14 Songs You Didn't Know Jermaine Dupri Produced

The Rap Game host and So So Def founder produced a plethora of under acknowledged yet fire tracks that even diehard fans may not remember.

Jan 09, 2017
rapgamebc2017
Image via Complex Original
rapgamebc2017
Image via Complex Original

In the ’90s, Jermaine Dupri thrived as the architect behind So So Def’s most prominent run. Launching the careers of Kris Kross, Da Brat, Jagged Edge and others, he fit in with the hands-on producer/CEO/hype-man mentality of the era. Behind the scenes, he crafted clean, sample-heavy beats not just for his So So Def roster, but for some of the biggest artists of the decade. He left his stamp on remixes by  stars, such as Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson, Total, and MC Lyte to name a few. Fast-forward to 2016, and the Atlanta-raised producer would be donning yet another hat, this time mentoring and bringing up a new crop of talent on his hit TV show, Lifetime’s The Rap Game. With its second season set to premiere early this month, we thought to revisit some of Dupri’s more overlooked efforts, his sleeper hits. Here are fourteen of the greatest songs you didn’t know Jermaine Dupri produced. 

 

Ma$e, Jay Z, Lil’ Cease, 112, “Cheat On You” (1997)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com
This star-studded track from Ma$e’s Harlem World album lightly samples Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop 'Til You Get Enough,” and includes one of Jay Z’s great forgotten verses from an early part of his career. On an album where Bad Boy’s in-house beat-making team handled most of the production work, this track was a standout.

TLC, “My Life” (1999)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com
A track that was somewhat forgotten among the parade of hits on TLC’s FanMail album, the production on this song highlights what Dupri did best as a producer: meeting his artists where they were at. While so much of FanMail sounded futuristic, this was very in line with vintage TLC, complete with a classic Left Eye verse to anchor the song.​

Latocha Scott and Chanté Moore, “Treated Like Her” (2000)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com
There was a time, in the ’90s and early 2000s where the movie soundtrack was a good outlet for quality songs that wouldn’t appear anywhere else. The soundtrack for a black film was taken seriously, even if the film itself was kind of a joke. Enter “Treated Like Her,” a Dupri-produced ballad from the Big Momma’s House soundtrack. Admittedly, Dupri’s work here was simply to lay a foundation for a classic, tension-driven R&B ballad, but he did it well.

Ludacris and Pastor Troy, “Get Off Me” (2000)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

Ludacris’ first album, Back for the First Time, boasted an impressive roster of the era’s finest producers: Bangladesh, Timbaland, Organized Noize, and the Neptunes. Dupri contributed production on “Get Off Me,” a frantic, percussion-heavy beat that perfectly suits young Ludacris going back and forth with an equally wired Pastor Troy.

R.O.C., “Who Ya Love” (2011)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

It may not be surprising that Dupri produced this track, as R.O.C. was a So So Def artist, but it is a great song from Dupri that isn’t often remembered. R.O.C. was in position to be the Ma$e to Dupri’s Puff Daddy, but he never really panned out. His flow wasn’t distinguishable from his peers in the same way that Ma$e’s was, and he wasn’t a good enough lyricist to make up for it. Still, this song, from the Hardball soundtrack, was a true gem.

 

Tamia, “Still” (2004)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

Dupri both produced and co-wrote this song, a ballad from Tamia’s 2004 album More. Though he often doesn’t get the credit he deserves for it, Dupri became somewhat of a master at building a sonic atmosphere that really allowed for incredible ballads.

Daz Dillinger and Rick Ross, “On Some Real Shit” (2006)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com


It’s easy to forget that Daz Dillinger released an album on So So Def, but 2006’s So So Gangsta had a small handful of great songs on it. None were better than this one, with a surprise verse from a young Rick Ross, who would blow up just a few months after this song was recorded.

Fabolous and Trey Songz, “Last Time” (2009)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

This song, from Fabolous’ 2009 album Loso’s Way, sounds like it could have been a Jagged Edge song from a handful of years earlier. The template of a smooth, airy production and a rapper with an R&B singer, served Dupri well for over a decade.

The Isley Brothers, “Gotta Be With You” (2006)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

The Isley Brothers late-career comeback produced some pretty excellent returns. Though by the time 2006’s Baby Making Music came out, the well had pretty much run dry. However, the album was not without its quality songs, like this Dupri-produced slow jam, a classic in the Isley canon.

Monica, “Amazing” (2012)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

Dupri has contributed to six of Monica’s eight albums, giving them a collaborative relationship like no other. His latest production work was on this song, from Monica’s 2012 album New Life.

Fifth Harmony, “Like Mariah” (2015)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

In a tale of a career coming full-circle, Dupri shared a production credit on this song from the 2014 Fifth Harmony album Reflection due to its use of a sample from one of his previously produced songs, Mariah Carey’s “Always Be My Baby.” As a testament to having work that echoes down generations, Dupri’s imprint on this song is unmistakable. 

Alicia Keys, “Girlfriend” (2001)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

The production on this song, from Alicia Keys’ debut album Songs In A Minor, is a bit more rugged than Dupri’s usual offerings, leaning heavily on an interpolation from Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s “Brooklyn Zoo.”

Cam’Ron, “Rockin’ And Rollin’” (1998)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

This was an early-career album cut from Cam’Ron, off of his debut album Confessions of Fire. The young Harlem MC was still finding his groove, but he still knew his way around a catchy hook, which this beat heavily boasted.

Ashanti, “Good Good” (2008)

View this video on YouTube
youtube.com

From Ashanti’s 2008 album The Declaration, this song expertly spun two samples together: Elton John’s “Bennie and the Jets” and Michael Jackson’s “The Girl is Mine.”

With his signature sound and relentless output, Dupri helped to shape and define the tones of the artists he worked with, changing the whole hip-hop industry in the process. To witness Dupri’s next crop of superstars, tune in to The Rap Game’s Season 3 premiere Friday, January 13 at 10/9c, on Lifetime.
Jermaine Dupri

Latest in Music