Edward "DJ Eddie F" Ferrell (born March 25, 1968) is an American producer, DJ, songwriter, executive and entrepreneur. He is co-founder and partner of the rap group
Heavy D & the Boyz
Dwight Arrington MyersCuda, Heidi Sigmund Keeping it reel. ''Vibe'' ("born Dwight Arrington Myers")Samuels, Anita M. (January 12' 1996)Heavy D, the C.E.O. ''New York Times'' (May 24, 1967 – November 8, 2011), known professionally as Heav ...
.
He is also mostly known for his various work and projects serving as the founder and owner of Untouchables Entertainment Group, Untouchables Records, numerous major label clients and their artists.
Allmusic credits
/ref>
Early career
The Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...
, New York native made his entry into production in the late 1980s on the gold certified Heavy D & the Boyz
Dwight Arrington MyersCuda, Heidi Sigmund Keeping it reel. ''Vibe'' ("born Dwight Arrington Myers")Samuels, Anita M. (January 12' 1996)Heavy D, the C.E.O. ''New York Times'' (May 24, 1967 – November 8, 2011), known professionally as Heav ...
debut ''Living Large
''Living Large...'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop group Heavy D & the Boyz. It was released on October 27, 1987, through Uptown Records. The production was handled by Andre Harrell, DJ Eddie F, Teddy Riley, Marley Marl and Heavy ...
'' with "Mr Big Stuff". Eddie continued to show his production prowess on their follow-up platinum releases, ''Big Tyme
''Big Tyme'' is the second album by American hip hop group Heavy D & the Boyz. ''Big Tyme'' is also the final album to feature bandmate Trouble T Roy (Troy Dixon), who died from a fall in 1990.
Reception
The album was released in 1989 for Uptow ...
'' and ''Peaceful Journey
''Peaceful Journey'' is the third album by rap group Heavy D & the Boyz.
Reception
The album was released on July 2, 1991, for Uptown Records and was produced by Pete Rock, DJ Eddie F, Teddy Riley (producer), Teddy Riley, Marley Marl and Howie ...
'', creating such classics as "Somebody For Me" and "You Ain’t Heard Nothin’ Yet", to name a few. He has been largely responsible and instrumental in delivering or developing much of the talent coming out of the Mt. Vernon area such as Heavy D
Dwight Arrington MyersCuda, Heidi Sigmund Keeping it reel. ''Vibe'' ("born Dwight Arrington Myers")Samuels, Anita M. (January 12' 1996)Heavy D, the C.E.O. ''New York Times'' (May 24, 1967 – November 8, 2011), known professionally as Heav ...
, Al B. Sure, Pete Rock & CL Smooth
Pete Rock & CL Smooth were a hip hop duo from Mount Vernon, New York. They made their debut with their 1991 EP, ''All Souled Out'' and followed that with their 1992 LP ''Mecca and the Soul Brother''.
Career
1991–1994: The Golden Age
As a prod ...
, Dave Hall, and even Diddy who lived with Eddie in his home studio loft for a while during the early stages of his Uptown Records, A&R career.
In the late 1980s, Eddie created Untouchables Entertainment in order to bolster the careers of promising young producers, writers and artists. Credited with originating the first modern "production camp," the company featured multi-platinum production and writing architects, including Eddie F himself, Pete Rock
Peter O. Phillips (born June 21, 1970), better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapping, rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongs ...
, Dave Hall, Kenny Greene, Mary Brown, Kenny Smoove and Donell Jones
Donell Jones (born May 22, 1973) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is most notable for the hits "U Know What's Up", " Where I Wanna Be", and his cover of Stevie Wonder's "Knocks Me Off My Feet". Jones' first studio alb ...
, who produced, wrote, and/or remixed songs for recording artists such as TLC
TLC may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Television
* ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2
* TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network
** TLC (Asia), an A ...
, Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...
, Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...
, LL Cool J
James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, along ...
, Will Smith
Willard Carroll Smith II (born September 25, 1968), also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor and rapper. He began his Will Smith filmography, acting career starring as Will Smith (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air), a ...
, Jodeci
Jodeci ( ) is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B quartet consisting of members DeVanté Swing, Dalvin DeGrate, Mr. Dalvin, K-Ci (singer), K-Ci, and K-Ci and JoJo, JoJo. Formed in 1989 in Charlotte, North Carolina, Jodeci's members began their mu ...
, Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited ...
