Rob Fusari, also known as 8Bit, is an American record producer and songwriter. He has worked with Beyoncé,

Kelly Rowland Kelendria Trene Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. During the g ...

Will Smith Willard Carroll Smith II (born September 25, 1968), also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor and rapper. He began his acting career starring as a fictionalized version of himself on the NBC sitcom '' The Fresh ...

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "Honorific nicknames in popular music, The Voice", she is Whitney Houston albums discography, one of the bestselling music artists ...

and

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

Early life

Rob Fusari was born between 1967 and 1968. And raised in

Livingston, New Jersey Livingston is a township in Essex County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 29,366, reflecting an increase of 1,975 (+7.2%) from the 27,391 counted in the 2000 Census. In 2019, the Population Estimates Progr ...

. A child prodigy, Fusari won numerous piano competitions at

Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue and theater at 1260 Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Nicknamed "The Showplace of the Nation", it is the headquarters for th ...

at 8 years old.

Career

Fusari began writing songs while a student at William Paterson University. He started recording demos, and subsequently met hit songwriter

Irwin Levine Irwin Jesse Levine (March 23, 1938 – January 21, 1997)
- accessed April 11, 2012 was an American songwriter, who co-wrote ...

, who was known for writing " Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" and several other hits for Tony Orlando & Dawn. In the late 1990s, Fusari became producing partners with

Vincent Herbert Vincent Herbert (born January 27, 1973) is an American songwriter, record producer, record executive, and founder of Streamline Records, an imprint of Interscope Records. Work He has worked with artists such as Aaliyah, Tatyana Ali, Toni Braxt ...

. It was at this time that he wrote his first #1 hit single, " No, No, No", which launched

Destiny Child Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited s ...

's career. In 2001, Fusari produced " Bootylicious" for the group's third studio album ''

Survivor Survivor(s) may refer to: Actual survivors * *Last survivors of historical events Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Survivors, characters in the 1997 ''KKnD'' video-game series * ''The Survivors'', or the ''New Survivors Found ...

''. The song also peaked at number 1 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In 1999, Fusari produced

's successful single "

Wild Wild West ''Wild Wild West'' is a 1999 American steampunk Western film co-produced and directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and written by S. S. Wilson and Brent Maddock alongside Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman, from a story penned by brothers Jim and ...

" from the film of the same name. In 2002, he produced the songs "

Train on a Track "Train on a Track" is a song by American singer Kelly Rowland. It was written by Rob Fusari, Sylvester Jordan Jr., Balewa Muhammad, and Tiaa Wells and recorded by Rowland for her solo debut album ''Simply Deep'' (2002), while production was helmed ...

" by

and Whitney Houston's " Love That Man", which were both released as singles to varying degrees of success in 2003. The same year, Fusari first worked with

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

on a track titled "Love's Supposed 2 Be", which failed to be included on '' In the Zone''. In 2008, Fusari served as producer on Gaga's Grammy-winning debut album, ''

The Fame ''The Fame'' is the debut studio album by American singer Lady Gaga. It was released on August 19, 2008, by Interscope Records. After joining Kon Live Distribution and Cherrytree Records in 2008, Gaga began working on the album with different ...

''. He produced and is credited on five songs: "

Paparazzi Paparazzi (, ; ; singular: masculine paparazzo or feminine paparazza) are independent photographers who take pictures of high-profile people; such as actors, musicians, athletes, politicians, and other celebrities, typically while subjects ...

", " Beautiful, Dirty, Rich", "Again Again", "Brown Eyes" and "Disco Heaven". Fusari also produced and co-wrote "Vanity", "Glitter & Grease", and "Retro Dance Freak". In 2012, he started an independent music label, Last Quarter Records which is based in New York City. Fusari is currently signed to Sony ATV Publishing. In May 2016, ABC's follow-up to the classic '' The Lexicon of Love'' album was released called '' The Lexicon of Love II''. Fusari co-wrote "Confessions of a Fool", "Singer Not the Song" and "The Ship of the Seasick Sailor" with lead singer Martin Fry. The album entered the UK album charts at #5, the band's first UK Top 10 release since 1990. Fusari toured with ABC on their Lexicon of Love II UK Tour (with full orchestra conducted by

Anne Dudley Anne Jennifer Dudley (née Beckingham; born 7 May 1956) is an English composer, keyboardist, conductor and pop musician. She was the first BBC Concert Orchestra's Composer in Association in 2001. She has worked in the classical and pop genr ...

), autumn 2016. In December Fusari and Fry wrote and produced ABC's first ever Christmas song "A Christmas We Deserve" together. BBC Radio 2 put it on the A-list upon release.

Production discography

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fusari, Rob 1960s births Living people Year of birth missing (living people) William Paterson University alumni American people of Italian descent Record producers from New Jersey People from Livingston, New Jersey Songwriters from New Jersey