NEW YORK — Itβs the early β90s and a preteen Johnta Austin is in the studio working on his debut album with a pair of unknown producers named Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo.
Trading ideas, hearing beats and writing melodies β along with a future Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter named Joe β the artists were vibing out and creating magic.
Until Austin hit puberty.
βI got signed when I was 13, dropped when I was 15,β Austin explained. βMy voice changed and the administration that signed me left.β
One of the songs he worked on for himself, the sultry R&B balled βSweet Lady,β caught the interest of new signee Tyrese, who replaced Austin on the RCA Records roster.
βI was like, βI donβt want to do a song for this guy.β In my mind at this time, this guy took my spot, even though we had never met each other,β he said.
But Austin put his businessman hat on and gave the song away. Released in 1998, βSweet Ladyβ became a hit, earned Tyrese his first Grammy nomination and helped his debut album go platinum.
Fast forward nearly three decades after he first was signed, Austin now has two Grammy Awards and has co-written a handful of other multi-platinum hits deemed R&B classics, including Mariah Careyβs βWe Belong Togetherβ and Mary J. Bligeβs βBe Without You.β And the debut album he first worked on at 13 finally came out β when Austin was 39 in 2019.
βItβs been a long time coming. Definitely happy to have this album out,β he said of βLove, Sex & Religion.β
In an interview with The Associated Press, Austin β who turns 41 next week β talks about his career, the Grammys, getting dance tips from Janet Jackson and writing hits for Carey, Blige, Aaliyah and more.
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WE MISS YOU
Austin originally wrote the song βMiss Youβ with Ginuwine for the R&B croonerβs album, but then Aaliyah heard the track and wanted to record it.
βShe loved βMiss You.β She was like, βThis is amazing. I want to cut it,ββ Austin recalled.
But Austin had sent her another song, βI Donβt Wanna,β and his team wanted the late icon to record that track. So they made a deal.
βMy manager at the time was like, βYou have to cut βI Donβt Wannaβ to get (βMiss Youβ),ββ Austin revealed.
βMiss Youβ was released in 2002 following Aaliyahβs tragic death a year prior, and the music video was a tribute to her life and legacy, with everyone from Jay-Z to Missy Elliott making cameos.
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PHARRELLβS PHAVORITE
Aaliyah’s βI Donβt Wanna,” released in 2000, not only became a hit on the pop and R&B charts β it is Pharrellβs No. 1 pick from Austinβs rich catalog.
βTo this day, every time I see Pharrell, heβs like: βThatβs my favorite Johnta Austin song of all time,β Austin said. βAnd then he sings it.β
Pharrell remembers working with Austin in the early β90s, telling the AP: βJohnta just had an incredible (gift and he) still has an amazing voice, and heβs a great writer. He was talented then, at 14.β
Of those days, Austin remembers being in producer Dallas Austinβs recording studio in Atlanta while βPharrell was walking around in these big space boots.β
βThey were young kids. I remember Chad (Hugo) had to go back because he had classes. He had to fly back to Virginia. Pharrell he was writing, Joe was doing the demos,β he said.
Austin recalled the Neptunes duo working on some of their early successes at the time, including SWVβs β Use Your Heart,β which reached No. 6 on the R&B charts.
ββUse Your Heartβ was done in those sessions; Joe demoed that,β Austin said. βYou can still hear some of his old ad-libs.β
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BABY USHER
Imagine this: A teenage Austin and Usher running the New York City streets, visiting open mic nights and honing their performance chops.
βThis was back when I had no business being in these clubs. I was 14, 15,β Austin said, namedropping clubs like Cafe Wha? and Chaz and Wilson. βThatβs back when on any given night, theyβd pass the mic around, Joe would get the mic, Dave Hollister would get the mic, Puff (Daddy) brought 112 there one night and they performed. It was great. I would always go with Carl (Thomas) and Troy (Taylor) and pass the mic.β
He added: βWe took Usher down there… This is before βMy Wayβ came out. He and I knew each other since I was 12 and he was like 13 coming up in Atlanta. He did βCall Me a Mackβ for the βPoetic Justiceβ soundtrack. Thatβs how far him and I go back. He would pick me up from school. When he got his jeep, he would pick me up. Me, him, Jason Weaver were riding around. That was the crew back then.β
Usher is just two years older than Austin and released his self-titled debut album in 1994. His major breakthrough came with 1997βs βMy Way,β which featured the hits βYou Make Me Wanna…β and βNice & Slow.β
Austin said Usherβs success inspired him to not give up on music.
