Andre Harris

Biography[edit]

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Harris grew up in a city known for its contributions to Black American music, namely the sub-genre of Philly soul. Deriving his inspiration from the local musicians that played with a lot of the major artists that came out of the City of Brotherly Love, as well as his musical family, he started playing drums in the church when he was just seven years old. Harris kept with his love for music throughout his youth; eventually teaching himself to play piano, guitar and bass during his teenage years.


His professional break came when he was introduced to DJ Jazzy Jeff as a musician in the early 1990s, and began collaborating with him and other producers at his studio. There, Harris spent a lot of time in the studio working with local Philly acts that were a part of the city's neo-soul scene. In 1995, Harris signed a production agreement with the legendary hip-hop DJ & producer, and became a part of his A Touch of Jazz team along with five other emerging producers. During the five years he spent under Jazzy Jeff's guidance, Harris worked with Jill Scott, Musiq Soulchild, Floetry, Will Smith, and Michael Jackson, to name a few.


In 2000, Harris and fellow A Touch of Jazz alumnus Vidal Davis decided to go off on their own and work as Dre & Vidal. The two were inspired by another famous Philadelphia songwriter/producer duo – Gamble & Huff. The writing and producing duo is credited with creating hits for Usher ("Caught Up"), Chris Brown ("Yo [Excuse Me Miss]), Ciara ("Oh"), Mariah Carey ("Clown"), Destiny's Child ("T-Shirt"), Musiq Soulchild ("Love"), Floetry ("Say Yes"), and Jill Scott ("The Way"), among others.


They went on to win two Grammy Awards in 2005 for their work on Alicia Keys' The Diary of Alicia Keys, and Usher's Confessions. In 2009, they won a third Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album for Mary J. Blige's Growing Pains.


Since 2010, Harris has been working independently as a producer. Most recently, he lent his soulful production to Burna Boy, Justin Bieber, Kanye West, Melanie Fiona, Mali Music, and Pharrell's I Am Other signee Cris Cab. He also co-executive produced Jill Scott's album Woman. Harris' signature style of mixing live instruments with studio production continues to be one of his most sought-after sounds.