I produce artists videos as well as physically going out in search of new talent. I am offering the chance to be filmed at YouTube studios for artists, Dj's and sound systems to be interviewed and show case your talent and have a in depth interview. Further to this we are also we are investing in young people by taking on trainees to learn skills in broadcasting's, cinematographer, video editing and sound.
Nuff respect in every aspect.
Reggae artist Dennis Brown began his career at the age of 12, when he recorded the hit single "No Man is an Island."
Dennis Brown was born in Kingston, Jamaica in 1957. Hailed as a child prodigy and called the "Michael Jackson of reggae," Brown was just 12 years old when he recorded his first album, No Man is an Island, which included the hit single of the same name. Largely hailed as "reggae's king" following Bob Marley's death in 1981, Brown recorded nearly 80 albums over his 30-year career. His addiction to cocaine contributed to his early death on July 1, 1999.
Early Career
Born as Dennis Emmanuel Brown on February 1, 1957 in Kingston, Jamaica. Dubbed by Bob Marley as his successor and called the "Crown Prince" of reggae, Brown was just 12 years old when he created his first hit single, "No Man is an Island." He recorded the song at the famed Studio One Records in 1969, as part of his album of the same name. Brown had begun working toward a music career three years prior to the release of No Man is an Island; at the age of 9, he had begun singing with Byron Lee and the Dragonaires. During concerts, the young Brown stood atop beer boxes so that he could be seen. In 1968, He had caught the attention of Studio One sound system operator Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, and soon began recording at the studio, where Bob Marley had carved out his sound several years before. During an amazing two-day session, Brown recorded two albums: No Man Is an Island and If I Follow My Heart.
Dennis Brown Birthday Bash Jamaica 1997 pt1
Commercial Success
In 1971, Brown released Super Reggae & Soul Hits, which featured a more mature sound and pushed Brown to stardom. His silky, smooth voice endeared him to listeners and record executives, and as his stature grew, so did the demands from record producers who wanted to tap into his success. Over his nearly 30-year career, Brown churned out 80 albums for some 40 different recording labels. His hits include "Some Like It Hot," "Cassandra," "Westbound Train," "My Time," "How Could I Leave" and "Ghetto Girl." His 1972 single, "In My Pocket," landed among the U.K.'s Top 10.
Dennis Brown - Remember Me Always
Brown's career mirrored the changes in reggae music, from lovers' rock to dancehall, to digital. With each change, the easy sounding musician seemed to effortlessly transition. In 1994, he was nominated for a Grammy Award for the album Light My Fire.
Following Bob Marley's death in 1981, many assumed that Brown, who for a time moved to London after signing with A&M Records, would pick up the torch as reggae's leading man. The result, however, was a mediocre stab at pop reggae and the release of three poorly received albums.
Later Years
As Brown transitioned into the 1980s, his drug of choice changed from marijuana to cocaine. He was never able to kick his cocaine habit, which contributed to his early death on July 1, 1999 in Kingston, Jamaica. Just two months before he died, Brown, who fathered 13 children during his lifetime, had been arrested in Brazil for possession of drugs.
Despite his personal issues, Brown continued to make the recording studio his second home until his death. During the final year of his life, he released three records, and had been working on a fourth when he passed.
In an interview with National Public Radio, Damien Marley, Bob Marley's son, spoke about Dennis Brown's legacy: "He was one of those persons who made it cool to smile in reggae music. When I listen to his music, I can hear that he really loved singing. It almost sounds like he smiles while he's singing."
Arguably the biggest dancehall star of the moment, Gully Bop quite literally went from rags to riches in a matter of weeks, after an amateur video of him freestyling landed online last year.Watching said video with no sound, viewers could be forgiven for thinking the man featured was either high on something, or was several sandwiches short of a picnic. Skinny and disheveled with several teeth missing, the Jamaican video star rocked and bopped, whilst throwing his arms around wildly. But those who took time to listen, quickly discovered that looks can most certainly be deceiving. The man who had indeed been branded “mad” and accused of being a drug addict (more on that later), was spitting lyrics with impressive flow, demonstrating his deejaying prowess.
