Jermaine Dupri: the hitmaker
|  | | Jermaine Dupri | Mega producer/rapper Jermaine Dupri skipped into town over the weekend, mike in one hand, turntable in the other. Not content to make hit records for those in need of a comeback - most famously Mariah Carey - Dupri is touring as a deejay. The 305-stop: Mansion on Friday night.
"I've always been interested in deejaying. When I was younger, I couldn't even get in the club. Now that I have a name, I am coming into clubs to rock the house," says JD, a Hot-lanta native. "Making people move on the dance floor is a lot like producing music."
Of course, his banging beats and all-star cast of hitmakers - Carey, Usher, Jay-Z and of course, Janet Jackson (whose album he executive-produced) put him on the map. The Island Urban Music says he's looking to make magic with Jackson after her last two albums drew lukewarm sales. Her Discipline debuted last week at No. 1 on Billboard's top 200, selling 181,000 copies. "I am feeling good about everything right now. We had a No. 1 with Janet, and I have Mariah and Usher coming up later this year," he says. "Janet and I try not to mix the professional and the personal. We just went into the studio, let the creative juice flow, put it all in one big pot and hopefully came up with something good."
JD kept his convo about Janet "professional", except to note that when they have kids, she says, "They will all be different, but we have to love them all the same" - advice from the baby in the Jackson clan. JD offered a bit about what makes Miami one of his favorite stops. Your favorite place?
"I like the Setai and Skybar at the Shore Club. The thing I like about Miami is every time I come here, there's a new hotspot with a new and different vibe." What keeps you coming back?
"It's the atmosphere. You come here and you really have come to an island. Everybody is sexy. Vegas is hot, but Miami's got the sexy vibe." (Miami Herald)
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