Ken Duro Ifill

Ken Ifill
Birth nameKenneth Ifill
Also known as
  • Duro
  • Supa Engineer
  • The Chairman
Genres
Occupations
Years active1993–present
LabelsDesert Storm

Ken "Duro" Ifill is an American mixing engineer and record producer. He is a co-founder and chief executive officer of Desert Storm Records. In 2011, he was nominated for Grammy Award for Record of the Year at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards for "Empire State of Mind".[1] Since 2018 he operates as vice president and A&R of Republic Records.[2]

Since 1998, as a record producer, he produced tracks for the likes of Noreaga, Jay-Z, Fabolous, Foxy Brown and Pop Smoke.

Career

Early career

In the mid-1990s, Duro served as an intern engineer for Q-Tip during the recording of Mobb Deep's The Infamous album.[3] His first credits as mixing engineer were on Gravediggaz debut album.[4]

Desert Storm Records

In 1997, Duro, DJ Clue, and Skane Dolla (DJ Clue's manager) developed Desert Storm Records. The label's first major artist is rapper Fabolous. In September 2001, Fabolous released his debut album Ghetto Fabolous, charting at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. The label was previously distributed through Interscope, Elektra, Atlantic and Sony. The label is currently distributed through Def Jam.

Discography

Partial production discography

List of production credits (excluding executive producer credits), showing selected information
Year Song Artist Album Notes
1998 "Thugs R Us" DJ Clue?, Noreaga Streets Is Watching Soundtrack produced w/ DJ Clue?
"Mathematics (Esta Loca)" Noreaga N.O.R.E.
1999 "Dope Man" Jay-Z Vol. 3... Life and Times of S. Carter produced w/ DJ Clue? & Darrell "Digga" Branch
"Pop 4 Roc" Jay-Z, Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek, Amil produced w/ DJ Clue?
2000 "Gotta Be a Thug" Fabolous DJ Clue Presents: Backstage Mixtape (Music Inspired by the Film)
2001 "Back 2 Life 2001" Jadakiss, Mary J. Blige The Professional 2
"Jay-Z Freestyle" Jay-Z
"Fantastic Four, Pt. 2" The Lox, Cam'ron, Nature, Fabolous
"What the Beat" Method Man, Bad Meets Evil
"Interlude" Lil' Mo
"Fuck a Bitch" Snoop Dogg, Kurupt
"Live from the Bridge" Nas
"So Hot" Foxy Brown The Professional 2 and Broken Silence
"Bathgate Freestyle" Bathgate The Professional 2
"I Don't Care" Capone-N-Noreaga
"Dangerous" Lady Luck
"Phone Patch" Ty Shaun
"Don't Stop (Funkin' 4 Jamaica)" Mariah Carey, Mystikal Glitter produced w/ DJ Clue? & Mariah Carey
"Last Night a D.J. Saved My Life" Mariah Carey
"Click & Spark" Fabolous Ghetto Fabolous produced w/ DJ Clue?
"Keepin' It Gangsta"
"Ride for This" Fabolous, Ja Rule
"Trade It All" Fabolous, Jagged Edge
"Take You Home" Fabolous, Lil' Mo
"Gotta Be Thug" Fabolous
"If They Want It"
2003 "Up on Things" Fabolous, Snoop Dogg Street Dreams
"Into You" Fabolous, Ashanti, Tamia
"Throw Back" Fabolous
"Keepin It Gangsta (Remix)" Fabolous, Styles P, Jadakiss, M.O.P., Paul Cain
"Trade It All (Part 2)" Fabolous, P. Diddy, Jagged Edge
2020 "Something Special" Pop Smoke Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon N/A

References

  1. ^ "ARTIST: Ken "Duro" Ifill". Grammy Awards. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  2. ^ Mercuri, Monica (June 27, 2018). "Republic Records Names Ken 'Duro' Ifill as Senior VP of A&R: Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  3. ^ Mao, Jeff (2013). "Q-Tip". Red Bull Music Academy. New York. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  4. ^ Setaro, Shawn (September 6, 2018). "How Ken "Duro" Ifill Moved From Pushing Mixtapes to Record Executive". Complex Networks. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
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