“Slackness” at its best, his lyrical content was sexually explicit and, as such, wasn’t everybody’s cup of tea. But as the featured man paced up and down whilst declaring, “every gyal want a wuk offa mi,” little did he know that stardom would soon beckon.
The video went viral, introducing the world to a deejay known as Gully Bop. And just a few weeks later, he was performing in front of thousands of revelers, headlining dancehall’s biggest and internationally-renowned annual stage show, Sting. There, he stole the show, strutting across the stage with energy, whilst throwing lyrical shots at his supposed arch-nemesis, fellow deejay Ninja Man.
Fast-forward to 2015 and Gully Bop has graced many stages, most recently, here in the UK, performing sell-out shows in London, Luton, Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol.
“This is the first time I’ve left Jamaica,” Gully Bop told Life & Style during his recent trip to the UK. “This was my first time on the plane.”
Was it a surprise for him to discover how many fans he has out here?
“Yeah man, big surprise! [My fans in the UK are] better than in Jamaica. Over here, they’re more sociable with me; they treat me better. In Jamaica, I just feel ordinary, but when I come to England, my shows sell off. Dem mek me feel like a superstar!
“I have fans all over the world, but when I reached England and saw how many fans I had, one thought came to my mind: I wish I could have fans like this everywhere I go.”
Enjoying his UK stay, the 49-year-old was even happy with the climate.
“The weather is alright,” laughed the entertainer, born Robert Lee Malcolm. “God ease up the cold for me. Right now mi look outside and see the sunshine, so it’s alright.”
GULLY BOP INTERVIEW MARCH 2015
After bursting onto the reggae music scene last year, Gully Bop quickly found himself earning plenty of media attention. Stories began to emerge that the deejay had previously been homeless, while others alleged he was a drug addict.
But despite these persistent accusations, Gully Bop says these stories are untrue.
“People just said dem tings for hype,” he claims. “Nutt’n never go suh – I was never on drugs. And I wasn’t homeless. I was just poor. I didn’t have anything. So I ended up ah sit down in South Side and Grants Pen in Jamaica doing nothing except fixing old fans and old TVs – but that couldn’t maintain me. When I mek the likkle money [from that], I couldn’t even buy a suit.
“But God felt sorry for me. He saw I was good people and he lifted me up – and me nah drop back again.”
He continues: “In Jamaica, mi see a whole heap ah bad man. And I know where drugs and guns put you. If I was into drugs or guns, mi woulda dead long time. Coz I grew up in the worst place in Jamaica: South Side in Kingston Central and Grants Penn in Kingston 8. Go inna di media and read about them places and you’ll understand. When you’re on drugs in them places, police ah kill you. I never troubled dem tings [drugs].”
Another story that Gully dismisses as hype is one that suggests he and Ninja Man are enemies. The story went (don’t you just love internet rumours?) that back in the ‘90s, when Gully made his first attempt at music success under the guise Country Man, Ninja Man supplied the aspiring deejay with cocaine, in a bid to destroy his career.
WAR OF WORDS: Gully Bop's lyrical nemesis Ninja Man
The pair clashed on stage at Sting last year
but Gully insists the “war” is not personal,
and that he and the Permit to Bury hitmaker are in fact friends.
Gully Bop Ft Imari Drop Mi
“Me and him not in war – it’s just lyrical war, not personal war. Ah mi fren’ man,” Gully insists. “Let me tell you about Jamaican artists: they might war lyrically, but you’ll see the two of them sit down together on the street drinking a beer, happy. It’s just lyrical war. When we go on stage, him say him bad and him can mash up any deejay. So me just mash him up, coz mi nuh ‘fraid to mash him up!”
One story that is true is that the entertainer is engaged to his manager, Shauna Chin. Will the couple be getting wed soon? “Not for now,” says Gully. “We’ve been together nearly two years.” And he’s in love? “Always in love!
And what about those teeth? Though the deejay now dons attire more fitting for his newfound fame, he hasn’t yet found it necessary to get his missing teeth replaced. And apparently, he’s in no hurry to do so.
