Meet Kenoe, the producer behind Nicki Minaj’s latest single “Beez in the Trap.” Nicki is not the first hip hop heavyweight Kenoe has worked with, he’s produced for Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, Chris Brown, Snoop Dogg, and more. Find out more info about Kenoe below.
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MAURICE “KENOE†JORDAN
MUSIC PRODUCER / RAP ARTISTMaurice “Kenoe†Jordan, the Louisiana born Producer who got his producer chops long before the influx of young producers today, is making it happen in the music business. Kenoe’s roots are unmistakably deep with a musical background groomed as a middle school band member. Kenoe cut his first record as an artist with fellow group member, G-Dub, in 1998. With the ability to read music and play instruments, such as the drums; keyboard; and piano, Kenoe’s love for music gradually cocooned into a profession.
Working diligently on his music, Kenoe was also a respected basketball player, and was part of a State Championship team in basketball and track. Kenoe had no idea that meeting Rapper and Executive, C-Murder on the basketball court would be life changing. From there, he met C-Murder’s brother, Master P and Kenoe was embraced as one of the brothers. The success was surprisingly lucrative for the 17 year old. No sooner than he could graduate from high school, C-Murder offered Kenoe to produce artists on No Limit Records. Kenoe went on to produce hits for artist, such as Silk Da Shocker, Mystikal, Master P,
C-Murder, and other established artists such as Snoop Dogg and Lil Flip. After the indictment of C-Murder, Kenoe found himself poised to rise above the setbacks to set himself up as a music producer, who would soon develop his own sound. Starting with his production of a Pepsi commercial for Master P and the placement of songs on the THREE SONGS movie soundtrack, Kenoe was well on his way to coming into his own.Kenoe’s Labortory Recordz was born in 2001. The label debut release “Life as a Mack†Volume 1 was the 1st release distributed by KOCH Records (now E1 Entertainment), and which featured the single, “Hating On me†featuring BG of the Hot Boyz. Still, Kenoe wasn’t satisfied. He went on to release other projects on his label Laboratory Recordz, signed Turk from the Hot Boyz, and released two albums on Koch after he left Cash Money. Those albums, RAW AND UNCUT and PENETENTARY CHANCES, were also Executive Produced by Kenoe.
With musical setbacks brewing for this blooming musical genius, Kenoe did NOT let the incarceration of his artist, Turk, stop him. In 2003, he signed a deal with distribution company, Select O Hits and released two more Turk Albums, STILL A HOT BOY in 2003, and CONVICTED FELONS in 2004.In 2003, he produced three songs for Sony Music Recording Rap Artist, Lil Flip, whose album UNDERGROUND LEGEND went platinum. In the same year, Kenoe also produced “Ya Heard Me†for Souljah Slim’s album, YEARS LATER. Additional Souljah Slim songs produced were, “My Jacket Consists ofâ€; and “Not My Dog†featuring BG. He also did songs for the famed television
show, “Growing Up Gotti†which featured the lavish lifestyle of the children of infamous crime boss, John Gotti.In 2004, Kenoe then met well-known music producer, DJ Toomp. Once they started to work together, the chemistry was undeniable. Kenoe then signed to Toomp’s Zone Boy Production Company and he began to get immediately connected within the Atlanta music scene. Producing a song for DTP/Def Jam Artist, Small World called “Put It In Reverse†in 2007 started a fresh industry buzz about Kenoe’s beats and soon after, he began working with Toomp as a co-producer on several projects, crafting beats for several artist.
In late 2007, Kenoe parted ways with Toomp because of creative business differences. “I will forever be grateful to Toomp for the opportunities he provided meâ€, states Kenoe. Branching back off once again to form his own team, the Night Rydas Productions (consisting of Kenoe, Crack Koke, Snizzy, and Kwony Cash) were formed and they started making beats. When asked to describe the Night Rydas, and before the “Open†sign could be placed on the door for business to begin, artists such as Plies came knocking. The Night Rydas debuted with Plies’ hit, “Spend the Night†which was placed onto his successful album, THE REALEST.
Kenoe met Kanye’ West while his mentor, Toomp, was working on Kanye’s Multi-Platinum GRADUATION Album. While absorbing the opportunity to be in the presence of music vets, Kenoe didn’t just sit around the studio and kick it. Providing some creative input to the album, a musical chemistry between Kenoe and West was formed. Kanye soon after gave him the opportunity to work with him on Jay-Z’s album, BLUE PRINT 3 which led to his co-production credit of “Every Day A Star is Born†with Kanye and No ID and “History†which was produced by Kanye and Kenoe. To date, Jay-Z performed “History†during the Inauguration for President Barak Obama and the song will also be featured on the LeBron James documentary and soundtrack.
Kenoe, as well as fellow Night Rydas Production member, Snizzy also landed production credits on Lil Wayne’s Carter 4 with the track “Nightmares of the Bottomâ€. After that, came placements on Rick Ross God Forgives I Don’t, Nikki
Minaj’s new single, “Beez in the Trap†feat. 2 Chainz, and 2 Chainz’ solo debut,
“Based on a T.R.U. Storyâ€. He also produced Chris Brown’s “Shit, Got Damn†feat. Big Sean, and tracks for Meek Mills, Ludacris, and various Young Money/Cash Money projects.
