Anthony Clemons Jr. (born September 26, 1991) is an American singer. He rose to prominence as a guest artist on
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer.
Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...
's 2018 single "
All Mine". Clemons has since worked with a multitude of artists, including West,
Ty Dolla Sign
Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He first gained major recognition in 2010 for his feature on Ameri ...
,
Beyoncé,
Camila Cabello
Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao (; ; born March 3, 1997) is a Cuban-born American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, which became one of the best-selling girl groups of all time. While in ...
,
Justin Timberlake, the
Sunday Service Choir and more. Clemons released his debut EP ''Happy 2 Be Here'' in March 2020, featuring Ty Dolla Sign,
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinc ...
, and
Pharrell Williams. The project received a nomination at the
63rd Annual Grammy Awards
The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held in and around the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles on March 14, 2021. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from September 1, 201 ...
for
Best R&B Album
The Grammy Award for Best R&B Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works on albums in the R&B music genre. Honors ...
.
Early life
Clemons was born and raised in
Willingboro, New Jersey
Willingboro Township is a township in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is a suburb of Philadelphia and part of the state's South Jersey region.
As of the 2020 census, the population was 31,889, an increase of ...
.
His musical taste was shaped by his parents playing
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
,
The Notorious B.I.G.
Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...
and
Stevie Wonder.
At age four, Clemons began performing at birthday parties as a Jackson impersonator.
While studying at
Burlington County Institute of Technology, Clemons was part of the youth choir at the Sharon Baptist Church and joined The Heritage Players and Showstoppers at
Willingboro High School
Willingboro High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Willingboro Township in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States, operating as the lone secondary school of t ...
.
At family events, Clemons would sing with his sisters Ashley and Amber as the "Clemons Trio".
In 2009, during his parents' divorce, Clemons began his interest in songwriting.
Clemons began recording himself and producing music with
Pro Tools
Pro Tools is a digital audio workstation (DAW) developed and released by Avid Technology (formerly Digidesign) for Microsoft Windows and macOS. It is used for music creation and production, sound for picture ( sound design, audio post-produ ...
and
Logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...
.
Clemons attended a semester at
Burlington County College
Rowan College at Burlington County (RCBC) is a Public university, public community college in Burlington County, New Jersey. Main facilities are located in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, Mount Laurel with other campuses in Mount Holly, New Jersey, Mo ...
before dropping out.
Career
Clemons began his songwriting career in 2016.
Clemons was working at
Red Lobster
Red Lobster Hospitality LLC is an American casual dining restaurant chain headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company has operations across most of the United States (including Puerto Rico, Guam) and Canada, as well as in China, Ecuador, Ho ...
in Cherry Hill and flying to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
every two weeks as an attempt to meet songwriters and producers.
He would return to Philadelphia every time he ran out of money.
He studied songwriting at
White Hall Arts Academy with Tanisha Hall. Clemons' mother eventually supported him in permanently moving to Los Angeles, where Clemons slept on two friends' floor.
Clemons wrote a song a day in exchange for rent.
In Los Angeles, Clemons met
Ryan Toby
City High was an American R&B/ hip hop trio consisting of rappers/singers Ryan Toby, Robbie Pardlo, and Claudette Ortiz. City High is best known for their song " What Would You Do?", which earned a Grammy nomination.
Career
In 2001, City Hig ...
who gave him the opportunity to work on
Luke James' single "Drip".
In January 2018, Clemons met American producer Bongo ByTheWay, where upon meeting each other for the first time, they recorded eleven tracks together in one day.
After the two quickly became close to one another, Bongo ByTheWay introduced Clemons to American singer
Jeremih
Jeremy Phillip Felton (born July 17, 1987), known professionally as Jeremih ( ), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. In 2009, he signed a record deal with Def Jam Recordings. Jeremih's commercial debut single, "Birthday Sex", ...
.
Clemons recorded the hook for a Jeremih demo titled "
All Mine".
Jeremih was invited to
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...
by American rapper
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer.
Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...
and played the demo.
West then incorporated "All Mine" into his eighth studio album ''
Ye'' (2018).
West then invited Clemons to Wyoming to write for
Teyana Taylor
Teyana Me Shay Jacqueli Shumpert ( Taylor; born December 10, 1990) is an American singer, actress, dancer and choreographer. In 2005, she signed a record deal with Pharrell Williams' Star Trak Entertainment imprint. Afterwards, she choreographed ...
's second studio album ''
K.T.S.E.
''K.T.S.E.'' (an initialism of ''Keep That Same Energy'') is the second studio album by American recording artist Teyana Taylor, released on June 22, 2018, by GOOD Music and Def Jam Recordings.
Following the release of ''VII'' in 2014, Taylor t ...
