Who is Jermaine Dupri Mauldin? The world knows him as Jermaine Dupri he is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, record executive, entrepreneur, and DJ. Dupri was born and raised in Atlanta, he began his musical career at the age of nine, as the son of Columbia Records executive Michael Mauldin. In 1991, he discovered the teen hip hop duo Kris Kross. Dupri wrote and produced their breakout 1992 single "Jump," which peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100 and was named the 23rd most successful song of that decade. He established his own record label, So So Def Recordings in a joint venture with Columbia the following year.
Dupri has since signed artists including Xscape, Bow Wow, Da Brat, Jagged Edge, Dem Franchize Boyz, YoungBloodZ, and Anthony Hamilton to the label. Meanwhile, he worked with Mariah Carey, Usher, Monica, and Nelly to produce a total of 11 chart-topping singles on the Billboard Hot 100. As a recording artist himself, Dupri's debut studio album, Life in 1472 (1998) peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and was supported the top 40 single "The Party Continues" (featuring Usher and Da Brat) and the Grammy Award-nominated "Money Ain't a Thang" (featuring Jay-Z). His second album, Instructions (2002) peaked at number 15 on the Billboard 200. In 2013, Dupri replaced Randy Jackson as Mariah Carey's talent manager. He co-created a reality television series, The Rap Game with Queen Latifah in 2015. He has received a Grammy Award from 12 nominations. Early life Jermaine Dupri Mauldin was born on September 23, 1972,[2] the son of Tina (Mosley) and Michael Mauldin, a Columbia Records executive and grew up in College Park (Atlanta metropolitan area). Dupri managed to get on-stage and dance along with Ross. Dupri got his start as a dancer for the hip hop group Whodini when he was twelve. He made an appearance in their music video for the song "Freaks Come Out at Night".] He began performing around the country, appearing with Herbie Hancock and Cameo before he opened the New York Fresh Festival, with Run-D.M.C., Whodini, and Grandmaster Flash.