Jermaine Dupri has revealed his Mount Rushmore of producers, and his selections include some of the most legendary names in the business.
In an interview with VIBE, JD gave his list of the top four producers that he believes changed the music industry with their contributions.
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Despite being offered the chance to include himself in the list, the So So Def hitmaker politely declined, saying: “As long as them guys is even in my eyesight, I won’t ever put myself up there.”
“Teddy Riley created an entire genre of music,” he said. “Berry Gordy created music, period. Dr. Dre, without a doubt, created an entire wave and brought out a whole coast. Quincy Jones is undoubtedly the greatest producer of all time.”
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He continued: “That is the Mount Rushmore of producers. They cover the ground that none of us cover.”
JD has reason to include those four men in his pantheon of producers. Teddy Riley was instrumental in blending Hip Hop and R&B with his groundbreaking New Jack Swing movement in the mid-80s. Berry Gordy founded the legendary Motown Records, which was the highest-earning Black business for a time.
Dr. Dre introduced West Coast G-funk to Hip Hop and made history as a member of N.W.A., the main producer at Death Row Records, the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment.
Quincy Jones’ 70-year career includes a record 80 Grammy nominations, 28 Grammy and several classic albums such as Michael Jackson’s Thriller, which also happens to be the best-selling album of all time.
When it comes to his own accolades, Jermaine Dupri is not afraid to show off a bit like he did last month during an interview on The Gauds Show. According to Dupri, he was a dominant force on New York radio because he knew the weight Hip Hop radio stations carried in the city when it came to music back in the day, so he had to infiltrate it, which led to excellent results.
“The reason New York plays down south music on the radio is because of me,” Dupri said. “Bone Crusher and the YoungBloodZ were all over Hot 97 in a way that like nobody could ever imagine. And I hired DJ Envy to work for me.”
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He added: “My attack on New York radio and the New York streets from the south is like no other. Nobody, no other company, nothing. Not as far as back then, now everybody else moving forward, that door opened cause I was out there beating the streets.”
