Sanjay's Lonely Breaks new Ground

Sanjay's new single, Lonely has been doing very well locally and internationally. The song on the Renaissance 'Legal Riddim' has been receiving good airplay both locally and internationally with regular spins on BBC 1Xtra, Big Up Radio and 876radio as well as continuous rotation on local radio stations.

Lonely has broken new ground for Sanjay as he now has a burgeoning following in Germany and England. The video of Sanjay's Lonely is also a regular feature on reggae cable stations, boasting a more regular than usually rotation on Hype TV, RE TV, local TV stations and international reggae oriented stations in New York, Miami and Germany.

Sanjay has been getting and overwhelmingly positive response from the reggae market for his transformed image. The artiste, who cut his hair in the video for Lonely, sees this as validation for the considerable amount of work he has put in to ensure his work is always of a good quality.
"I am receiving good reviews for Lonely both internationally and locally. I am pleased with the responses so far and I would just like to let the fans know that they can expect bigger ad better things from Sanjay" – Sanjay, Recording Artiste

Click here to watch the video

Lucky Dube - A Lost Legend

World-acclaimed reggae singer Lucky Dube has been shot and killed in a hijacking. Reports rolling in from South Africa indicate that the reggae icon was gunned down in a carjacking in Johannesburg.

Police say the incident took place at at 8:20pm on October 18, when Dube was driving in the Johannesburg suburb of Rosettenville. Apparently Dube was dropping off his son at his uncle's house when two robbers attacked him. "His son was already out of the car. When he saw what was happening, he ran to ask for help," said police.

According to a witness, the hijackers opened the musician's door and shot him twice.
"He was a soft, well-spoken man, and a great friend," said Ivor Haarburger, the CEO of the Gallo Records - Dube's recording company. Haarburger said Dube was the best reggae performer in the world and that he had a bigger following internationally than in South Africa.

Lucky Dube was born on August 3, 1964 in Ermelo, Mpumalanga. He started out as a mbhaqanga singer in 1979 before switching to reggae in 1984, to express his anger against apartheid.

One of South Africa's most popular artists, Dube toured the world singing about social problems and recently played many dates in the U.S., while promoting the release of his 21st album, Respect, which came out in April. Dube was 43 years old.

Source - Headline Entertainment

Date - October 31, 2007

VP RECORDS OPENS IT VAULTS AT 17 NORTH PARADE

For the first time ever VP Records is opening its immense vaults of Reggae, Dancehall and Soca/Calypso to all collectors and music enthusiasts through their new imprint '17 North Parade'.

The history of 17 North Parade begun over 40 years ago, when reggae pioneers Vincent Chin and his wife Patricia moved their record store to 17 North Parade a former ice cream parlour in downtown Kingston. It quickly became the centre of the burgeoning reggae music scene distributing foreign and local music throughout the island.

Above the new store they constructed a recording studio aptly called 'Randy's Studio 17' which became the recording facility of choice for the majority of Reggae's most prominent artists, writers and producers. 'Randy's Studio 17' played host to Bob Marley & The Wailers who recorded parts of Catch A Fire there, Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs, Lee "Scratch" Perry, Bunny Lee, Niney The Observer, as well as foreign artists looking for the authentic reggae sound such as Quincy Jones and Joe Cocker.

It is a well-known fact that 'Randy's Studio 17' had one of if not the largest catalogues of Reggae, Dancehall and Soca/Calypso music in the world. These catalogues have been amassed over many decades between the 60s and 90s and are now being made available to the public. Rare tracks, that in the past could only be listened to on vinyl, have now been digitally re-mastered and are available on CD, giving an even better sound than the original releases.

The first set of re-mastered tracks from the VP Records' 17 North Parade vaults were released in early 2007 and include Culture & Don Carlos Roots & Culture (1982), Yellowman & Fathead Just Cool (1982), Toyan Spar With Me (1982) Little John Ghetto Youth (1983) and Zap Pow (1973). These releases are a collectors dream and are a perfect gift for all those who love vintage music.

This is the first time in the history of Reggae and Dancehall that fans can get such a quality supply of local music from 'back in the day' at one place. These tracks are not available anywhere else and boast the quality unsurpassed by today's music.

VP Record's 17 North Parade will release two albums every month in 2008. Collectors can look out for Byron Lee and the Dragonairs and works from great reggae producers such as Augustus 'Gussie' Clarke Donovan Germain, Lloyd 'King Jammys' James, Sly & Robbie and Joe Gibbs who worked with pioneering engineer Errol Thompson.

