offered a chance to work at a studio in Atlantic City, but declined. [10] At age 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. [11] He was also offered a chance to work at Bad Boy Records, but declined. [10] At 16, he was approached by James Jones, formerly of Uptown Records, and moved in with him to Hackensack to work with him. One of their first sessions was with Patti LaBelle. [10]
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. [11] Jerkins' stated his first big projects were Blige's Share My World , Whitney Houston's It's Not Right but It's Okay , and Brandy and Monica's The Boy Is Mine . [10]
Over the course of his career, Jerkins has developed a "camp" of successful topline writers, including LaShawn Daniels, Kenisha Pratt, Toni Estes, Anesha & Antea Birchett, Jordan Omley, Jon Jon Traxx, Tommy Brown, Delisha Thomas, Marvin Hemmings, Michael Mani, Kalenna Harper, Keli Nicole Price, Nora Payne, Michaela Shiloh, Isaac Phillips, Japhe Tejeda, LeToya Duggan, Mischke Butler, Andre Lindal, and Victoria Monét, among others. [12]
Jerkins has produced and written for Brandy, Patti LaBelle, Joe, The Saturdays, Toni Braxton, Vanessa Williams, Will Smith, Keyshia Cole, Monica, Michael Jackson, Ayumi Hamasaki, Cher, Jessica Simpson, Jennifer Lopez, Ashanti, Aaliyah, Amerie, Ariana Grande, Britney Spears, Mary Mary, Kirk Franklin, Kierra Sheard, 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, B5, Lionel Richie, Tiffany Evans, JYJ, Wonder Girls, Austin Brown, Kanye West, Katy Perry, Hikaru Utada, Keke Palmer, Hala Al Turk, Nelly Furtado, Justin Bieber, Brian McKnight and LMFAO. [13] [14]
In the 2010s, he produced songs for Mariah Carey, Leona Lewis, JLS, Kylie Minogue, Ayumi Hamasaki, The Saturdays. Jerkins was a music executive and mentor on season 10 of American Idol .
In 2013, Jerkins was hired on to be a producer for Michael Jackson's posthumous album Xscape. He originally worked on the title track for the album from 1999 to 2001. He is the only producer to work on the original version and reworking version of the title track.
When asked by Ryan Seacrest in 2013 the favourite people he's produced for he said "Definitely The Saturdays. Without a doubt. I had a lot of fun working with them and was really impressed with their voices. They were very down to earth and I like that a lot in an artist. I wish them all the best in America and think they could end up as big as The Spice Girls." [15]
In preparation for the 2014 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony, Jerkins produced a song featuring the Palestinian 2013 Arab Idol winner Mohammed Assaf.
In 2017, he produced Blind and Makings of You for Tamar Braxton.
In 1999, Jerkins joined Sony/Epic Records to promote singer Rhona Bennett, Pop/R&B girl group So Plush, and rapper Fats. Fats appeared on two tracks on which Jerkins produced for Michael Jackson's album Invincible , 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 released in Japan. In 2005, Darkchild Records reemerged when Jerkins signed acts including Shamari Fears, formerly of R&B group Blaque, female MC Asia Lee, dancehall artist Atiba, crossover act Natasha Bradley, 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. [16]
In late 2008, Jerkins joined Nicholas Longano, Ray Brown, and Jonathan E. Eubanks in creating Music Mogul, Inc. [17] MusicMogul.com was an online portal where artists can communicate with their fans. Each quarter, members vote for the best video performances. [18] The top performers were then flown to Los Angeles to compete in front of a panel of celebrity judges. The winner would get a demo deal with Darkchild Productions. [19]
The site appears to be defunct as of 2024.
Jerkins has been married to singer Joy Enriquez since April 4, 2004. The two met when he worked on her debut album.
The couple has four children. [13] [20]
In 2015, his five-year-old daughter Heavenly Joy was a contestant on season 10 of America's Got Talent . [21]
Jerkins is currently starring with Johnny Wright in a number of episodes of the YOBI.tv Take the Stage web series. [22] [23] [24] [25] [26]
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