| Rodney Jerkins | |
| Background: | non_vocal_instrumentalist |
| Alias: | Darkchild |
| Birth Name: | Rodney Roy Jerkins |
| Birth Date: | July 29, 1977 |
| Birth Place: | Pleasantville, New Jersey, U.S.[1] |
| Origin: | Orlando, Florida, U.S.[2] |
| Years Active: | 1993–present |
Rodney Roy Jerkins[3] (born July 29, 1977), 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.
Jerkins has won two Grammy Awards from 19 nominations.[4] Among his most successful productions are "The Boy Is Mine" by Brandy, "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. 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, Delisha Thomas, Marvin Hemmings, 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]
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."[14]
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.[15]
In late 2008, Jerkins joined Nicholas Longano, Ray Brown, and Jonathan E. Eubanks in creating Music Mogul, Inc.[16] MusicMogul.com was an online portal where artists can communicate with their fans. Each quarter, members vote for the best video performances.[17] 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.[18]
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:[19] [20] Rodney David Jerkins Jr. (28 May 2008); Heavenly Joy Jerkins (17 November 2009);[21] Hannah Joy Jerkins (19 October 2012);[22] and Royal David Jerkins, in early 2015.
In 2015, his five-year-old daughter Heavenly Joy was a contestant on season 10 of America's Got Talent.[23]
| Year | Song | Artist | Chart position | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&B | Hot 100 | UK | |||
| 1995 | "The Way That You Love" (Remix) | Vanessa Williams | 23 | 67 | 52 |
| 1996 | "The Things That You Do" | Gina Thompson | 12 | 41 | — |
| 1997 | "Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!" | Simone Hines | 38 | — | — |
| "Don't Wanna Be a Player" | Joe | 5 | 25 | 16 | |
| "I Can Love You" | Mary J. Blige (featuring Lil' Kim) | 2 | 28 | — | |
| "Share My World" | Mary J. Blige | — | — | — | |
| "Searching" | Mary J. Blige (featuring Roy Ayers) | — | — | — | |
| 1998 | "The Boy Is Mine" | Brandy & Monica | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| "Angel of Mine" | Monica | 2 | 1 | 55 | |
| 1999 | "If You Had My Love" | Jennifer Lopez | 6 | 1 | 4 |
| "It's Not That Serious" | — | — | — | ||
| "Sunshine" | Coko | 19 | 70 | — | |
| "Say My Name" | Destiny's Child | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
| "U Don't Know Me (Like U Used To)" (Darkchild Mix) | Brandy (featuring Shaunta & Da Brat) | 25 | 79 | — | |
| "Damn" | So Plush (featuring Ja Rule) | 41 | — | — | |
| 2000 | "He Wasn't Man Enough" | Toni Braxton | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| "Let Love Lead the Way" | Spice Girls | — | — | 1 | |
| "Holler" | — | 112 | 1 | ||
| "Shining Star" | Backstreet Boys | — | — | — | |
| "If I Told You That" | Whitney Houston & George Michael | — | — | 9 | |
| "Time Limit" | Hikaru Utada | — | — | — | |
| 2001 | "I Sings" | Mary Mary (featuring BB Jay) | 68 | — | — |
| "I Ain't The One" | 68 | — | — | ||
| "You Rock My World" | Michael Jackson | 13 | 10 | 2 | |
| "Unbreakable" | — | — | — | ||
| "Heartbreaker" | — | — | — | ||
| "Invincible" | — | — | — | ||
| "Privacy" | — | — | — | ||
| "Rampage" (Unreleased) | |||||
| "Threatened" | — | — | — | ||
| "That's the Way" | Jennifer Lopez | — | — | — | |
| "Dame (Touch Me)" (duet with Chayanne) | — | — | — | ||
| "Satisfied" | Rhona | — | — | — | |
| "Everything" | Canela | — | — | — | |
| "I Remember" (Remix) | Debelah Morgan | — | — | — | |
| "Celebrity" |
| — | — | — | |
| 2002 | "Overprotected" (Darkchild Remix) | Britney Spears | — | 86 | 4 |
| "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" | — | — | 13 | ||
| "What About Us?" | Brandy | 3 | 7 | 4 | |
| "All Eyez on Me" | Monica | 32 | 69 | — | |
| "A Different Kind of Love Song" (Remix) | Cher | — | — | — | |
| "Get with Me" | 3rd Storee | 85 | — | — | |
| "If You Only Knew" | Prymary Colorz | 78 | — | — | |
| "Turntable" | TLC | — | — | — | |
| 2003 | "I'm Good" | Blaque | 95 | — | — |
| "All I Do" | B5 | 71 | — | — | |
| 2004 | "You Don't Know" | Kierra "Kiki" Sheard | 84 | — | — |
| "Lose My Breath" | Destiny's Child | 10 | 3 | 2 | |
| "One Wish" | Ray J | 3 | 11 | 13 | |
| "We've Had Enough" | Michael Jackson | — | — | — | |
| 2005 | "Cater 2 U" | Destiny's Child | 3 | 14 | — |
