Clark Kent (producer)
 |
DJ Clark Kent | |
|---|---|
| Born | Rodolfo Franklin September 28, 1966 |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 1988–present[1] |
| Relatives | Foxy Brown (cousin)[2] |
| Musical career | |
| Origin | New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | |
Rodolfo Franklin (born September 28, 1966), known professionally as DJ Clark Kent, is an American hip hop record producer, DJ and music executive of Panamanian descent. His crew of DJs is called "The Supermen", and his DJ moniker is derived from the name of Superman's alter ego.
Music career
[edit]In the late 1980s, DJ Clark Kent was rapper Dana Dane's DJ.[1] Around this time, Kent would DJ at clubs such as one just around the block from Downtown Records on West 26th Street in Manhattan which was a short-lived hip-hop hotbed with other DJs also performing there, such as Funkmaster Flex and Kid Capri.[3] In 1989, he produced the remix for Troop's hit song "Spread My Wings."
He later scored his first street hit with the Junior M.A.F.I.A. song "Player's Anthem" which featured The Notorious B.I.G. and was also the first record that Lil' Kim appeared on. The biggest hit he produced was "Loverboy" by Mariah Carey, which peaked at #2 in the US on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. He has produced tracks for artists such as Lil' Kim, The Notorious B.I.G.,[4] Lil' Vicious, Mona Lisa, 50 Cent, Canibus, Mad Skillz, Estelle, Slick Rick and Rakim, as well as groups like The Future Sound and Original Flavor, which were signed to East West Records and Atlantic Records respectively. Both groups were signed by Clark, who was a director of A&R at Atlantic at the time.[5]
Around the early 1990s, DJ Clark Kent took over the job of MC for the then-titled New Music Seminar, a battle between the best DJs in hip hop.[6] Renaming it "Clark Kent's Superman Battle for World Supremacy", he would go on to host the event for a number of years. One of the most famous battles in this arena was the legendary match between DJ Noize and DJ 8-Ball,[7] which resulted in a landslide victory for DJ Noize and DJ 8-Ball's subsequent humiliation. After the last set, he is heard telling the crowd "I don't need to even TELL you all who won!"
Damon Dash, one time manager of The Future Sound and Original Flavor, has credited DJ Clark Kent with introducing him to Jay-Z.[8] Original Flavor featured the then little known rapper on their single "Can I Get Open" in 1993.[9] This would lead to the 1994 start of Roc-A-Fella Records, and further collaborations between Clark and Jay-Z, who met when they were teenagers, as Clark would go on to produce three tracks on Jay-Z's critically acclaimed debut album, Reasonable Doubt.[10] The tracks were: "Brooklyn's Finest", which features The Notorious B.I.G.,[11]"Coming of Age", which features Memphis Bleek,[12] and "Cashmere Thoughts", which contains a conversation between Clark and Jay-Z.[13] Clark stated that he introduced B.I.G. and Jay-Z at the studio session for their collaboration.[14] During this time, Clark would also introduce his cousin Foxy Brown to Jay-Z, and the two would team up on the hit single "Ain't No Nigga".[2] On 2003's The Black Album, billed as his "retirement" project, Jay-Z alludes to Clark's role in helping him break into the industry, on the album's last song (titled "My 1st Song"). He states: "Clark Kent, that was good lookin' out, nigga."[15]
Clark discovered rapper Shyne, whom he accidentally overheard rhyming in a barbershop, in 1998. Noting the young MC's vocal similarity to The Notorious B.I.G., Clark steered him towards Bad Boy Records and Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs signed him.[16]
Other ventures
[edit]Aside from his work in music, Clark is "an addict for sneakers" and once claimed to own 3,500 pairs of footwear.[17] In 2010, Nike commissioned him to design and unveil a "Nike Five Boroughs AF1 Low" pack of special limited edition Nike Air Force 1 shoes.[18] He has also collaborated with other popular brands, such as Adidas and New Balance.
