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' 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.
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]
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.
Record labels
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]
Music Mogul, Inc.
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.
Personal life
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] 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.
^Jackson, Vincent. "MUSIC / Jerkins Brothers Have Shot At Winning Grammys Tonight", Press of Atlantic City, February 23, 2000. Accessed December 28, 2010. "Local record producer Rodney Jerkins – who had a half dozen hits in 1999 – should walk out of the Grammy Awards ceremony tonight with either a Grammy award or a certificate... The Galloway Township resident, whose DarkChild recording studio is in Pleasantville..."
^Jackson, Vincent. "(Rodney) Jerkin's Journey / How Hometown Musician Got To The Grammy Awards", The Press of Atlantic City, February 21, 1999. Accessed January 31, 2011. "Six years ago, record producer Rodney Jerkins, 15, was an Absegami High School sophomore trying to sell cassettes of his Christian rap album. Now, Jerkins is the producer of the No. 1 pop song in the country, has his own record label and has been asked to work with Michael Jackson."
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