The Authority On All Things R&B ! Ron Fair—legendary music executive, producer, and A&R visionary—joins J. Valentine for a masterclass on artist development, hit records, and the business behind some of music’s biggest careers. With a track record that includes working with artists like Christina Aguilera, The Black Eyed Peas, Mary J. Blige, Keyshia Cole, and more, Ron shares stories from inside the industry and breaks down what separates stars from everyone else. From discovering talent to shaping records in the studio, this episode is packed with insight from one of the most respected ears in music history. Subscribe on YouTube - https://bit.ly/RnBMoneyYouTube R&B MONEY Album out NOW !! https://tank.lnk.to/RnBMONEYID Tank: @TheRealTank http://www.youtube.com/@TheRealTank J Valentine: https://www.youtube.com/@jvalentinetv Director / Producer: Ruben Rivera https://www.youtube.com/@OpenLoopLife/featured Podcast IG: @RnBMoneyPodcast https://www.instagram.com/rnbmoneypodcast/?hl=en #tank #jvalentine #rnbmoneypodcast 0:00 Intro 1:15 Ron Fair Joins The Podcast 2:17 Why This Interview Feels Like Therapy 3:17 Growing Up In A Showbiz Family 4:13 Wedding Singer To Record Executive 5:04 Learning Engineering In A Small Studio 6:31 Recording The Original Rocky Score 8:26 “Gonna Fly Now” Becomes A Global Anthem 10:12 Receiving His First Gold Record 10:29 “You’re A Producer” — Life-Changing Advice 11:28 Becoming An A&R Executive At RCA 13:42 Getting Fired Five Different Times 15:04 The Pretty Woman Soundtrack Success 17:01 Discovering The O’Jays 19:31 Deciding To Produce “Emotionally Yours” 21:41 “One Square Inch To Groove In” 22:09 Learning R&B From The O’Jays 24:05 Building An All-Star Choir Session 25:20 The O’Jays Perform At Madison Square Garden 26:19 How The O’Jays Influenced Christina Aguilera 27:56 “Black Music Is The Major Food Group” 28:57 Seeing Christina Aguilera As An R&B Artist 30:29 Fighting For Music Over Politics 32:17 Why Hope Still Matters In Music 33:39 Eric Dawkins & Building Christina’s Sound 35:04 Mary J. Blige, Keyshia Cole & “The Hump” 36:12 Producing “Baby I Love Your Way” 38:41 Balancing Executive & Producer Roles 39:34 Producing Producers Like Jimmy Iovine 40:50 Wild Orchid, Fergie & Early Lessons 43:44 Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro After Christina 45:41 Jimmy Iovine Calls Ron Fair 46:41 “I Need A Guy Who Can Force Hits” 47:35 The Making Of “Lady Marmalade” 50:47 Maya’s Role In Building The Hook 51:41 Ron Fair’s Ad-Lib Arrangement Process 53:42 “Lady Marmalade” Goes Number One 54:30 Discovering Keyshia Cole 1:01:22 “I’m Forever A Video Hoe” 1:02:42 Keyshia Cole Wants J. Valentine In The Video 1:03:17 “You Need To Meet Ron Fair” 1:06:26 Ron Explains Label Protection & Contracts 1:07:24 Keyshia’s Early Singles Struggle 1:09:46 “Should Have Cheated” Changes Everything 1:10:38 Jimmy Iovine: “You Picked The Wrong Single 3 Times” 1:11:13 Tyrese Becomes Keyshia’s Video Co-Star 1:11:49 Working With Mya & “Moodring” 1:12:29 Turning Keyshia Cole Into A Reality TV Star 1:13:40 The Black Eyed Peas & Counterintuition 1:14:03 Mary J. Blige Calls Ron Fair 1:15:03 Jimmy Iovine Orders Ron To Fix “Be Without You” 1:16:35 Reworking Mary J. Blige’s Entire Album 1:17:12 “It’s All About What I’m Talking About” 1:17:42 The Story Behind “Take Me As I Am” 1:19:15 Why Today Is The “Star Business” 1:22:48 Speaking At An AI Conference 1:23:12 Dave Pensado Introduces Ron To Will.i.am 1:24:05 The Black Eyed Peas Tour Strategy 1:25:25 Justin Timberlake Helps Break The Black Eyed Peas 1:26:15 A Masterclass On Real Music Production 1:27:25 “The Vocal Is The Law” 1:28:35 The Making Of Vanessa Carlton’s “A Thousand Miles” 1:29:38 Ron Fair’s Top 5 R&B Artists 1:34:03 Ron Fair’s Top 5 R&B Songs 1:35:28 Dream Project: Lionel Richie 1:36:42 Building The Ultimate R&B Superstar 1:39:13 Dream Producers: Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis 1:41:22 “No Names” Grammy Story 1:45:25 Working On Dionne Warwick’s Final Record 1:46:31 Outro