“Every day me eat dumpling and banana and yam same way, so my teet’ is not a problem right now,” he says. “I’m gonna get mi teet fixed, but I’m on tour, so I can’t think about that right now.
“Me can’t mek dem go in my mouth and kill up my mouth like dem ah plant food in the ground! Right now me ah tell you di truth – you know how much that would set back my career? I’ll get it done but not right now.”
So what is the future for this fast-rising star?
“Let me tell you… I’m gonna step likkle further and beat them bad,” he laughs. “If you’ve been following my career, you’ll have seen that dem [the media] have blasted me nuff.
“They said I wouldn’t get a visa or a passport because I’m a mad man. They said I couldn’t do Sting because nobody would want to hear me at Sting. And they said if I did do Sting, Ninja Man woulda mash me up.
“Dem say a whole heap ah tings about me, but as long as Father God is behind me, nothing can stop me, no matter what people say.”
Anthony Moses Davis was born in the Water house district of Kingston in 1973. He was involved in the music industry from a young age, starting toasting at the age of five, and was encouraged by his uncle Sydney Knowles, who played drums for Jimmy Cliff.He won the Tastee Talent contest in 1981.and Radio DJ Barry G introduced him to local sound system operators, who helped to establish the popularity of the young deejay, who became known as Beenie Man. He recorded his debut single, "Too Fancy", with record producer Henry "Junjo" Lawes in 1981, with Lawes also including him on the 1983 album Juno Presents Two Big Sounds alongside established stars such as Dillinger, Fathead, and Ringo. His debut album, The Invincible Beenie Man: The Ten Year Old DJ Wonder was produced by Bunny Lee and released in 1983,his first hit single following the same year with the Winston Holness-produced "Over the Sea". In 1984 Beenie Man recorded some material with Barrington Levy (released ten years later), but his music career was put on hold while he finished school, and spent time travelling to the United Kingdom, United States, and Canada. 10 year old Beenie Man - Try Some Hustling
Beenie Man continued performing and honed his craft beside the then dominant dancehall figures including Ninjaman,Admiral Bailey and Shabba Ranks. He found his artistic home at the Shocking Vibes studio where he continued to record singles with only moderate success in the early 1990s. His career gained momentum after a performance at the Reggae Sunsplash festival in 1992, and a rivalry with Bounty Killer began the following year after Beenie Man was accused of stealing Bounty Killer's style and catch phrases. The rivalry was captured on the 1994 album Guns Out, with the two artists settling the feud with a soundclash. Beenie Man had his first number one single in Jamaica in 1993 with "Matie" (Produced by Ephraim Barrett,Donovan and Dave Mills on the Shelly Power Records label) and he won the DJ of the Year Award the same year, the first of eight consecutive awards.
BEENIE MAN LIVE ON LEES UNLIMITED 1984
Partially as a result of prodding from his producers,Sly and Robbie, with whom he recordedcover versionsofBob Marley's "Crazy Baldhead" and "No Woman No Cry" in 1994, the latter a Jamaican chart-topper, Beenie Man converted to theRastafari movement, as did several of his contemporaries at the time, although in 2005 he stated "I have not converted. I was baptised an Ethiopian Orthodox and at the age of 10 I became a Judah Coptic."In 1994, he was signed byIsland Recordsand released the critically acclaimed albumBlessed, which established his reputation internationally.In 1995 he toured the UK and joined up again with Barrington Levy to record an updatedjungleversion of Levy's "Under Mi Sensi".
