Ron Fair: Discovering Hits, Building Artists & Music Industry Secrets • R&B MONEY Podcast •

Sun, 24 May 2026 18:43:47 +0000

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.

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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