Jermaine Dupri

Background

Jermaine Dupri is an accomplished rapper, D.J., songwriter, entrepreneur, and record producer. Dupri, whose full name is Jermaine Dupri Mauldin, was born in Asheville, North Carolina. His father, Michael, was an executive at Columbia Records and a talent manager. At the age of 12, Dupri began dancing for the hip-hop group Whodini. Following in his father’s footsteps, he began producing acts when he was 18 years old. He produced his first act called Silk Tymes Leather, an all-female hip hop trio, in 1990. Shortly after, he met Chris Smith and Chris Kelly at a mall and they agreed to perform as a hip-hop duo called Kriss Kross. The duo’s first album, “Totally Krossed Out,” was the first album produced by Dupri to be certified multi-platinum in 1992.

In 1993, Dupri established his record label, So So Def, which entered into a distribution partnership with record label Columbia Records later that year. The albums he produced under his new label with R&B group Xscape and rapper Da Brat (“Hummin’ Comin’ at ‘Cha” and “Funkdafied,” respectively) were also awarded platinum status. Between 1995 and 1997, Dupri worked on songs and albums for A-list singers and rappers such as Mariah Carey, Lil’ Kim, and Usher. In 1998, Dupri helped Destiny’s Child release their eponymous album. In this same year, Dupri released his debut studio album, “Life in 1472.”

His deal with Columbia Records terminated in 2002 and he switched to Arista Records in 2003. He continued working with Usher and Mariah Carey in the early 2000s on their albums “Confessions” and “The Emancipation of Mimi” respectively. He published his memoir, entitled “Young, Rich and Dangerous: The Making of a Music Mogul” through Atria Books in 2007. In 2013, he replaced Randy Jackson as Mariah Carey’s manager for one year until they parted ways. Dupri and rapper/actress Queen Latifah created “The Rap Game,” a reality T.V. rap competition, in 2017.