Dwayne Allen Abernathy Jr. (born July 17, 1976), known professionally as Dem Jointz, is an American record producer, songwriter and singer. He has been credited with production work for artists including Kanye West, Rihanna,[1]Anderson .Paak, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Chris Brown, NCT 127, EXO, Aespa, and Itzy, among others. He served as in-house talent for Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment in 2015, during which he produced four tracks on Dre's third album, Compton (2015).[2] That same year, he produced several tracks on Janet Jackson's Billboard 200-number one album, Unbreakable (2015).
Since 2020, Abernathy has contributed production or backing vocals to West's albums Donda (2021) and Donda 2 (2022), as well as on his 2020 single "Nah Nah Nah".[3]
His record label, U Made Us What We Are, was founded in 2015 and has signed artists including Maryland-based rapper K.A.A.N., gospel singer Keedron Bryant, and his spouse, singer Stalone. He formed the supergroup Read the PDF with fellow Aftermath producers, Mr. Porter and Focus… in 2022.[4]
Dem Jointz was Born on July 17, 1976, in Compton, California. He was inclined to music at an early age, playing drums in his local church.[3][6]
Career
Prior to fully committing to music, Dem Jointz worked at a telecommunications company. In 2005, he was unexpectedly fired, which motivated him to pursue music seriously.[3]
In 2015, he also co-produced several tracks on Janet Jackson's Unbreakable, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Over the years, he went on to work with Kanye West, Rihanna, Christina Aguilera, Anderson .Paak, Eminem, and Brandy, among many others. His contributions to Kanye West’s Donda (2021) and Anderson. Paak’s Ventura (2019) earned him multiple Grammy nominations and two Grammy Awards.[7][8]
Dem Jointz founded his own record label, U Made Us What We Are, in 2015. The label was created to support and develop emerging talent.[6]
Around the same time, Dem Jointz began making waves in the K-pop industry. His first major K-pop placement came with Red Velvet’s "Don’t U Wait No More" from their debut studio album, The Red (2015). The success of the track resulted in collaborations with SM Entertainment, leading to a long-term partnership with the powerhouse label. He produced major hits for EXO, NCT 127, Aespa, BTS, TXT, and IVE. NCT 127’s "Cherry Bomb" was chosen by Billboard and Idolator as one of the best K-pop songs of 2017. EXO’s "Obsession" was named K-Pop Song of the Year by Billboard, while Aespa’s "Supernova" dominated the charts for 11 weeks at No. 1 and won Song of the Year at the Korean MAMA Awards.[9][10][11]
Producer tag
Abernathy's productions can be identified by his "Incoming!" producer tag, which can be heard in the beginning of his productions—namely Kanye West's "Nah Nah Nah".[12] He also uses the tag "Now, the breakdown" before the bridge of many songs, including Taeyeon's "Something New" and Lee Chaeyeon's "Hush Rush".[citation needed]
Personal life
On November 6, 2021, Dem Jointz announced on Instagram that he's engaged to his partner, Stalone, a Grammy-winning vocalist.[13]
