Ken Boothe was born in the Denham Town, Kingston in 1948.  He was the youngest of seven children. Ken came from a musically talented family and he attributed his musical interests and abilities to both his mother and older sister.  When he was only eight years old, he won his first singing contest. After then, he has never lost his focus, and continued to practice. To sing and perform to the best of his ability are his aim in life.  Mahalia Jackson, Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, The Temptations, and The Drifters became his musical influences.

His career started in the late 1950. At the same year, he formed a duo with his neighbor Stranger Cole. Their duo is known as 'Stranger & Ken'.  Both of them released several albums from the year 1963 – 1965.  In 1966, his first solo tracks were recorded after he was signed to Studio One Label.  On the same year, he also recorded materials for Phil Pratt and Sonia Pottinger.  With his songs like "The Train Is Coming" (on which he was backed by The Wailers) and "Lonely Teardrops" he gained immediate success.  He conducted numerous tours including Europe, North and South America, Japan and the Caribbean.  He continues to reign supreme and maintains his popularity as one of the nation’s top entertainers in Jamaica.

Boothe had a successful UK tour with the Studio One session group, The Soul Vendors together with and Alton Ellis. In 1968, at the age of 17, Boothe released his album “Mr. Rock Steady”.  This album includes numerous hits such as “The Girl I Left Behind”, “When I Fall In Love”, “I Don’t Want to See You Cry”, “Home, Home, Home”, and ‘Puppet On A String’- the title many regard as one of Boothe's best exponents of song,.  In 1970, he switched to Leslie Kong's Beverley's Records. His success continued with hits such as "Freedom Street" and "Why Baby Why".

This legendary Ken Boothe had been through thick and thins.  After Kong’s death, Boothe recorded for many of Jamaica's top producers including Keith Hudson, Herman Chin Loy, Vincent "Randy" Chin, and Phil Pratt.  In 1974, Boothe’s "Everything I Own" under Trojan Records label, reached Number One in the UK Singles charts.  Boothe had release a total of 21 albums which includes the classic gospel “Door to Door”.

In 2001, a double-disc overview of Boothe's Trojan years, Crying over You, was released by the record label while in 2003 Boothe was awarded the Order of Distinction by the Jamaican government in 2003.

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Sheldon Campbell, popularly known as Turbulence, was born on January 11, 1980.  He is a Jamaican artist and a self proclaimed Rastafari member.  This 31-year-old Sheldon Campbell also known as Turbulence is fast becoming one of Jamaica’s leading conscious dancehall deejays.  His influences range from the great Bob Marley, Sizzla Kalonji, Jah Cure, Luciano, Mikey General and his older cousin Norris Man.  With these influences from great artist, he has developed a unique singing and deejaying style. Turbulence first discovered his talent while still attending classes at St. Andrew’s Technical High School in Kingston, Jamaica.  He started beating up the desk, testing his tunes on classmates. His talents were well received, and Turbulence was encouraged to stick to his great talent. 

In 1999, he was discovered by Phillip “Fatis” Burrell from Xterminator Records.  Turbulence has worked tirelessly for the opportunity to command the mic and speak his thoughts.  Turbulence has released numerous of albums namely, I Believe, United, Notorious - The Album, Songs of Solomon, Triumphantly, Join us and Hail The King.  He and his album were featured in a documentary show in BBC known as the Storyville.  His popular song “Blood Dem Out” was also featured in a ski movie entitled “Show and Prove”.

2007 documentary film Rise Up, which explores the world of underground music in Jamaica, featured Turbulence as one of three main acts. The film documents Turbulence’s rise to prominence as an internationally recognized and nationally celebrated reggae artist.  It also highlighted the political and socially active nature of his music.  This documentary film was directed by directed by Luciano Blotta. This documentary movie, Rise Up was screened and showed at numerous film festivals.  These film festivals include IDFA and Hot Docs to name a few.  The film won the Best Music Documentary category at the AFI/Discovery Channel Silverdocs Festival. The film was also aired on the BBC.  It also enjoyed a well received theatrical debut in Jamaica, where it was reviewed by the Jamaican Observers.  It was even called as the "Rise of a new Classic". The films showed how Turbulence voiced the problems of post-colonial corruption, poverty, and violence in his country Jamaica.

