Kerry Brothers Jr.
Kerry Brothers Jr. (born October 1, 1970), also known as "Krucial", is an American record producer, executive producer, songwriter and hip hop artist. Brothers was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Harlem and Far Rockaway, Queens. Brothers was initially an aspiring rapper, but he put his dream aside when he and singer-songwriter Alicia Keys began a musical partnership in mid-1990s co-writing and co-producing together a majority number of songs from her first four albums. Brothers and Keys co-owned a production company, KrucialKeys, based in New York, and together they created, co-founded  and co-owned a recording studio, The Oven Studios in Long Island, New York. In 2006, Brothers released his debut EP "Take Da Hood Back". Brothers has also worked with other R&B and hip hop artists including Mario, Rakim, Angie Stone, Nas, Keyshia Cole, Goapele, Drake and K'naan. Brothers co-wrote songs that appeared on the soundtracks of the films "Dr. Dolittle", "Shaft", and "Ali". He received two Grammy Awards from his collaborative work with Keys: Best R&B Album for "Songs in A Minor" and Best R&B Song for "No One".