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Durand Bernarr
Singer. Songwriter. Producer. Skater. Actor. Host.
Everybody’s favorite cousin on they daddy’s side?!
With a sound that has been coined as "Gangster Musical Theatre" by Qveen Herby, Durand Bernarr is one-part Little Richard, one-part Rick James, plus a heavy dash of powerhouse vocals & witty lyrical storytelling. The result is uniquely Durand - your favorite singer’s favorite singer!
Durand not only grew up in a home where his mother was a professional music teacher & vocal coach, but his father has also worked to provide sound & tour production to some of the greats in music such as Jay-Z, Earth, Wind & Fire, even Bob The Builder & the late great Whitney Houston.
Durand has had the opportunity to sit under, collaborate, & learn from some of music’s leading legends and contributors such as Earth, Wind & Fire, Producer Yonni (1st cousin on his father’s side) The Internet, Anderson. Paak, Sam Sparro, J*DaVeY, Teedra Moses, Adam Blackstone, Tweet, comedian Rickey Smiley & Erykah Badu.
In 2016, Durand released his first EP, Sound Check - & his track “Around” from that project was featured on BET’s hot new revamp of Boomerang. Billboard named him an "artist to know" in 2019, the same year during which he co-produced and featured on “Freefall”, a track on KAYTRANADA’s album BUBBA, which has more than 2 million plays on Spotify alone.
In 2020, Durand made huge waves with his self-titled album DUR&, which debuted at the #1 spot on the Apple Music R&B charts. Featuring collaborations with the likes of Ari Lennox, KAYTRANADA, Anna Wise, & bassist, “Buddah” Foster Jr., DUR& is as playful, witty & sonically imaginative as it is packed with infectious hooks and just plain GOOD singing.
In the words of Lena Waithe, who named Durand as one of her favorite singers, “Durand Bernarr is an amazing artist that kills it all the time.”