SUPERGROUP

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Jermaine Dupri New Frank Sinatra? Producer Talks ‘Ocean’s 7’ Supergroup
Posted Aug 7th 2009 4:45PM by Latifah Muhammad
Filed under: Hip-Hop, Soul/R’n’B
US,JD,MO

Fresh off his former job at Island Def Jam Records super-producer Jermaine hasn’t missed a beat. The Atlanta native recently hooked up with his friends Usher, Nelly, and Trey Songz to form the hip-hop/r&b supergroup Ocean’s 7. Alongside singer/songwriter Johnta Austin, Brian Michael Cox, and Dupri’s assistant Tyrone Davis, the group is looking to break a fresh mixture of music that the industry is lacking.

“[The] idea came from me,” Dupri told The BoomBox. “As far as the name of the group it was something that we just accidentally [started] doing by hanging out and working together. We were all in [Las] Vegas working on the Usher album and we just started going out, dressed up. We started noticing that restaurants [were] treating us differently. We were already people that they knew but [they were] treating us differently because we were dressed up.”

It didn’t hurt that women started to take notice. “Ladies started coming up more…. it just was a different type of atmosphere with the suits on and we kept doing it. One day we [were] doing the vlog and I said, ‘we should be called the Oceans.’ We never had a number, it was the Ocean’s five [in] the beginning.”We never said we were [going to] make music until we came [back] to Atlanta. I’m more on the executive record side [so] I looked at the marketing of it and I’m like ‘wow this really looks like something! We need a soundtrack, we need our own music.’ I just said let’s make a mixtape because I know that is something that’s getting really popular. Mixtapes to me seem a little more exciting than albums right now.”

Using Dupri’s Global 14 website, Ocean’s 7 released their entire mixtape for free download (which initially didn’t sit well with the other group members). The group also only record songs with whoever is in the studio each night, as opposed to setting up a recording schedule. “We made one song, one song turned into the next song. Whoever showed up in the studio was who got on the songs. A lot of people [are] saying ‘why isn’t this person on this song,’ or ‘why isn’t that person on that song,’ you know? Usher’s not on the mixtape because he started going through his divorce at that point in time so we let him do what he had to do.”

Of the original members Dupri sees himself being the most like Sinatra but also wants to tap into his “Sammie Davis Jr.” side by testing his singing abilities, a talent that he says the public doesn’t know about.

Complete with three piece suits, and bowties reminiscent of Sinatra and the original Ocean’s 11 members, Dupri and his crew are prepping a tour, a feature film and an accompanying soundtrack. “We plan on doing a movie called ‘I’m a Hustler Baby,’ which is a movie we that shows us basically re-doing the Ocean’s 11 movie mixed with the Bill Cosby Sydney Portier [film] ‘Let’s Do It Again.’

“Right now [we want] to make sure that everybody around the world knows exactly what this is. It’s never been a group this powerful to come together so we want to make sure that we don’t miss [any]body, we want to make sure that everybody knows about this.”

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20 Comments

  1. Nice article….

    Man I am mad at yall….. I’m at work and started to look down on the web site and yall got that naked girl right there!!!!! I’m like what the f@#$…. Next time give us a warning or something, yall trying to get a brother fired?????? It’s not like I can work for yall, I can’t even get a free accepella…. LOL

  2. OK!!! Im loving this Everybody is finally getting on the Ocean’s 7 Train and I love it!!!!!!!!!!! Im glad I was an orginal Lifer. We need a new episode of LTL w/ Johnta!! Thanks

  3. the mixtape was unexpected….lets see if the whole crew (put bow wow as guest feature…he slaughtered ‘too much swag’ C.O. reppin),but don’t let this be just a article 2 read…remember chairmen of the boards (timbo & dre) or CRS (lupe, kanye, pharell)….put this out!!! ya’ll got the paper playa.

  4. i love what you guys are doing. i love the music. thanks for bring real music back

  5. yo JD! just read about “The New Rat Pack” movement homie and thats crazy that yall are doin that becuz for the past year or so thats all ive been into! im tellin you man you should really check out “Back 2 The Basics” beat on my myspace page man that beat would be so perfect for yall…IM HUNGRY JD GET AT ME!!!

  6. I’m glad to know that Usher is DEFINITELY still part of Oceans. Jermaine you guys have really stumbled on something here. And I am here to support where it goes. New Rat Pack let’s go.

  7. Hey JD this is Portugal !!!

    I just want to say that I listen and I still listen to the Oceans 7 Mixtape and that I see every episode of LTL.

    Inty and J Sinatra are the stupidest of Oceans 7

    But yall make me laugh

  8. Umm…okay. Not really an original thought (and I know you know this–I am just saying…), but it is nice to see you all sexy and stuff.

    Real music? Lets get some real singing going too. Beautiful women who can sing should be right next to the handsome men of the Oceans “supergroup”, right? And not Dondria. She can sing, but she is too silly. Maybe in ten years for her. I am (not too) grown and serious about my man, but I ain’t got nothing but some ole dusty jazzy instrumentals, SILK, Joe or Luther to make love to. Lol. I can’t get it going to the STANKY leg. Damn! I am seriously hungry for some romantic singing. Usher and someone new. That’s an idea. Duet album. I don’t know…Maybe I am just horny. lol Get me some music with some thoughtful, loving, passionate, romantic lyrics please…lol I am beggin you.

    I have to admit I love you guys all suited up. Hot! Hot! Hot! It would be nice to see Usher singing to a woman in his Ocean’s digs. lol Sexy! Forget a movie. Bring back the love music JD!

  9. @Spock – Lol!

