reggaeendz.com

Archive for the ‘Artist Biz’ Category

Artist: SHADE

Born: Sharwayne Palmer on October 26, 1981

Jamaica’s urban music or “dance hall,” music as it is known world-wide, is in a constant state of flux; but throughout its evolutionary phases, there remains, however, a few consistencies, and one is the arrival on the scene of an exceptional talent.

Daka Shade is one such talent

Growing up in the community of Barbican, in Kingston, Jamaica- only a few miles from the resident of Jamaica’s most iconic musical figure (Robert “Bob” Marley and home to Tuff Gong Records); it was hardly a surprise that a talent such as Daka Shade would emerge.

Courtesy of http://kgpromotions.com/

Jahvinci – “I Am No Longer Managed By Vybz Kartel”

Recently Vybz Kartel and his business partner Corey Todd part ways because of personal differences between the two…However, the latest Gaza member to quit is dancehall singjay Jahvinci. In a statement sent to various media outlets Portmore Empire singer stated that it’s not his intention to re-sign a booking or recording contract with the Portmore Empire.

READ THE FULL STATEMENT BELOW

“I want the world to know that I am no longer managed by Vybz Kartel and the Portmore Empire…”In all honesty, it was a great learning experience but the BEST decision is for me to move on given the musical direction that the Empire has been moving in for quite some time. I appreciate the support that Vybz Kartel has given me as a mentor but at this stage in my career, I want to move in a different creative direction with my choice in management. I will now be managed by Corey Todd, and my road manager will be Milla 9.”

“There were certain things going on in the Empire that I did not agree or condone but all that is in the past I am excited about the possibilities and I know that this is the start of a great journey in my career. I want to deliver my message of peace and unity to my reggae fans. I have to keep moving forward no matter the obstacles that stand in front of me,” the statement said.

Courtesy of OutaRoad.com

A new player in the dance hall community, “GOT IT’s” (The Hit Maker) is aiming to deliver a sweet, albeit energetic ride with their new Bed Spring riddim.

 The highly energetic and infectious riddim is FRESH and is sure to be a player on the dance hall scene. The spritely mix riddim had this listener’s feet tapping in time and so will dance hall patrons, as deejays, lyricist, TYRICAL rising new comer, SHADE and RYZIN bounce effortlessly on the Bed Spring riddim.

 The project, according to “GOT IT’s” management, is still in the voicing stage with many more memorable and entertaining tracks to come. He however, would not divulge the name of the other artists being voice only that “fans of dance hall will be please with the final project.”

 Well, here is to everyone who is waiting on their new bed spring- riddim that is.

 EXTRAS:

 A-Town Records has dropped a couple more singles on their Mental Slavery riddim; the new single “A Who,” by root and culture artist Teflon and “Nah Deal Wid Dat” by A-Town’s rising star Syckle.

 Visit www.reggaeendz.com for a preview of both the Bed Spring and Mental Slavery Riddims.

 GN

Reggaeendz.com ©2008

Reggae artiste Mark Dyer, aka Warrior King, is on a musical high as he continues to take his conscious brand of reggae to the four corners of the Earth.

The singer, who recently collected the Marcus Award for music, delivered a very exciting performance in front of a huge audience at the Anthony Nesty Sports Hall in Suriname recently.

During his performance, the audience sang along with him word for word as he belted out hits such as Virtuous Woman, Can’t Get Me Down, Jah is Always There, Where Is The Love and A Breath Of Fresh Air.

Also on the bill were Biggaton and Ginjah who were performing in Suriname for the first time, they were also well received.

Such was the magnitude of Warrior King’s performance that the promoters have invited him back to perform in the island in December.

Warrior King is also slated to visit the African continent for a series of shows before the end of the year.

Courtesy of www.jamaicastar.com

Reggae’s  fastest rising cultural artiste, Byiome ‘I-Octane’ Muir, is poised to take his career to another level. The artiste boldly staked his claim on Dancehall Night at the recent Reggae Sumfest with a memorable performance and has consistently followed through since, entertaining his fans and silencing all detractors.

Quite in demand leading up to and during the Independence season, the reggae act, who has been chosen by telecoms giant, Digicel, as one of the faces of the Next Generation, performed at Eclipse Summer Invasion in Westmoreland, Mandela Park in St Andrew, Ocho Rios Seafood Festival, the annual Denbigh celebrationsin Clarendon, the Independence show at Ken’s Wildflower in Portmore andManchester Fiesta in that parish.

It was at the recent Eclipse Summer Invasion in Negril, that I-Octane again set tongues wagging as he delivered what the audience agreed was a ‘big’ performance. Coming onstage right after Aidonia, I-Octane went straight into a riveting set as he did songs such as Lose A Friend, My Life, Puff It, Mama and Take A Little Time.