| "What I Need" | Ray J | 58 | — | — | |
| "Step Into My World" | Jennifer Lopez | — | — | — | |
| "I Got U" | — | — | — | ||
| 2006 | "Enough Cryin'" | Mary J. Blige | 2 | 32 | 46 |
| "Hold Me Down" | Danity Kane | — | — | — | |
| "Need a Boss" | Shareefa | 10 | 67 | — | |
| "Cry No More" | 43 | — | — | ||
| "Déjà Vu" | Beyoncé (featuring Jay-Z) | 1 | 4 | 1 | |
| "So Lonely" | Mariah Carey (featuring Twista) | 65 | — | — | |
| "The One You Need" | Megan Rochell (featuring Fabolous) | 41 | — | — | |
| "Heartbreak" | — | — | — | ||
| "Can't Get Enough" | Tamia | 26 | — | — | |
| "Turn the Page" | Bobby Valentino | 63 | — | — | |
| "Make It Last Forever" | Ciara | — | — | — | |
| 2007 | "Be with Me" | J. Holiday | 83 | — | — |
| "Can't Leave 'Em Alone" | Ciara (featuring 50 Cent) | 10 | 40 | 109 | |
| "Shoulda Let You Go" | Keyshia Cole | 6 | 41 | — | |
| "Hey Hey Hey" | Natasha | — | — | — | |
| "So Sick" | — | — | — | ||
| "Feedback" | Janet Jackson | 39 | 19 | — | |
| 2008 | "What Them Girls Like" | Ludacris (featuring Chris Brown & Sean Garrett) | 17 | 33 | — |
| "I'm Grown" | Tiffany Evans (featuring Bow Wow) | 98 | — | — | |
| "Luv" | Janet Jackson | 34 | 101 | — | |
| "So Over You" | Ashanti | — | — | — | |
| "Angel" | Natasha Bedingfield | — | 63 | — | |
| "Right Here (Departed)" | Brandy | 22 | 34 | — | |
| "Long Distance" | 42 | 101 | — | ||
| "The Definition" | 116 | — | — | ||
| 2009 | "I Look So Good (Without You)" | Jessie James | — | 104 | — |
| "Girls" | Se7en (featuring Lil' Kim) | — | — | — | |
| "Make Me" | Janet Jackson | 71 | — | 73 | |
| "Telephone" | Lady Gaga (featuring Beyoncé) | — | 3 | 1 | |
| "The One" | Mary J. Blige (featuring Drake) | 32 | 63 | — | |
| "Pucker Up" | Ciara | — | — | — | |
| 2010 | "Shake My" | Three 6 Mafia (featuring Kalenna) | — | 75 | — |
| "Perfect Nightmare" | Shontelle | — | — | — | |
| "I Hate That You Love Me" | Dirty Money | — | — | — | |
| "Target Practice" | Austin Brown | — | — | — | |
| 2011 | "The One You Call" | Keke Palmer | — | — | — |
| "Ain't Nobody" | Mary J. Blige | — | — | — | |
| "What Are Words" | Chris Medina | — | 83 | — | |
| "Just Can't Get Enough" | The Black Eyed Peas | — | 3 | 3 | |
| "Stitch by Stitch" | Javier Colon | — | 17 | — | |
| "I Forgive You" | Kelly Clarkson | — | — | — | |
| "Turn the Lights Out" | Priscilla Renea | — | — | — | |
| 2012 | "Big Hoops (Bigger the Better)" | Nelly Furtado | — | — | 14 |
| "Spirit Indestructible" | — | — | — | ||
| "Parking Lot" | — | — | — | ||
| "Got Me Good" | Ciara | — | — | — | |
| "Die in Your Arms" | Justin Bieber | — | 17 | 34 | |
| "As Long as You Love Me" | 116 | 6 | 22 | ||
| 2013 | "Waiting for the Night" | Nelly Furtado | — | — | — |
| "Bucket List" | — | — | — | ||
| "The Art of Letting Go" | Mariah Carey | 46 | — | — | |
| "Perfect World" | Tone Damli | — | — | — | |
| "My Heart Is Open" | Maroon 5 (featuring Gwen Stefani) | — | — | — | |
| "Roller Coaster" | Justin Bieber | — | — | — | |
| "Lease My Love" | The Saturdays | — | — | — | |
| "Read My Lips" | Ciara | — | — | — | |
| 2014 | "Xscape" | Michael Jackson | — | — | — |
| "Xscape (Original Version)" | — | — | — | ||
| "Coulda Been Me" | Candice Glover | — | — | — | |
| Therapy | Mary J. Blige | — | — | — | |
| "Doubt" | 37 | — | — | ||
| "When You're Gone" | — | — | — | ||
| "You're Mine (Eternal)" | Mariah Carey | 24 | — | — | |
| 2017 | "Blind" | Tamar Braxton | — | — | — |
| 2018 | "Dose" | Ciara | — | — | — |
| "Hard Place" | H.E.R. | — | — | — | |
| "Just Say When" | Capital Cities | — | — | — | |
| "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" | Jessie J | — | — | — | |
| "Jingle Bell Rock" | — | — | — | ||
| "This Christmas Day" | — | — | — | ||
| "At Least I Know" | T.I. (featuring Anderson .Paak) | — | — | — | |
| "SWIZZMONTANA" | Swizz Beatz & French Montana | — | — | — | |
| "3Way" | Teyana Taylor | — | — | — | |
| "Look Back at It" | A Boogie wit da Hoodie | 25 | 41 | — | |
| "Don't Sleep" | Chromeo (featuring French Montana and Stefflon Don) | — | — | — | |
| 2019 | "Right Back" | Khalid (featuring A Boogie wit da Hoodie) | 29 | 73 | 71 |
| "Playing Games" | 9 | 16 | 24 | ||
| 2022 | "Shirt" | SZA | 4 | 11 | 17 |
| "Forgiveless" | SZA (featuring Ol' Dirty Bastard) | 35 | 76 | — | |
Jerkins is currently starring with Johnny Wright in a number of episodes of the YOBI.tv Take the Stage web series.[24] [25] [26] [27] [28]