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Johntá Austin | |
|---|---|
 Austin in 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Johntá Marice Austin (1980-06-28)June 28, 1980 (age 45) |
| Genres | R&B[1] |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1995–present |
| Labels | |
| Formerly of | |
| Website | johntaaustin |
Johntá Moore Austin (/dʒɒnˈteɪ/jon-TAY; born June 28, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter. He is best known for his production and songwriting work on hometown nativeJermaine Dupri's record label,So So Def Recordings during the mid-2000s.
As a recording artist, Austin signed with the label prior to his guest appearance on Dupri's 2005 single "Gotta Getcha", which entered theBillboard Hot 100. The following year, his guest performance alongsideChris Brown on labelmateBow Wow's 2006 single "Shortie Like Mine" peaked within the top ten of the chart; the following year, his appearance alongsideT-Pain on Bow Wow's single, "Outta My System" peaked within its top 40. As a lead artist, Austin released several singles—including "Turn It Up" in 2005—in promotion for his debut studio albumOcean Drive, which was never released.[2]
Austin's songwriting credits often accompanies Dupri's productions, though he also collaborates frequently with producerBryan-Michael Cox and the duoStarGate. He won two Grammy Awards for his work on the songs "We Belong Together" byMariah Carey and "Be Without You" byMary J. Blige.
Austin grew up inAtlanta. In 1989 at the age of 8, Austin hosted the daily television show,Kid's Beat onTBS. Covering current events, sports and the entertainment world, Austin went on to become the Atlanta Bureau Chief for theCNN weekly news program,Real News for Kids and the reporter for the TBS half-hour weekly,Feed Your Mind. Austin is also related toDreamville Records signeeJ.i.D.
Austin grew up singing in church choirs and wanted to become an actor. He interviewed celebrities includingMichael Jackson andMichael Jordan, among others, and in 1993 he made his television debut onThe Arsenio Hall Show. On the show he said he loved singing and was asked to sing withArsenio Hall's band.[3]
Austin's first professional credit as a songwriter was the 1996 single "Can't Be Wasting My Time" for singerMona Lisa.
Austin was signed in the mid-late 1990s toRCA Records before being dropped in favor of R&B singerTyrese Gibson. However, he ended up writing a few songs for him (including the hit "Sweet Lady") as well as writing for other artists.
In 1998, Austin co-wrote the single "Miss You", which was originally intended for release on Aaliyah's self-titled third studio album (2001). However, following the singer’s untimely death in August of 2001, the track was ultimately included on the posthumously released compilation album,I Care 4 U (2002) alongside other Austin-penned songs "All I Need", "Come Over", and "Don't Worry". Austin co-wrote "Just Be a Man About It" forThe Heat, the third studio album forToni Braxton.
Austin co-wroteMariah Carey's hit 2005 singles, "We Belong Together", "Don't Forget About Us", "It's Like That", and "Shake It Off" from her albumThe Emancipation of Mimi.
"We Belong Together" stayed at number one for fourteen non-consecutive weeks, becoming the second longest-running number one song in US chart history at the time, behind Carey's 1996 collaboration with Boyz II Men on "One Sweet Day" (both songs have since been surpassed byLil Nas X andBilly Ray Cyrus' 2019 hit single "Old Town Road", which spent 19 weeks in the number one position at its peak). "We Belong Together" won Grammys for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song.
In that same year, Austin also co-wroteMary J. Blige's single "Be Without You" from her No. 1 selling CDThe Breakthrough andMonica's single "Everytime Tha Beat Drop" from her albumThe Makings of Me. He is also featured as a guest artist on Jermaine Dupri's 2005 song, "Gotta Getcha" and is credited as co-writer on several songs onChris Brown'sself-titled debut album in 2005, such as "Yo (Excuse Me Miss)" and "Poppin'". He also co-wrote "With You" for Chris Brown and "Can I Call You" fromMarques Houston's debut albumMH in 2003.
