Born March 21, 1973 in Beverly Hills, California, writer, composer, recording engineer, producer, label owner, and occasional rapper
Damon Elliott, also known as
Buck 22, is the son of pop singer icon
Dionne Warwick and jazz drummer and actor
Bill Elliott. He grew up in recording studios and stepped seamlessly into a career in the music business, with his first production project coming in 1996 with
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. At home in almost any genre, including pop, hip-hop, R&B, rock, country, and gospel,
Elliott went on to work with a full range of musical artists, from
Britney Spears to
Macy Gray,
Mya,
Deana Carter,
Jessica Simpson,
Christina Aguilera,
P!nk,
Gwen Stefani,
Beyoncé, and
Destiny's Child. After founding Confidential Records, he discovered, signed, mentored, and started the career of R&B artist
Keyshia Cole, along with hip-hop's
Hopsin.
Elliott's rendition of "Lady Marmalade" from the 2001 film Moulin Rouge won a Grammy Award that same year.
Elliott has also worked in television, writing and producing the theme songs for the shows Holly's World, Kendra on Top, and The Lylas. He founded another venture, The Damon Elliott Music Group, and signed a distribution deal for the new company. As
Buck 22,
Elliott's country hip-hop remake/do-over/sequel "Achy Breaky Heart 2" of
Billy Ray Cyrus' 1992 line dance hit, and the song's video, which featured a walk-on by Larry King and name-checked
Cyrus' daughter
Miley Cyrus, brought
Elliott/
Buck 22 a lot of media attention, although not all of it was entirely positive. ~ Steve Leggett