Production Credits
[edit]| Album | Artist | Year | Track |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sex Is Law | Father MC | 1993 | Da Wiggle {produced with Ski} |
| Nerissa | Nerissa | In the Rain (Remix) | |
| Destination Brooklyn | Vicious | 1994 | Nika |
| Troddin' | Shinehead | Never Been in Love B4; Woman Like You | |
| Throw Your Hands Up 12" | L.V. | 1995 | Throw Your Hands Up (Remix) |
| It's All About You 12" | Adina Howard | It's All About You (Remix) | |
| Hold It Down | Das EFX | Dedicated | |
| In My Lifetime 12" | Jay-Z | I Can't Get Wid That | |
| Conspiracy | Junior M.A.F.I.A. | Realms of Junior M.A.F.I.A.; I Need You Tonight; Players' Anthem; Crazaay | |
| Hooked on You 12" | Silk | Hooked on You (Remix) | |
| Feels Like the First Time 12" | Intro | Funny How Time Flies (Lil' Kim Mix) | |
| The Natural 12" | Mic Geronimo | The Natural (Remix) | |
| From Where??? | Mad Skillz | 1996 | Move ya Body |
| Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (soundtrack) | Lil' Kim and Mona Lisa | Time to Shine | |
| Live and Die for Hip Hop 12" | Kris Kross | Live and Die for Hip Hop (Remix) | |
| Things We Do for Love 12" | Horace Brown | Things We Do for Love (Remix) | |
| One for the Money 12" | One for the Money (Remix) | ||
| Get on the Bus (soundtrack) | Doug E. Fresh | Tonite's the Nite | |
| You're the One 12" | SWV | You're the One (Clark Kent Remix) | |
| The Associate (soundtrack) | Queen Latifah, Shades, Free | Mr. Big Stuff | |
| Feel Your Pain 12" | Whitehead Bros. | Feel Your Pain (Clark Kent Remix) | |
| 11-20-79 | Mona Lisa | Just Wanna Please U | |
| The New World Order | Poor Righteous Teachers | Dreadful Day | |
| Daily Basis 12" | Da Rahnjaz | Street Life (D.B. Remix) | |
| Bootleg Versions | Fugees | Ready or Not (Clark Kent/Django version) | |
| Get U Open | Skindeep | No More Games; Everybody | |
| Life After Death | The Notorious B.I.G. | 1997 | Sky's the Limit |
| Love, Peace & Nappiness 12" | Lost Boyz | Get Up (Remix) | |
| Nothin to Lose (soundtrack) | Oran "Juice" Jones, Stu-Large, Camp Lo | Poppin' That Fly (Clark Kent Remix) | |
| I Like 12" | Shiro | I Like (Remix) | |
| The 18th Letter | Rakim | Remember That; Guess Who's Back; Stay a While | |
| Pushin' Weight 12" | Ice Cube | 1998 | Pushin' Weight (Clark Kent Remix) |
| Player's Club (soundtrack) | We Be Clubbin' (Clark World Remix) | ||
| Woo (soundtrack) / Cold As Ice | Charli Baltimore | Money | |
| Make It Reign | Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz | Make It Reign; Massive Heat; Keep On | |
| Touch It 12" | Monifah | Touch It (C.K. Remix) | |
| Order in the Court | Queen Latifah | No/Yes | |
| Come and Get with Me 12" | Keith Sweat | Come and Get with Me (Remix) | |
| Don Cartagena | Fat Joe | The Crack Attack | |
| Can-I-Bus | Canibus | How We Roll; Channel Zero | |
| Respect | Shaquille O'Neal | 48 @ the Buzzer; ?; ?? | |
| The Hit List | Saafir | 1999 | A Dog's Master |
| The Art of Storytellin' | Slick Rick | Kill Niggaz; I Own America Pt. 1; 2 Way Street; Why Why Why; Memories | |
| Hempstead High | A+ | Gotta Have It; Price of Fame {produced with B!nk} | |
| Born Again | The Notorious B.I.G. | Come On | |
| Middle Finger U | Sauce Money | 2000 | Middle Finger U.; Face Off 2000 |
| Urban Renewal | Lil' Kim, Phil Collins | 2001 | In the Air Tonite |
| City High | City High | 15 Will Get You 20 | |
| Glitter (soundtrack) | Mariah Carey | Loverboy (Remix) | |
| All About J | Lil J | 2002 | Come Out and Play {produced with Echo Levi} |
| Konexion | Freddie Foxxx | 2003 | Stick Em Up! |
| He's Keith Murray | Keith Murray | Cristina | |
| The Streetsweeper, Vol. 2 | DJ Kay Slay | 2004 | Hands on the Pump |
| Red Gone Wild: Thee Album | Redman | 2007 | Diz Iz Brick City |
| Teflon Don | Rick Ross | 2010 | Super High |
| Harverd Dropout | Lil Pump, Kanye West | 2018 | I Love It {produced with Kanye, Ronny J, CBMIX} |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Daniel Isenberg (2011-11-11). "DJ Clark Kent Tells All: The Stories Behind His Classic Records (Part 1)". Complex. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
- ^ a b Roman Cooper (2013-08-15). "Foxy Brown Was "Shocked" To Hear Her Name On Jay Z's "Picasso Baby"". HipHopDX. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
- ^ Stretch Armstrong (2014-11-24). "Cassette Culture with Stretch Armstrong". Medium. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
- ^ "DJ Clark Kent Names His Favorite Song By The Notorious B.I.G." hiphopdx.com. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
- ^ "The Future Sound – The Whole Shabang Volume 1 (April 7, 1992)".
- ^ "The New Music Seminar Battle For World Supremacy: An Oral History". Red Bull Music Academy. July 24, 2015.
- ^ "THE 10 BEST DJ SCRATCH BATTLES OF ALL TIME". mixmag. July 24, 2020.
- ^ "Hip-Hop Gem: DJ Clark Kent Introduced Jay-Z To Damon Dash". Stop The Breaks.
- ^ "Do Remember: Original Flavor & Jay Z's Can I Get Open? (Video)". Ambrosia For Heads.
- ^ Mitch Findlay (March 9, 2021). "DJ Clark Kent Recalls Convincing Jay-Z To Switch From Hustling To Rap". Hot New Hip Hop.
- ^ "Brooklyn's Finest".
- ^ "Coming of Age".
- ^ "Cashmere Thoughts".
- ^ "DJ CLARK KENT RECALLS INTRODUCING JAY-Z & THE NOTORIOUS B.I.G., RECORDING "BROOKLYN'S FINEST"". hiphopdx.com. Retrieved May 28, 2018.
- ^ "My 1st Song".
- ^ "Digital Biography of Belize's Shyne".
- ^ "DJ CLARK KENT CONFESSES HIS SNEAKERHEAD SINS". hiphopdx.com. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
- ^ "Nike Air Force 1 Low x DJ Clark Kent – The Bronx – Five Boroughs Pack".
- "Clark Kent, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
External links
[edit]- Discogs entry
- Five Boroughs Pack Air Force 1 Archived 2019-01-27 at the Wayback Machine
- Clark Kent at IMDb
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