''., providing additional vocals on the track "Hurry (feat. Kanye West).
Clemons saw an increase in fame after working with West. In September 2018, Clemons was invited to
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
by West and
Chance the Rapper to work on West's ninth studio album.
The album was initially titled ''Yandhi'' and Clemons was to feature on seven out of eight tracks. Several
leaked songs from the album featured contributions from Clemons. ''Yandhi'' was reworked and released as ''
Jesus Is King
''Jesus Is King'' is the ninth studio album by American rapper Kanye West. It was released on October 25, 2019, through GOOD Music and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. The album follows a Christian theme, different from his usual work. Wes ...
'' in October 2019, where Clemons was credited on the tracks "
Selah
(; hbo, סֶלָה, selā) is a word used 74 times in the Hebrew Bible. Its etymology and precise meaning are unknown, though various interpretations are given.
It is probably either a liturgical-musical mark or an instruction on the reading ...
", "
Everything We Need", and "
Water
Water (chemical formula ) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living ...
".
Clemons and
The World Famous Tony Williams
Antony Von Williams, known professionally as the World Famous Tony Williams, is an American singer and songwriter from Oklahoma City. Williams is perhaps best known for his vocals on his first cousin Kanye West's debut album, ''The College Drop ...
became the lead vocalists of West's
Sunday Service Choir that formed in January 2019. That same year, Clemons worked with
Beyoncé to write "Mood 4 Eva" for the soundtrack album ''
The Lion King: The Gift''.
Clemons was invited to the
62nd Annual Grammy Awards
The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on January 26, 2020, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from October 1, 2018, to August 31, 2019. Al ...
for his work with Beyoncé,
Cordae, Chance the Rapper,
Skrillex
Sonny John Moore (born January 15, 1988), known professionally as Skrillex, is an American DJ and music producer. Growing up in Northeast Los Angeles and Northern California, he joined the post-hardcore band From First to Last as the lead si ...
,
Boys Noize
Alexander Ridha (born 22 August 1982), better known by his stage name Boys Noize, is a Berlin-based German-Iraqi electronic music record producer, songwriter, and DJ. It is similar to the name of Ridha's label, Boysnoize Records, which he esta ...
, and
Ty Dolla Sign
Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He first gained major recognition in 2010 for his feature on Ameri ...
.
Clemons co-wrote
Camila Cabello
Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao (; ; born March 3, 1997) is a Cuban-born American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, which became one of the best-selling girl groups of all time. While in ...
's 2020 single "
My Oh My" featuring
DaBaby
Jonathan Lyndale Kirk (born December 22, 1991), known professionally as DaBaby (formerly known as Baby Jesus), is an American rapper. After releasing several mixtapes between 2014 and 2018, he rose to mainstream prominence with his debut alb ...
;
the song peaked at number 12 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100. In March 2020, Clemons released his debut project ''Happy 2 Be Here'', featuring Ty Dolla Sign,
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinc ...
, and
Pharrell Williams.
In December 2020, the EP was listed as a nominee at the
63rd Annual Grammy Awards
The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held in and around the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles on March 14, 2021. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from September 1, 201 ...
for
Best R&B Album
The Grammy Award for Best R&B Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works on albums in the R&B music genre. Honors ...
.
In December 2020, Clemons released his collaboration with
Justin Timberlake, "Better Days". The duo debuted the song at a virtual concert fundraiser organized by
Democratic politician
Stacey Abrams
Stacey Yvonne Abrams (; born December 9, 1973) is an American politician, lawyer, voting rights activist, and author who served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2007 to 2017, serving as minority leader from 2011 to 2017. A member ...
, with proceeds going towards the
Senate runoff election in Georgia.
Clemons, along with Timberlake,
Bruce Springsteen,
Demi Lovato, and
Bon Jovi, performed at the
inauguration of Joe Biden
The inauguration of Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States took place on Wednesday, January 20, 2021, marking the start of the four-year term of Joe Biden as president and Kamala Harris as vice president. The 59th presidential ...
on January 20, 2021.
On February 26, 2021, Clemons released a reissue of his debut project ''Happy 2 Be Here'' as ''HAPPY 2 BE HERE (Anniversary Edition)'' with an additional track named "June 1st", commemorating the release of his 2018 breakthrough hit "All Mine" with Kanye West.
Discography
Albums
* ''Happy 2 Be Here'' (2020)
EPs
* ''4Play'' (2022)
Collaborative albums
* ''
Jesus Is Born'' (2019)
Singles
Promotional singles
Guest appearances
Awards and nominations
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clemons, Ant
1991 births
Living people
Burlington County Institute of Technology Westampton Campus alumni
People from Willingboro Township, New Jersey
Singer-songwriters from New Jersey