All these singles have been enjoying massive play on radio and in the dancehall, enabling fans of all ages to sing along with I-Octane word-for-word on many of his songs.

Quite happy at the movement of his career, I-Octane, whose ready smile is part of his charm, noted that he is just doing what he does best, “making good music and entertaining fans”.

no-nonsense mood.

And entertaining fans is exactly what he did when he performed on General Degree’s Manchester Fiesta on August 7. Taking the stage after many of reggae/dancehall’s big names, I-Octane, who was called up by Konshens, was in a no-nonsense mood.

“Nuff man come up here looking forward,” he declared, “but I bet I can sing one song and get all five forwards,” he challenged the hyped up crowd.

I-Octane then unleashed the songPuff It, whose lyrics contain the word ‘forward’ several times. The crowd loved it.

With the busy Independence season behind him, I-Octane is looking to spread his wings and land on the international circuit in what is anticipated to be a hectic Christmas season.

 Courtesy of www.jamaicastar.com

Fast rising Reggae Dancehall singjay Delus, is steadily making progress in the music industry, to join his brother Konshens as one of the most consistent acts on the local music scene.

Delus, real name Delmark Spence, developed an interest in music since 1998, but found it difficult to make it on to the mainstream.

“I use to go by Youth Man Promotions by Sugar Minott’s place to listen to the artistes,” he told THE STAR. However, it was not until 2005 that he finally got a break with a single called Pon Di Corna along with his brother Konshens, the song hit number one in Japan. According to Delus, this is what cemented his status as an artiste.

The artiste who is now signed to overseas-based company Tripple Seven Entertainment, says that he sees the potential of being successful in the music, as he writes clean realistic music that listeners can relate to.

According to Delus, he as been working on his local and international presence by doing promotions. “Right now I didn’t even get to go to ATI because I was doing promotions in the US and I just came back,” said the artiste who also has a two-week tour lined up for Japan along with Konshens and Dario.

The entertainer, who is also a member of the group Sojah, along with his brother, says that things are looking a lot better musically these days as he is currently working with some of the best producers in the industry, including Cash Flow who are behind his latest hit single Anoda Gal, a single that the artiste says has been getting him a lot of attention and radio play. Delus has also worked with Live Up Records, Stone Age Productions among others.

Launch his career further

Delus recently completed an EP called Reality, that has been released on iTunes which he expects to do well. This project he says is an effort by Tripple Seven Entertainment to launch his career further.

The optimistic entertainer says that music is spontaneous and there is no telling where his talent will take him, “My fans should basically expect the unexpected,” he said.

Delus has performed at international events in Europe, and has also carved out a fan base for himself in Japan, which is one of the highest dancehall consumers in the world.

According to the artiste, he wants to be fully established in Jamaica, because the roots is the testing point for how an artiste can perform internationally. “Jamaican crowd is the hardest crowd and if you can make it here you can make it anywhere,” he said.

Courtesy of www.jamaicastar.com 

Dancehall artist ‘Bounty Killa’ was today freed by the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court in relation to his assault case.

Bounty Killa, whose real name is Rodney Pryce, was charged with assault occasioning bodily harm for beating up his girlfriend, because she told him she was ending their three-year relationship.

The judge, Stephanie Jackson Haisley ordered the couple to seek mediation, after the complainant, Kadeem Baker, told the court that she did not want to proceed with the case.

That report was presented in court today.

Resident Magistrate Jackson-Haisley said based on the contents of the report she decided to drop the case against Bounty Killa.

Courtesy of www.jamaicastar.com

Beenie Man has apparently been dropped from a concert line-up in the Netherlands.

Reports seen on the Internet yesterday, suggested that the deejay was removed due to homophobic lyrics he has done in the past.

According to www.pinknews.co.uk, organisers of the concert, titled Parkpop, said although Beenie Man promised not to sing any homophobic songs, they had to cancel his slot to avoid risking the future of the free event.

Beenie Man, who is on a European tour, was scheduled to perform on Sunday. The artiste was to replace American rapper Snoop Dogg who, according to the website, was banned from the concert to maintain an ‘open and friendly atmosphere.’

According to www.dutchnews.nl reports, Beenie Man’s addition to the concert immediately caused controversy, as the artiste was banned from The Hague in the Netherlands two years ago for his anti-gay lyrics.

On their website, the Parkpop organisers originally defended the decision to put Beenie Man on the show by explaining that in 2007 he signed the Reggae Compassionate Act, a petition organised by the Stop Murder Music campaign, agreeing to renounce homophobia and stop performing lyrics promoting violence against gay people.

This is not the first show from which Beenie has been dropped due to protests from gay rights activists. Last November, Beenie Man had a string of Australian and New Zealand tour dates cancelled after gay groups protests.