, Jaheim
Jaheim H. Hoagland (born May 26, 1978), known mononymously as Jaheim, is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B singer. He was signed by Naughty by Nature's Kaygee to Divine Mill Records in 2000, and released his debut album ''Ghetto Love (album), Ghe ...
, Luther Vandross
Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...
, and Run DMC
Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history of ...
.
A pioneer in the sampling hip hop & r&b revolution, Eddie F and his Untouchables team are also credited with creating the first “featured artist remix” whereby a track was musically reworked and replaced by an entirely new track (remixed) and a “featured” rap artist that was not on the original song added a totally new rap and artist performance on the newly remixed track. The project that first originated this “featured rap remix“ concept was the 1990 remix of Johnny Gill's Rub You the Right Way, “featuring” CL Smooth.
By the early 1990s, Eddie had discovered and executive produced gold certified projects for rap duo Pete Rock & CL Smooth and R&B trio Intro
Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to:
General use
* Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music
* Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and ...
. During this year, Eddie also created the theme song music for the popular Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
television series ''In Living Color
''In Living Color'' is an American sketch comedy television series that originally ran on Fox from April 15, 1990 to May 19, 1994. Keenen Ivory Wayans created, wrote and starred in the program. The show was produced by Ivory Way Productions in a ...
'' starring then up and coming comedians Jamie Foxx
Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. He became widely known for his portrayal of Ray Charles in the 2004 biographical film '' Ray'', for which he won the ...
, Jim Carrey
James Eugene Carrey (; born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and artist. Known for his energetic slapstick performances, Carrey first gained recognition in 1990, after landing a role in the American sketch comedy te ...
, The Wayans Brothers
''The Wayans Bros.'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on The WB from January 11, 1995, to May 20, 1999. The series starred real life brothers Shawn and Marlon Wayans. The series also starred John Witherspoon and Anna Maria Hors ...
and "fly girl" Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series ''In Living Color'', where she rema ...
.
In the mid-1990s, he added the title of Vice President of A&R for LaFace Records
LaFace Records was an American record label based in Atlanta, Georgia, that operated as a unit of Sony Music Entertainment from 2008 to 2011 and was historically a part of Bertelsmann Music Group from 1989 to 2004. It was most active and achie ...
to his repertoire, reporting to co-owner and founder, LA Reid
Antonio Marquis "L.A." Reid (born June 7, 1956) is an American record executive, A&R representative, and record producer. He is the founder and served as co-chairman of Hitco Entertainment. He also previously served as the chairman and CEO of Ep ...
and was responsible for assisting Reid in managing its talent roster including Usher, OutKast, TLC
TLC may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Television
* ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2
* TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network
** TLC (Asia), an A ...
and Toni Braxton
Toni Michele Braxton (born October 7, 1967) is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. ...
. He would also serve as A&R for the Grammy winning album of The Tony Rich Project
Antonio Jeffries (born November 19, 1971), better known as Tony Rich and The Tony Rich Project, is an American Grammy-award-winning Contemporary singer-songwriter best known for his hit single " Nobody Knows".
Early career
Rich was born in D ...
, ''Words''.
During this year, Eddie simultaneously released ''Eddie F. and the Untouchables: Let's Get It On''- the album on Motown Records
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmant ...
. Spotlighting the works of the Untouchables camp, the compilation featured the only known in-studio collaboration of two up-and-coming hip-hop MC's at the time, 2Pac
Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...
and 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 ...
, on the title track "Let's Get It On"- which also featured Heavy D
Dwight Arrington MyersCuda, Heidi Sigmund Keeping it reel. ''Vibe'' ("born Dwight Arrington Myers")Samuels, Anita M. (January 12' 1996)Heavy D, the C.E.O. ''New York Times'' (May 24, 1967 – November 8, 2011), known professionally as Heav ...
and Grand Puba
Maxwell Dixon (born March 4, 1964), known professionally as Grand Puba, is an American rapper and emcee, best known as one of the members of the group Brand Nubian from New Rochelle, New York.
Biography
He made his debut as Grand Puba Max ...
.
He later segued to Motown Records as the Executive Vice President of A&R- managing a roster including Queen Latifah
Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally as Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, actress, and singer. Born in Newark, New Jersey, she signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1989 and released her debut album ''All Hail the Que ...
, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, The Temptations, and Boyz II Men, as well as newcomers 98 Degrees, 702, Taral Hicks, and his personal signing of Mario Winans.
This was also around the time that he discovered a then unknown Chicago singer named Donell Jones
Donell Jones (born May 22, 1973) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is most notable for the hits "U Know What's Up", " Where I Wanna Be", and his cover of Stevie Wonder's "Knocks Me Off My Feet". Jones' first studio alb ...
