STROKE OF JEEN-YUHS
Who is Coodie Simmons and what is his relationship with Kanye West?
A FREQUENT collaborator of Kanye West, Coodie Simmons is also a director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, and comedian.
Besides his work with Kanye, Coodie is highly regarded in the media industry for his team-ups with fellow filmmaker and producer, Chike Ozah.
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Who is Coodie Simmons?
Born on January 18, 1971, Coodie - real name Clarence Simmons Jr - is a Chicago native.
The son of Wendy and Clarence Simmons, Coodie grew up working with his older sister Tonia on her local radio show.
While attending Julian High School, Coodie realized his love for entertainment and film.
He was briefly a student at Northern Illinois University, where he studied communications.
Coodie was kicked out of college after one year due to academic and behavioral issues.
In 1994, Coodie and his friend Danny Sorge co-founded Channel Zero.
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The multitalented Coodie also appeared on Def Comedy Jam and BET's Comic View in the early 2000s, before launching Creative Control with Chike Ozah in 2007.
The superstar producer has one child, a daughter named Ivy - the mother's identity was not made public.
Despite a number of music video, television, and movie credits to his name, Coodie's estimated net worth is not known.
What is his relationship with Kanye West?
Coodie met Kanye West in 2002 and began shooting footage of the then recently signed rapper.
The hope was to make a documentary of Kanye's efforts with music.
He later met Chike, and Kanye paired the two up to work on the music video for Through the Wire.
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They later directed the music video for Two Words, as well as the third video for Jesus Walks.
In February of 2022, Coodie and Chike released a documentary entitled jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy.
The three-part film covers the life and career of Kanye, showing unreleased archival footage from the last two decades.
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What else did Coodie and Chike work on together?
As far as music videos go, Coodie and Chike have worked on a number of hits.
They're behind the videos for Pitbull's Culo, Mos Def's Ghetto Rock, Erykah Badu's Window Seat, and Lupe Fiasco's Old School Love.
Coodie and Chike have also worked with the likes of Christina Aguilera, Rick Ross, The Black Keys, Joey Bada$$, Wale, Gil Scott, Common, and Currensy.
The two released an ESPN 30 for 30 film entitled Benji, looking at the life of Benjamin Wilson.
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They later dropped a short known as Good Morning, debuting at the 2013 American Black Film Festival and winning the first place title.
In 2017, they created the Accel Origins Series which focused on various business founders sharing their entrepreneurial journey.
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