Good fortune continues to rain down on songwriter/producer Kuk Harrell. He recently received a Golden Globe nomination ("Best Original Song, Motion Picture") for co-writing "I See You" from the mega-hit movie "Avatar."

Harrell was also a big winner at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards. He co-wrote Beyonce's infectious hit, "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" and it won "Song Of The Year" and "Best R&B Song."

In addition to Beyonce, Harrell and his teammates Christopher "Tricky" Stewart' --who is also his cousin-- and Terius "The-Dream" Nash' have produced and co-produced some of the biggest hits for artists like Rihanna ("Umbrella"), Jamie Foxx, ("Just Like Me"), Chris Brown, ("You,") Mary J. Blige ( "Stronger with Each Tear" and "Just Fine") and Usher ("Here I Stand") among others.

Harrell's "Midas" touch has made him one of the hottest and most sought after producers around. Even Sony/ATV Music Publishing signed him to a long term exclusive songwriter deal. And to top it all off, Harrell started his own production company, Sugawuga Music to develop new talent.

But don't think for a moment that Harrell is some sort of overnight sensation. The 45-year-old music maker, who grew up in Chicago and now calls Atlanta home, has been honing his singing, songwriting and production skills ever since he was 16-years old.

N2Entertainment.net caught up with the very personable producer during a recent interview. Harrell discussed his red-hot career, being tapped to co-write the score to "Avatar," his musical family, his label Sugawuga Inc. and producing Jennifer Lopez and Katy Perry's upcoming releases.

Here's what else we learned about Kuk Harrell.

Q. The last two years have been pretty extraordinary for you on the music front and 2010 is shaping up to be just as big. How does all this notoriety feel?

A. It's been absolutely unbelievable. The Grammy nominations (Beyonce's "I am… Sasha Fierce") and getting a Golden Globe nod ("Best Original Song, Motion Picture", "I See You") from the biggest movie of the year, ("Avatar") has just been incredible. It all seems surreal. I've actually been so busy working that it's only now I'm able to take a bit of a break and truly embrace it all. I've been to the Grammys before, but never the Golden Globes. So it was a wonderful experience and quite humbling.

Q. How did you become attached to writing the theme song for "Avatar?"

A. Simon Franglen is a movie/music producer and has been a friend of mine for several years. He was hired by James Horner who was working on a melody for the movie. When they decided to do the song for the film they wanted someone who was contemporary and could give the song a contemporary feel. Simon told James Horner that he had a friend who had just written Beyonce's big hit "Single Ladies" and Rihanna's "Umbrella." He said 'let's bring him aboard.' I was sitting on my porch having wine with my wife when I got the call. Beyonce ended up recording a version for James Cameron to hear and he was impressed. Later Leona Lewis recorded the song and that's the one that's heard on the film and the soundtrack. So after a lot of work it all came together.

Q. Was it a long process from start to completion?

A. It took about seven months total. That's longer than normal, but that's because we don't always have as much time to take as long. It's like write it fast and get it right usually the first time. That way it's done in a matter of days or weeks even. On the "Avatar" project we had a lot more leeway mainly because we wanted to make sure the melody and lyrics were absolutely perfect. And the final person who agreed was James Cameron, so we went with it.

Q. Generally when you go into a studio to record an artist is there a certain something that you know in advance that tells you the song is going to be a runaway hit or is it just going with your gut instinct?

A. I bring my "A" game to every project, every time I step into the studio. You do get a good, gut feeling about what you're about to create. Something usually tells me that OK, this is really special. If it's not special it doesn't get finished with me. So, you may know it's special, but you don't ever know how the public is going to react to it or if it's going to be a smash. Fortunately, I've created music that people like and in turn the songs have been smash hits. I'm blessed for that.

Q. Do you come from a musical family?

A. Yes, I definitely do. Me and "Tricky" Stewart are cousins. Our moms were TV jingle singers back in the 1970s. And all the background singers that you hear behind Aretha Franklin from the movie soundtrack "Sparkle" are our moms. My sister also sings. She did a few Coca-Cola and Pepsi commercials along with the vocals "I wanna be, I wanna be like Mike" for the Michael Jordan Gatorade commercial. So I was always around music.

Q. Growing up were you always interested in being a music producer or did you want to be a singer or both?

A. I knew I always wanted to work professionally in the music industry. I really did spend a lot of my teen years singing. I also did a few TV commercials like Captain Crunch and McDonalds. I was always fascinated in the creative process--the writing, production etc-- of how songs all came together. When I was about 16, I started becoming more serious about writing.

Q. Who are some songwriters and or producers that you admire?

A. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Babyface, Diane Warren and David Foster. I came up during the time that Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were large. I was impressed watching Jimmy and Terry and how they crafted Janet Jackson and created such great music with her.

Q. Did you also work with songwriters Diane Warren and David Foster?

A.Yeah, I did demos for Diane and David. Diane would cut both a male and female version of her songs and I would sing the male version for her.

Q. Is it true that singer/songwriter Paul Anka assisted in developing your musical career?

A. Yes. Paul Anka had a small part in my career.
I sang a demo for him in Los Angeles. For the work, I received my first check for $250. I was so thrilled. My wife and I were deciding whether to pay the rent or sow the money into a ministry and pray for even more good fortune down the line. We chose the latter and it payed off. Within a day, Simon Franglen called me and offered me steady work singing demos. I've been able to pay the rent ever since (Lots of laughter).

Q. Can you tell me about your new label, Sugawuga?

A. I'm very excited about it because it allows me to reach back and bring along and develop other artists. There's a lot of talent out there waiting to be tapped.

Q. Is there any particular person or group you have your eye on now?

A. Yes there is. When I took some time off away from working, I did some music ministry. During this time I met these amazing and talented girls, who were 19, 17 and 14-years old. I'm in development with them now and have had them signed to Interscope Records. Their group name is the Calvillo Girls. They are my first signings and I'm very excited about their music career.

Q. What other artists are you collaborating with?

A. I'm working on Jennifer Lopez's upcoming CD, "Love?" Not sure when it will be out. You know people can say what they want about J-Lo, but you can't deny she's a star. She's had a fashion line, movies, records and everything. She's a total professional. I love working with her. I'm also in the studio writing and producing Katy Perry's new CD. I started both of these collaborations right before the holidays.

Q. I know you're still young and all, but what would you like your musical legacy to be?

A. That I followed my passion that God put in my heart and kept going with it until I saw it come through. And that I understood the importance of reaching back and sharing my knowledge and talents by bringing other people on board.

Q. The Jacksons could probably use your talents about now. On their reality show, they're having a bit of difficulty getting some new music produced for an upcoming concert despite advice from Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Would you like to work with them?

A. Oh, I would love to work with The Jacksons. Are you kidding? You can never count anybody out in this business. You never know. They might do something that everyone will love and suddenly they are "It" again. I think it would be amazing to be a key element and work to make that happen with them. That's what I do. I love to create that kind of magic.

Editor's Note: For more information on Kuk Harrell, log on to his Web site at www.Kukharrell.com.