Austin produced and was featured on the songs "Shortie Like Mine" and "Outta My System", both singles by rapperBow Wow off his albumThe Price of Fame. Both of the songs were successful, "Shortie Like Mine" reaching number nine, and "Outta My System" reaching number 14 on theBillboard Hot 100.[4]
Austin co-wrote "Still" by Canadian singerTamia, found on her 2004 release,More, "This Song" byLeToya Luckett, found on her 2006 debut,LeToya, He also co-wrote "My Heart" onJennifer Hudson's self-titled debut albumJennifer Hudson (2008).
In 2007, Austin co-wrote "Can't Help but Wait" byTrey Songz for his second studio album,Trey Day. The song was nominated for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards. Austin continuing his work with Trey Songz in 2009 and would go on to executive produce and write on his next albumReady.[5] Austin wrote "One Love" with his musical partnerBryan Michael-Cox. Austin also co-wrote "I Need A Girl" which saw radio success reaching No. 6 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Song chart.[6]
In 2010, Austin co-wrote the song "Foolin Around" withJermaine Dupri and Bryan Michael-Cox forUsher's Grammy award-winning albumRaymond v. Raymond. Also, he co-wrote the song "Never Let You Go" for Justin Bieber's debut albumMy World 2.0. He executive produced and sang background vocal onPassion, Pain & Pleasure, the fourth studio album of Trey Songz.
On June 25, 2010, in Los Angeles, California, at theASCAP 23rd annual Rhythm & Soul music awards, Austin received the prestigious “Song of the Decade” award for his work on "We Belong Together" byMariah Carey, alongside fellow producerJermaine Dupri and songwriter Manuel Seal. He is currently a recurring character on the Fox show Star (2016) alongside hip hop legendQueen Latifah.[7]
After achieving success writing for other artists, Austin began work on his full-length debut albumOcean Drive on So So Def/Virgin Records. His first single "Lil' More Love" was released on June 7, 2005.[8] It was followed by the release of "Dope Fiend" on November 29 later that year.[9] While the album's first two singles failed to achieve radio/chart success, the label released a third single "Turn It Up" on July 11, 2006[10] along with aJadakiss-added version in November.
A fourth single, "Video" featuringUnk was released a year later on July 31, 2007.[11] Following the departure of So So Def Recordings fromVirgin Records forIsland Def Jam in 2007, the album was pushed back from a February 6, 2007, release to a September 4 release.[11] A final single, the ballad "The One That Got Away" was released in 2008, before the album was eventually shelved.[12]
In 2010, Austin released a digital single "Close Your Eyes".[13]
In 2012, Austin announced the upcoming release of the "Love" EP, part 1 of a three-part release with the subsequent "Sex" and "Religion" EPs to follow. "Love" EP was released on December 12 preceded by the buzz single "What a Feeling" featuring Jermaine Dupri.[14]
| Year | Single | Peak charts | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B | |||
| 2005 | "Lil' More Love" | — | — | Ocean Drive (Shelved) |
| "Dope Fiend" | — | — | ||
| 2006 | "Turn It Up"(featuringJermaine Dupri) | — | 48 | |
| 2007 | "Video"(featuringDJ Unk) | — | — | |
| 2008 | "The One That Got Away" | — | 94 | |
| 2011 | "Close Your Eyes" | — | — | Love, Sex, & Religion |
| Year | Single | Artist | Chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B | US Rap | ||||
| 2005 | "Gotta Getcha" | Jermaine Dupri | 60 | 31 | 15 | Young, Fly & Flashy, Vol. 1 |
| 2006 | "Shortie Like Mine" | Bow Wow(also feat.Chris Brown) | 9 | 9 | 1 | The Price of Fame |
| "Outta My System" | Bow Wow(also feat.T-Pain) | 22 | 12 | 2 | ||
| 2009 | "You Can Get It All" | Bow Wow | 55 | 30 | 9 | New Jack City II |
| 2010 | "Shawty Wus Up" | Dondria(also feat.Diamond) | — | 66 | — | Dondria vs. Phatfffat |
| 2022 | "Better Days" | JID | – | – | – | The Forever Story |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