In 1995, Beenie Man collaborated with Dennis Brown and Triston Palma to release Three Against War and Mad Cobra and Lieutenant Stitchie on Mad Cobra Meets Lt. Stitchie & Beenie Man. He also collaborated with Lady Saw on "Healing", Sanchez on "Refugee", and Michael Prophet on "Gun 'n' Bass", further establishing his reputation. He took another step up the ladder in 1996, releasing the seminal Maestro, produced by Patrick Roberts and shot him to UK fame. During the period from the mid to late 1990s, Beenie Man dominated the Jamaican charts to the extent that he perhaps had a good claim to the crown of "Dancehall King", a title only bestowed previously on Yellowman in the early 1980s. Beenie Man's first real break into the United States came in 1997. He heard an instrumental rhythm by an unknown producer named Jeremy Harding, and demanded to add his voice to the rhythm. So this was the birth of his first international hit; he recorded "Who Am I" and the single quickly went Gold. It opened the doors for the world to see a new reggae star in the pages of Newsweek and other major media outlets. The same year, Beenie Man topped the Jamaican singles chart with seven different singles. Beenie Man appeared as himself in the 1997 filmDancehall Queen.
BEENIE MAN AH RUN TUNE
In 1998, Beenie Man headlined Reggae Sunsplash and signed to Virgin Records to release albums in the United States. His first American offering was The Doctor(1998). During the late 1990s, Beenie Man began his conquest of America with the hits, "Romie", "Who Am I", and "Girls Dem Sugar", which featured American R&Bsinger, Mýa. During this time he received an impressive number of international music awards including a MOBO Award for Best International Reggae Act in 1998,] while remaining at the top of the local charts. In 2000, Beenie Man released Art & Life, which featured Arturo Sandoval and Wyclef Jean (The Fugees), for which received aGrammy Award for Best Reggae Album. In the same year he co-produced (with Wyclef Jean) the debut album by actor Steven Seagal. Beenie Man, like many dancehall artists, is outspoken on a number of social issues, as exemplified by songs such as "Steve Biko" and "Murderer".
In 2002, he had a sizeable hit with a duet with Janet Jackson called "Feel It Boy", but his biggest break in America came in early 2004 with the release of a remix of "Dude", featuring guest vocals by fellow Jamaican Ms. Thing as well as rhymes by Shawnna. He thus cemented his fan base on both sides of the Atlantic.
He had hits in the UK in 1998 with "Who am I" (#10), in 2003 with "Street Life" (#13) and "Feel It Boy" (UK #9), a duet with Janet Jackson, and in 2004 with "Dude" (#7) and "King of the Dancehall" (#14).
He was also a judge for the 6th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.
In April 2008 it was announced that Beenie Man was to co-write and star in the film Kingston.[15] In October 2010 Beenie Man came out with the EP I'm Drinking Rum and Red Bull, which included four songs, "Im drinking Rum and Red Bull", "I'm Okay", and two versions of "Stack and Pile". He later released the full album on 28 February 2011. "Im Drinking Rum and Red Bull" features Future Fambo. In September 2008 Beenie Man was cleared of charges of tax evasion.
In April 2009, Beenie Man signed with Brookland Entertainment, a new record label formed by Eric Nicks and The Trackmasters, in preparation to release his new albumThe Legend Returns, the music video for the release of his new single "Gimme Gimme" being shot in Canada on 18 April 2009. The song "Let's Go" was released on theOverproof Riddim compilation album in 2011.
In 2014 Beenie Man and long-term rival Bounty Killer put aside their differences and recorded a single together, "Legendary"
Sir Coxsone Feat Super Cat,Nicodemus,Phillip Frazier London 1986
Sir Coxsone maintained long-standing links with Jamaica’s finest producers and artists and boasted an unrivalled selection of music. The first UK system to play dub, Coxsone set the pace in equipment, pioneering the use of echo, reverb and equalizer. Ironically, they paved the way for a wave of wattage-obsessed sound systems but Lloydie regularly quipped, “You can’t dance to wattage… I’m more interested in the quality and selection of music.”
Sir Coxsone @ Clapham Common Park 1986
They were on a mission. It was their job to carry the new music to Afro-Caribbean communities all over the UK and they did it, despite consistent police harassment, in the sun, rain and snow, year in year out. They organised a Peace Dance after the Brixton Riots and while they united generations Coxson unflinchingly gave voice to the youth, providing a critical link in the cultural chain that connected them to their roots back-a-yard and in Africa. Sound system fed an underground network that was, with the odd exception, totally off the UK’s cultural radar.