  10. I CAN’T WAIT TO SEE THIS MOVIE, IT’S GONNA BE HOT! LOL! YEAH I FEEL YOU ON THE USHER SITUATION, I FEEL SORRY FOR HIM FOR THE WHO DEVORCE SITUATION. THE WHOLE RECORDING THING MADE SENCE, THAT’S WHY USHER WASN’T ON THE MIXTAPE BECAUSE HE HASN’T BEEN IN THE STUDIO. I KNEW ABOUT OCEANS 11, I DON’T THINK PEOPLE REMEMBER FRANK SINATRA, HE WAS THE ONLY NIGGA IN THE PACK RAT GROUP. BUT YEAH, YOUR GROUP IS CLASSIE, BUT MY ONLY CONCERN IS WHAT ARE YA GONNA SING AND RAP ABOUT NEXT? CAUSE YA CAN’T RAP ABOUT REAL ISSUES, YA ONLY GONNA RAP ABOUT WHAT REPRESENTS YA AND WHAT’S RELVANT WITH TODAY’S LYRICS. BUT IF THE PUBLIC LIKES IT, THAN YA BE FINE. WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THE GROUP IS YA STYLE, AND THAT YA PRODUCERS/RAPPERS/R&B ARTIST THAT’S BEEN IN THE GAME FOR MORE THAN 10 YEARS. YA NOT AFRAID TO TRY NEW THINGS AND I REALLY RESPECT THAT A LOT BECAUSE NOW DAYS, RAPPERS ARE DOING THE SAME OL’ SHIT ALL THE TIME WHEN IT COMES TO THEIR MUSIC AND RAPPERS ARE ALWAYS COPYING OUT OF SOMEONE ELSE FLOW AND STYLE. WE NEED VISIONERS. I THINK J.D. GOT A VISION THAT I CAN SAY IS COOL BUT NOT DIFFERENT TO BE HONEST, BUT YOU TAKING RISK THOUGH. WITH ME, I HAVE TONES OF IDEA’S THAT ARE SO AMAZING, THAT I CAN’T SAY TO EVEYBODY ON HERE. I SENT A MESSAGE TO BABYFACE ON HIS BRAND NEW MYSPACE 2 DAYS AGO TO CHECK OUT MY BRAND NEW SONG, AND I TOLD HIM A LOT OF THINGS THAT HE NEEDS TO HEAR, AND I TOLD HIM MY IDEAS, AND THE TYPE OF ARTIST I AM, AND HE ACTUALLY RESPOND TO MY MESSAGE AND HE GAVE ME HIS PHONE NUMBER, AND THAN SAID I HAVE POTENTIAL. THE ONLY PROBLEM IS, I DON’T HAVE A CELL PHONE NOR A HOUSE PHONE. SO I HAVE TO GET A PRE-PAY PHONE TODAY. LOL! I BEEN KISSING SO MANY ASSES FOR 1 YEAR, AND ALREADY I MIGHT BE ON MY WAY TO MY DREAM. I REALLY LIKE BLOWN AWAY RIGHT NOW. I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT. BUT ANYWAYS.

    LIFE IS SHORT. LIFE IS ALL ABOUT TAKING RISK. WE ONLY HAVE ONE LIFE TO LIVE. PEOPLE HAVE DREAMS THAT WANT TO FA-FILL. SOMETIMES IT’S NOT EASY TO MAKE IT IN THE ENTERTAINMENT WORLD BECAUSE 99% OF THE TIME IS ALWAYS ABOUT LOOKS. TO ME, EVERYONE IS BEAUTIFUL, GOD DON’T MAKE UGLY, AND SOMETIME I MIGHT FEEL THAT I NOT BEAUTIFUL ENOUGH IN PEOPLE’S EYES, BUT WITH MY TALENTS, IT’S UNBELIEVABLE. ONE DAY I WILL MAKE A GIRL GROUP LIKE OCEAN 7. YOU WON’T SEE UNTIL 30 YEARS FROM NOW. LOL! I WANNA ADAPT EVERY LITTLE GIRL AROUND THE WORLD, AND RAISE THEM ALL TO BE CLASSIE YOUNG WOMEN.

  11. @Nakita

    I DON’T THINK PEOPLE REMEMBER FRANK SINATRA, HE WAS THE ONLY NIGGA IN THE PACK RAT GROUP

    Frank Sinatra is white not Black, who you speaking of is Sammie Davis, Jr. he was the only black men in the Rat Pack Group. But anyways, good luck on your music career!

    JD, Im a lifer! I love the postive things that are going on with you guys, I cant wait to hear the album & see the movie! I definately would support “The Oceans” 100%…

  12. Oceans 7 is pure genius….Lifers ridin the wave with you and been here since day 1. You may have stumbled upon this idea by chance, but it is how you run with it now that matters! The sky the limit lets have some fun and keep this craziness going!
    LIFERS STAND UP!

  13. usher looks good as hell in that pic

  14. Nice article, ya oceans keep doing ya thing.

  15. you guys are the bset we love ya so much ,your so real & fanny & crazy and nice ,
    WE LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH
    just keep us going

    what ever you touch we buy

  16. JET COVER=-) yall r soooooo WAVY..very GROWN&SEXY;-)

  17. im lovin the oceans ya’ll really motivated me to switch my swag up and dress in suits and sweater vest and i really look up to everyone in the group ya’ll are a real inspiration to the young generation and i check in with living the life and G14 everyda. GOD Bless ya’ll

  18. Hey guys our r so sexxxxxy

  19. Whats up

  20. I Like That Can’t Wait Til The Movie Comes Out I Wished Usher Was On The Mix-tape But I Understand My Poor Baby But The Mix-tape Is Still The Bombbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb

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