βRight around that time he dropped βMy Wayβ it was like, βNow heβs the man.’ββ That was motivating for me. Then I realized I had a talent for writing songs. I was like, βI can stay around the industry doing this.β It just motivated me to stick around and find another way in.β
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RHYTHM NATION
Austin co-wrote multiple songs on Janet Jacksonβs 2006 album β20 Y.O.,β including the hits βSo Excitedβ and βCall on Me.β
But one time in the studio, Austin got a dance lesson from the pop icon.
βFred Astaire is on the TV and then I see the move. He does this move and Iβm like, βThatβs where Michael got that move from! Sheβs like, βYouβve never seen this?’ Iβm like, βNo!ββ
So Austin stands up and gives the dance a try.
βIβm playing around and sheβs like, βNo, no, no. You have toβ¦β She stands up and Iβm like, βWhatβs going on?’ Janet is teaching me how to do a move that her brother did in a video. This is crazy.β
Austin said working with Jackson was a lifelong dream, especially because he was always a big fan of her music.
βIβm getting called to work (with her) and sheβs loving the material? Itβs still hard to sink in when youβre sitting with these people,β he said. βThe humility that she has; she is open to ideas and then nurturing you to be your best. Itβs great.”
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THEY BELONGED TOGETHER
βWe Belong Togetherβ was the No. 1 song of the 2000s, but Austin almost didnβt work on the classic Mariah Carey track.
Austin said when he was collaborating in the studio with the pop diva and Jermaine Dupri, his βpublisher wanted me to do this other project.β
βI was like, βI would love to but Iβm in Atlanta working on Mariah. They were like, βAre you crazy? Mariah, she just did βGlitter.β I canβt believe youβre passing this up.ββ
Austin clearly made the right choice. βWe Belong Togetherβ is not just one of the most popular songs every released, it appears on Careyβs βThe Emancipation of Mimi,β her comeback album that cemented her spot on the list of greatest singers of all-time and extended her long list of No. 1 hits.
βI’d like to think we got that one right,β said Austin, who also co-wrote βItβs Like That,β βShake It Off,ββDonβt Forget About Usβ and more tracks from the seminal album. βIt was great. Just to be there, melodies back and forth, ideas back and forth. Sheβs a real writer and sheβs fantastic.β
During those recording sessions, he said βWe Belong Togetherβ was the last track they worked on. The ballad spent 14 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and won the Grammys for best female R&B vocal performance and best R&B song, earning Austin his first gramophone.
βI donβt want to say I stopped listening to the radio, but I couldnβt go 30 minutes without hearing that song. That song was everywhere.β
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GRAMMY SHMAMMY
Though βWe Belong Togetherβ won two Grammys, it didnβt pick up song or record of the year β huge honors that rarely go to R&B or rap tunes.
βIt was Destinyβs Child who was presenting song of the year and it happened to go to U2, and I remember seeing BeyoncΓ© turn,β Austin recalled, βI donβt know if the camera caught it, but BeyoncΓ©, after she announced it, she turns to Mariah and was like, βI’m sorry.'”
Carey also lost album of the year to U2 while Green Day won record of the year.
But a year later, Austin was a song of the year nominee with Mary J. Bligeβs βBe Without You,β which spent 15 weeks on top of the R&B charts.
βEveryone was like, βThis is the year because it was another huge comeback for Mary. Everyone was like, βWow, Maryβs back.β Everyone was like, βYouβre going to win song of the year.ββ
But they didnβt. The song, also nominated for record of the year, only won two Grammys in the R&B categories, much like βWe Belong Together.β
βWe won best R&B song earlier in the night and … I remember when the Dixie Chicks performed. Iβm listening to the lyrics, I turn to my manager and I go, βWe can go ahead and leave,ββ he said of the Chicksβ stirring political anthem βNot Ready to Make Nice.β
βThey had a big thing against the president at that time. When they made that song, it was like, βWeβre not winning this.ββ