URL - http://www.17northparade.com/

Source - Alykhat PR
Date - November 1, 2007

I WAYNE BOOK OF LIFE

Roots and culture artists have long been a constant in Jamaica, from the influence of legends like Bob Marley to conscious dancehall singers like Garnet Silk. However, in the summer of 2004 a new and powerfully distinct voice emerged on the reggae music scene. With a fresh timbre, substantive lyrics, and a passionate performance, this singer almost single handedly led a new wave of roots and culture reggae music that swept the island of Jamaica. I Wayne, born Cliffroy Taylor in the working class Kingston suburb of Portmore, Jamaica, officially hit the international scene with his #1 hit “Can’t Satisfy Her,” the first track by a cultural reggae artist to be added to Hot 97 in New York, a station noted for its hip hop preference. The tune then caught on in several markets and spent over 22 weeks on the Billboard Hip Hop/R&B Hot 100 chart. I Wayne followed up that firey description of a desperate Jamaican reality comprised of prostitution, poverty, and sexually transmitted diseases with “Living in Love” on the Stephen Gibbs and Errol Thompson-produced Hard Times riddim (VP2272). It may seem as if I Wayne suddenly burst onto the scene, but the 28 year old has been refining his craft since age 7. Coming from a musical family, it’s not surprising that I Wayne’s first performance venture with local group Vibes Machine took place when he was a student at Greater Portmore High School. The collective of singers and DJs performed at afterwork parties held at popular Kingston clubs like Cactus and Asylum, until one night, when his bandmates were late, and I Wayne was forced to take the stage alone. The response was tremendous, so he perfected his solo act, incorporating his keen appreciation for singers like Sade, Bob Marley, Dennis Brown, Marcia Griffiths, Beres Hammond, and Sizzla Kalonji, into his developing style and honing his craft by chanting DJ style with local sound systems like Diamond Cruise and The Legend, as well as performing at Garveymeade, an annual Portmore event held on December 24th for the past 10 years. His distinctively fluid yet controlled vocals won him a record deal with VP Records in 2004, and his debut album, “Lava Ground,” hit stores in the summer of 2005. It yielded two hit singles, “Can’t Satisfy Her” and “Living in Love,” as well as the critically praised title track. Slipping and sliding through the higher notes of the scales with a jazz singer’s assurance and a reggae chanter’s rough-riding rhythmic sensibilities, I Wayne’s meteroic rise and his lyrical gift for piercing the veils that cloak Babylonian hypocrisies sparked a new wave of enthusiasm among the industry for this young generation of roots and culture singers and songwriters and eager anticipation for his second set, The Book of Life (releasing November 6). This time around, a set of spare, light-as-air roots instrumentals, produced by the finest of Jamaica’s young mixing board talents, provides an elegant showcase for I Wayne’s even more dazzling singing/chanting, richer melodies, and more penetrating lyrics. Says Neil Edwards, the project’s executive producer, “For the past year, a lot of artists have been glorifying death and destruction, so I Wayne flipped that and focused on life.” Where many are didactic and full of condemnation, this time around, I Wayne simply wants to remind listeners of an essential truth—that life is a gift for which we can be grateful. “I just praise life, just deal with it naturally,” says I Wayne. “There’s nothing wrong with praising the sun, moon and stars and the wind, and all that create balance. Life is love and love is life.” The philosophy may seem simple yet “Life’s” topical range—I Wayne’s detailing of where natural balance has been lost—is typically far-reaching and deep. He covers domestic violence in “Jealousy and Abuse” (featuring the great Lady G); male and female intimacy in “Need Her in I Arms”; and worldwide divisions and anarchy in “Politics and Religion.”

JAVAUGHN: Youngest Protégé signed to the Marley’s Camp

Javaughn is considered a child prodigy in Reggae music. Although in his early teens, Javaughn already masters three instruments (keyboards, drums and bass guitar), has years of stage experience (both locally and internationally), and is armed with the resounding vocals and sound confidence that have landed him a record deal with the Marley’s Tuff Gong/ Ghetto Youths Label.

With his father being a musician, music teacher, songwriter and singer, it seems Javaughn’s destiny was etched in stone before he was even born. His father recounts memories of playing his own instruments and singing to Javaughn’s pregnant mother, and recalls some healthy kicks from baby Javaughn in response to the music.

Born in Portland, Jamaica in 1992, at age two, Javaughn started playing around with the keyboard, and three years later started playing the drums and bass guitar. He describes the situation as; “It was never hard for me because talent runs in the family, it was just natural.”
By the time he was four, Javaughn’s exposure started from his singing with the Sensation Band from Port Antonio, where he rose rapidly as a child star. He moved around in musical circles and did regular Sunday night stints at the Dragon Bay Hotel in Port Antonio, as well as other hotels along the coast. These gigs only stepped up his reputation as a solid cultural singer, and soon, word spread about his talent and he was being booked for some of Jamaica’s major concerts. The list includes Sting in 1999, East Fest in 2003, Stars R Us, Welcome To Jamrock, and consecutive years at the Bob Marley Tribute Concert in St Ann. He has even traveled overseas to perform at UNIFEST in Miami in 2004, and at other shows in New York.

Expectedly, with the early talent comes exposure. Thanks to his association with Junie Star of Prime Time Entertainment, he and his father were introduced to the Marley family. The meeting instantly bore fruit, as the Marley’s spotted the talent and gave a listening ear. Before long, he started working with the Ghetto Youths production entity, developing more range in his vocals, and learning the rudiments of recording. The studio and stage work has been steady since joining the unit. He has completed a 10 track album entitled, SuperStar that is scheduled for a November 20 release under the Tuff Gong/ Ghetto Youths Banner.

Javaughn’s life expectedly gets hectic, but his father insists he does school work to complement his music. He attends Fair Prospect High (Grade 10) and has been playing these instruments in the school band since he entered the school, and seems set to do so up until he graduates. He enjoys playing football, building rhythms on his computer and watching television in his spare time. “I haven’t had any major challenges yet in the business, Javaughn explains. The best thing about my life so far is working on the album. Outside of everything though, I’m just a normal person.”

In five years, he sees himself walking to a podium, and collecting his own Grammy award, then entering production afterwards. He has used his own words as a guide in life: “You can make it as long as you have talent. You will have producers looking out for them, so just try.”

Source - Headline Entertainment