Sir Coxsone ls Shaka ls Fatman 1993
Digging through some pieces, I came across one article I’d written for Subway News in Boston. It was about an August Bank Holiday on the eve of Notting Hill Carnival. We’d traveled to Northampton for a clash between Sir Christopher, Jah Shaka and Sir Coxsone Outer-national (as they were then known). A cricket match was scheduled for the afternoon and a dance at night. The venue, the MFM Youth Club, was formerly a church that stood alone on derelict ground and as one approached it seemed to be vibrating to a massive amount of bass. Inside it was corked. The heat was incredible and the music intense. We edged our way through a solid mass of people rocking to a stubborn cut of “Row Fisherman Row” which boomed from the banks of speaker boxes stacked 12 feet high all around the hall.
After checking Lloydie I headed to the balcony. It was like a vision from Dante’s Inferno. Beneath a thick web of cables the dancers rocked in rhythmic unison. A red glow from Shaka’s corner diffused into a mist of herb smoke and two young dreads danced mantis-style on a window ledge silhouetted against the glow of light outside. It was Blacker Dread who said to me, “This dance is different!” and right then a girl fainted beside us.
sir coxsone outer-national string up
Sir Coxsone ran a fine, crisp selection but on this night it was Shaka who pulled the crowd behind him… endless cuts of anUpsetter riddim, one after the other… pure drum and bass… pure bass… and eventually, bouncing around the hall was Shaka’s echoing voice, “Ah who seh…seh…seh?” That is Sound! It’s in the moment… it can be that one tune that connects with the spirit and lifts the crowd in rowdy appreciation.
On the other hand it can it can be that steady build to a definitive climax. That was the case at one major west London Cup Clash. Coxsone, Fat Man, Shaka and Soferno B. The hall was rammed. Tension and skirmishes between different sound followers could easily have spilled over into serious violence. A lot of preppin’ went into ensuring that Coxsone sound was tip-top but on the night Lloyd was noticeable by his absence. As the session unravelled, the tension in the Coxsone corner mounted. There was a huge sigh of relief when it was announced that Lloyd was on his way from Heathrow airport, fresh from Yard and armed with music for the dance.
Sir Coxone vs Observer 1987 ft NITTY GRITTY
SIR COXSONE 1979
That’s how serious this business is. Upon arrival he unloaded ten glistening acetates devoid of titles and numbered in the sequence in which they were to be played. The only one not numbered was the one which read “Cup Winner.” Blacker and Festus unloaded each selection complete with on-the-mic affirmations as to why they – not their challengers – were the champion sound. When the final dub plate dropped and the “Five Man Army” – underpinned by the “Drum Song” riddim – filled the hall, the place went ballistic. Coxson sound was declared winner of the Black Star Liner Cup.
For more than forty years now Noel Harper’s mighty Killamanjaro sound system has been a leading light in the dancehall world. The sound was started by Papa Jaro in 1969 and it’s name is derived from Africa’s highest mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro, and throughout their history they have constantly scaled great heights both in Jamaica and worldwide.
As Killamanjaro’s set grew in size and popularity they started to recruit deejays with O Lord being their first resident professional mic man. As the seventies made way for the eighties so Killamanjaro marched onwards and upwards. A major plus for the sound occurred when Mr Harper recruited Ainsley Grey as main selector. Sadly we have yet to hear a full Jaro session dated earlier than 1982 but a typical dance around 1982/83 would feature such luminaries as Jim Kelly (b. Sylvester Morgan), the apprentice of O Lord, who by this time had flourished into a great chatter and the sets number one deejay. Other deejays on the scene at this time were veteran Lone Ranger (b. Anthony Waldron), Buro Banton (b. Donovan Spalding), who had two separate stints with the sound, Danny Dread and Dirty Harry. In addition John Wayne (b. Norval Headley) and Papa Tullo aka Tullo T (b. Everald Crawford), who were previously on Studio Mix sound, could often be heard at Jaro dances.