. Eddie quickly invested in Jones by making him a part of the Untouchables Records family. He then secured a distribution outlet for Jones and further developed his relationship with LA Reid
Antonio Marquis "L.A." Reid (born June 7, 1956) is an American record executive, A&R representative, and record producer. He is the founder and served as co-chairman of Hitco Entertainment. He also previously served as the chairman and CEO of Ep ...
and LaFace Records
LaFace Records was an American record label based in Atlanta, Georgia, that operated as a unit of Sony Music Entertainment from 2008 to 2011 and was historically a part of Bertelsmann Music Group from 1989 to 2004. It was most active and achie ...
spawning the hit single "U Know What's Up
"U Know What's Up" is a song by American R&B singer Donell Jones. It was written by Edward "Eddie F." Ferrell, Darren Lighty, Clifton Lighty, Balewa Muhammad, Anthony Hamilton, Clifford Harris, and Veronica McKenzie for his second studio album, ...
" featuring Left Eye of TLC which was also produced by him.
Some of the notable albums and "Greatest Hits" projects he has served as A&R and/or Executive Producer include ''Mecca and the Soul Brother
''Mecca and the Soul Brother'' is the 1992 debut album from hip-hop duo Pete Rock & CL Smooth. The album contains their best known song, " They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)". ''Mecca and the Soul Brother'' has been widely acclaimed as one of the ...
'', ''Intro'', '' Where I Wanna Be'', '' Story of My Heart'', Words
A word is a basic element of language that carries an objective or practical meaning, can be used on its own, and is uninterruptible. Despite the fact that language speakers often have an intuitive grasp of what a word is, there is no consen ...
'', '' Song Review: A Greatest Hits Collection'', and ''RUN DMC
Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history of ...
''.
Current projects
Currently, Eddie is very active in producing music for TV and Film. He is currently producing and composing several music scoring, TV network campaigns, and commercial projects for clients such as BET
Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...
, Centric, McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...
, Heineken
Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star.
History
On 15 Febr ...
, Jeep
Jeep is an American automobile marque, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with remaining assets, from its previous owner American Moto ...
/Chrysler
Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...
and others.
He has also been recently voted in as President of th
Georgia Music Industry Association (GMIA.org)
Eddie is also always continuing to focus on further developing his enterprise. He is currently developing several new and exciting artists with "LA" Reid and serving as a technical or music consultant for several industry heavyweights including Steve Stoute
Steve Stoute (born June 26, 1970) is an American businessman and record executive. Stoute is the founder and CEO of the Translation, a marketing agency, and the author of ''The Tanning of America: How Hip-Hop Created a Culture That Rewrote the ...
, the Legendary Julius "Dr J" Erving, actress Terri Vaughn, as well as BET, Centric Networks, and Andre Harrell
Andre O’Neal Harrell (September 26, 1960 – May 7, 2020) was an American music executive and multimedia producer. In 1986, recently a rapper, he formed Uptown Records, soon a leader in R&B, rap, and their fusion, "hip hop soul" and " new ...
.
He continues to write and produce tracks for some of music's most popular artists including Jaheim
Jaheim H. Hoagland (born May 26, 1978), known mononymously as Jaheim, is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B singer. He was signed by Naughty by Nature's Kaygee to Divine Mill Records in 2000, and released his debut album ''Ghetto Love (album), Ghe ...
, Chris Brown
Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to '' Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempo ...
, Anthony Hamilton and the last two Grammy winning albums of Luther Vandross
Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...
while also developing web technologies and apps.
DJ Eddie F is also
member
of the elite
Monster DJs
which is th
DJ division
of Monster Cable
Monster Inc. is an American company that manufactures and markets about 6,000 products, but is best known for audio and video cables. It also produces speakers, headphones, power strips, mobile accessories and audio devices for automobiles. The c ...
, the partner company of the widely successful "Beats by Dr. Dre
Beats Electronics LLC (also known as Beats by Dr. Dre, or simply Beats by Dre) is an American consumer audio products manufacturer headquartered in Culver City, California. The company was founded by music producer Dr. Dre and record company exec ...
" headphones line.
See also
* :Albums produced by Eddie F
References
External links
Instagram official
Twitter official
Facebook official
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eddie F
1968 births
African-American male rappers
American hip hop record producers
Living people
Musicians from Mount Vernon, New York
Rappers from New York (state)
21st-century American rappers
Record producers from New York (state)
21st-century American male musicians
21st-century African-American musicians
20th-century African-American people