Rodney Jerkins


Rodney Roy Jerkins, also known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists, including Brandy, Mary J. Blige, Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Destiny's Child, Pussycat Dolls, Monica, Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez, Toni Braxton, Britney Spears, Ludacris, Ciara, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber and Pantura singer Agnez Mo.
Jerkins has won multiple Grammy Awards. Among his most successful productions are "Stay with Me" by Sam Smith, "The Boy Is Mine" and "What About Us?" by Brandy, "I Can Love You" and "Enough Cryin" by Mary J. Blige, "Daydreamin'" by Tatyana Ali, "Angel of Mine" by Monica, "It's Not Right but It's Okay" by Whitney Houston, "Say My Name" and "Cater 2 U" by Destiny's Child, "If You Had My Love" by Jennifer Lopez, "He Wasn't Man Enough" by Toni Braxton, "You Rock My World" by Michael Jackson, "One Wish" by Ray J, "Déjà Vu" by Beyoncé, "Telephone" by Lady Gaga, and "As Long as You Love Me" by Justin Bieber.

Early life

Jerkins' father, Frederick, is an Evangelical pastor. Jerkins began playing piano at age five. He would follow his brother and father, who both played at church gatherings. At age 13, he was offered a chance to work at a studio in Atlantic City, New Jersey, but declined. 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. He was also offered a chance to work at Bad Boy Records, but declined. At 16, he was approached by James Jones, formerly of Uptown Records, and moved in with him to Hackensack, New Jersey to work with him. One of their first sessions was with Patti LaBelle.

Career

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. 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.

Production

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, Aaliyah, Amerie, 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, Utada Hikaru, Keke Palmer, Hala Al Turk, Nelly Furtado, Justin Bieber, Brian McKnight and LMFAO.
In the 2010s, he has 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.
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."
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.

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 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 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 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. 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. MusicMogul.com is an online portal where artists can communicate with their fans. Each quarter, members vote for the best video performances. 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.

Personal life

Jerkins has been married to singer Joy Enriquez since April 4, 2004, and they have four children. Raised in Galloway Township, New Jersey,. Jerkins attended Absegami High School, and identifies as a Christian.
In 2015, his five-year-old daughter Heavenly Joy was a contestant on season 10 of America's Got Talent.

Singles discography

Appearances and production discography

Notable productions

Jerkins is currently starring with Johnny Wright in a number of episodes of the YOBI.tv Take the Stage web series.