LEGENDARY Killamanjaro 1983
As well as the deejays Killamanjaro also promoted singers around the set. Long time dancehall fixture Puddy Roots (b. Junior Smith), who had started out as a deejay Puddy Lion on the Arrows sound in the mid to late seventies, morphed into a singer who would appear on many of Killamanjaro’s crucial sessions in the early eighties. He would also be joined by U.U. Madoo, a singer with a voice almost indistinguishable to his older brother Madoo. These singers along with others like the sweet voiced Hopeton James and the “original” Thriller were always there to provide an alternative vocal refrain.
Tragedy struck the Killamanjaro camp midway through 1983 when Jim Kelly was killed, yet another victim of the violence that permanently haunts Jamaican society. In time though the void was filled by, not one, but two top notch deejays Super Cat (b. William Marragh) and Early B (b. Earlando Neil). These sparring partners had been plying their trade away from Kingston on St Thomas’ King Majesty sound but they now took up residency on Killamanjaro, now one of the islands top sounds. From 1983 to 1985 Killamanjaro were near untouchable, especially when the “Doctor” and Super Cat were firing on all cylinders. New additions to the Killamanjaro family included Little Twitch, (b. Richard Wright) who’d started out at King Sturgav, and later Super Cat’s younger brother Junior Cat (b. Wayne Marragh)
Legendary Killamanjaro 1985
Midway through 1985 it was all change again for Killamanjaro. Skeng Don was assembling his Sturmars set and he managed to lure Super Cat, Buro Banton and selector Ainsley to his “supersound”. Early B remained in the fold, and so did Junior Cat and Dirty Harry, and over the next few years they continued to remain a “live artist” force. Patcheye took over the role of chief selector. About a year after this Jeremy Lee took over as selector and Killamanjaro were now being spearheaded by the emerging rudebwoy talent of Ninjaman (b. Desmond Ballentine), armed with his unique quick-fire “labbrish” style. In another move, they then added the experienced King Sturgav deejay Charlie Chaplin (b. Patrick Bennett) to their ranks.
Killamanjaro continued to promote “live artists” on their set in the late eighties, even though times were changing in the dancehall. New regulars on the set included deejays German, Ironman, Daddy Shark, Supervisor (b. Augustus Sutherland), Hammermouth (b. Patrick Wedderburn) and musician Bugleboy. Perhaps the most important newcomer in the late 80’s was Ricky Trooper (b. Garfield McKoy) who joined as a deejay. He had been working as a deejay on the Creation sound as Screechy Trooper, but prior to that he’d been a selector from a very young age on sounds like Coptic, Volume One and Ultimate Touch.
Killamanjaro vs king Jammy's 1991
Their aggressive soundbwoy attitude won them many soundclashes but gradually the dancehall business changed as the juggling style took over and the dancehall performers became obsolete almost overnight. But Killamanjaro flourished in the sound war era with Ricky Trooper, who’d taken over from Jeremy Lee and by now one of the greatest selectors/MC’s ever, leading them to many victories over the other top rated sounds from all around the world. In 2000 Ricky Trooper branched out on his own, as Sound Trooper, leaving Freddy Kruger (b. Paul Francis) fronting Jaro until he left in 2004. Things continued with Hype, Crazy D, Genius and Danny, who is also an engineer at the Killamanjaro Dub Store studio which cuts dubplates for sound systems. Freddy Kruger is now back on Killamanjaro along with DJ Tarick.
Born as Dennis Emmanuel Brown on February 1, 1957 in Kingston, Jamaica. Dubbed by Bob Marley as his successor and called the "Crown Prince" of reggae, Brown was just 12 years old when he created his first hit single, "No Man is an Island." He recorded the song at the famed Studio One Records in 1969, as part of his album of the same name. Brown had begun working toward a music career three years prior to the release of No Man is an Island; at the age of 9, he had begun singing with Byron Lee and the Dragonaires. During concerts, the young Brown stood atop beer boxes so that he could be seen. In 1968, He had caught the attention of Studio One sound system operator Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, and soon began recording at the studio, where Bob Marley had carved out his sound several years before. During an amazing two-day session, Brown recorded two albums: No Man Is an Island and If I Follow My Heart.