In 2004 MTV wanted to premiere the artiste on its awards show and then cancelled following threats of protest from many gay rights groups from around the country.

Courtesy of www.jamaicastar.com

From the Billboard charts to MTV2, singer Gyptian alongside American rapper Nicki Minaj have been nominated as ‘Remix of the Year’ at MTV2′s Sucker Free Summit.

Yesterday MTV2 announced the ‘Sucker Free Summit’ which was created to celebrate artistes pioneering hip-hop culture. According to a release sent to THE WEEKEND STAR, “Sucker Free Summit will honour not only A-list artistes and legendary rappers, but will also celebrate the unknown, the newcomer, the guy spinning the turntables at the club getting the crowd moving and all the people that hustle behind-the-scenes but never get the glory. The ‘Summit’ will tape in New York City and air on Sunday, July 25.”

in-depth look

Eric Conte, vice-president of Programming and Production, MTV2, added, ‘MTV2′s Sucker Free Summit’ takes an in-depth look at what’s hot in hip-hop across the country like no other show out there. This show will talk about the culture and trends from the people who live it.”

To commemorate distinct flavours of hip-hop across the various regions, ‘Sucker Free Summit’ brought together a group of the most significant persons in the music industry and in hip-hop culture including bloggers, radio personalities and DJs from around the country to weigh in on the year’s most influential artistes and determine who deserves to win the ‘Sucker Free Crown.’ Sucker Free Summit’ will also honour artistes in categories such as ‘Best Mix-Tape’ and ‘Verse of the Year.’

In the weeks leading up to the premiere, ‘Sucker Free Countdown’ will hit the road to hear from music insiders from coast-to-coast to find out what music is making the largest impact in their region.

In the ‘Remix Of the Year’ category which includes the hottest remixes for the year, Nicki Minaj’s remix of Gyptian’s Hold Yuh is among the nominees. The category also includes Birdman featuring Lil Wayne, Rick Ross and Young Jeezy in Always Strapped, Diddy-Dirty Money featuring Rick Ross in Angels, Diddy-Dirty Money featuring Nicki Minaj and Rick Ross in Hello, Good Morning, Waka Flocka Flame featuring Diddy and Rick Ross in O Let’s Do It and Yo Gotti featuring Gucci Mane, Nicki Minaj and Trina in 5 Star Chick.

In April, Minaj – who is signed to Lil Wayne’s American label Young Money Entertainment, unofficially remixed Hold Yuh which was premiered on New York’s Hot 97.

On youtube.com,Hold Yuh has received well over 800,000 views. The rapper has made a number of high-profile collaborations including the Billboard chart-topping songs Bedrock with Young Money and Lloyd, and My Chick Bad with Ludacris.

On March 27, Hold Yuh debuted on the Billboard’s Hot R&B charts at number 78 and has since peaked at number 33. The song entered the Billboard’s Heatseeker Songs Chart at number nine and is currently at number six. The song is also on the Billboard’s Hot 100 charts.

Courtesy of www.jamaicastar.com

Real name: Adidja Palmer

Birth month: January

How did you get started in the business?

Kartel: Professional wise, through my former manager, Rohan Butle, who introduced me to Bounty Killer. Before that, I was always the king of Portmore, locking down stage shows and concerts from in the ’90s. Back then, there were three members of ‘Vybz Kartel’ – Escobar, Mr Lee and Addi Banton (me). Even before that, I was in my yard in Waterford honing my craft by listening to Ninja Man tapes and watching my uncles deejay.

 What has been your greatest challenge in the business yet?

Kartel: My greatest challenge was establishing the Portmore Empire as a force to be reckoned with, especially after my Alliance departure and all the flack that came with it, you know. But, as with all other challenges, it was fun to overcome and destroy.

What have you been up to lately?

Kartel: Well, I just finished three collabs. The first with Russian, yes the producer, called Straight Jeans and Fitted. The second with Notnice, yes the producer, called How Yuh Fi Love Me Girl and the third is with Popcaan called Hotgrabba.

Do you look up to any specific artiste and why?

Kartel: I have a lot of artistes I look up to, like Buju Banton, Ninja and Shabba. Buju Banton influenced me profoundly and made me aware that dancehall music is a world genre, like reggae music. Buju brought intellect to dancehall and made hardcore dancehall commercial, without losing its raw appeal.

Are you happy with the way things are going for your musical career right now?

Kartel: Elated.

Do you have any advice for young artistes coming up in the business?

 Kartel: As with all other endeavours, focus is key. As is determination and persistence and, most importantly, if you wanna stamp your class in music, be original.

Where do you see yourself in the future?

 Kartel: In movies, both in front and beyond the camera, production and directing, etc.  

Courtesy of www.jamaicastar.com