His breakout single, “Notorious”, (see youtube video below)brought Turbulence and T.H.C. Muzik international acclaim. This was first released in 2004 on the Scallawah riddim.  "Notorious" rose to Number 1 on local and international Reggae/Dancehall charts not only in Jamaica but also in New York City, London, Toronto and Japan in 2005.  The track was re-released as the feature track of the Notorious album in 2006.  Today he is considered one of Jamaica’s rising stars.  

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Buju Banton was born Mark Anthony Myrie, a.k.a. Gargamel in 1973 in Jamaica. At 19. He was already named the most popular artist in Jamaica. He broke Bob Marley’s record for the most number one singles in a year. Most of them are from his outstanding 1993 debut, Mr. Mention. His “Love Me Browning” was controversial as the song was celebrating light-skinned women. He quickly answered it with the followup hit, “Love Black Woman.” He also helped start a major dance craze with “Bogle.”

More from Banton’s first hits were rather controversial. By far, his biggest and most controversial hit was an old track “Boom Bye Bye.” As it was greatly on air in some of America’s largest markets, the New York Post put a translation of the lyrics on its front page which tackles mainly about anti-homosexuality. Instead of killing his career, it rather became the momentum for Banton’s conversion into one of dancehall’s top conscious artists. “Willy (Don’t Be Silly)” was a pro-condom-use single from which all proceeds were donated to Operation Willy, supporting children affected by the HIV virus or AIDS.  

’Til Shiloh came out in 1995 and was ranked as one of the greatest reggae albums ever. He brought the worlds of hardcore dancehall and conscious reggae by incorporating more singing into his performance. It was enhanced with edgy, bass-pumping tracks like “Champion” and the anti-gun-violence “Murderer” standing next to rootsy, acoustic cuts like “Untold Stories” and “’Til I’m Laid To Rest.” Doubts about his singing ability were silenced when he held his own with Morgan Heritage’s Gramps on “23rd Psalm,” the most solemn reggae hit since Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song.”

It has been his trademark – singing in duets. These singles contrast loud melody with sweet touches of Beres Hammond and Wayne Wonder. The two-CD set Buju & Friends collects most of these. There were also hardcore DJ duets with Beenie Man, Bounty Killer and Red Rat, plus a remake of “54-46 That’s My Number” with Toots Hibbert and a “digital duet” with the late Tenor Saw on “Ring The Alarm.” 

He faced some problems with major labels and misguided attempts, but Buju Banton is still standing strong, and his name will forever be a legacy of reggae music.

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Beenie Man was widely known for his throaty chuckles and “Zagga zow!” catch phrase. He was born Moses Davis in 1973. He was named Beenie Man as a toddler because he was “a little boy with a man’s brain.” Living in Kingston, he was exposed to some of Jamaica’s greatest sound systems at an early age. At the age of eight, Beenie was a certified recording star himself with the single “Too Fancy.” He then released his first album when he was 10.

But he didn’t stop to just being a child star. By the mid-’90s, he was drawing together awards as DJ of the Year. He signed with Island to record the Rastafarian-influenced Blessed. This made him internationally famous with his featured hard-hitting smash “Slam.” He was even given a doctorate (“of all lyrics”) from the University of the West Indies’ music department.

He use Maestro (VP) as an opportunity to show off his Doctor status. With the party atmosphere of the album’s big hit “Girls Dem Sugar”, it was toned down by several cultural songs. He maintained that with the album he considers his best, Many Moods Of Moses (VP), featuring the rootsy “Steve Biko” (complete with an intro based on Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song”), the country song “Ain’t Gonna Figure It Yet” and “Who Am I” (“Zim zimma, who got the keys to my Bimma?”).

 

Beenie continued searching for genre (gospel, R&B, hip-hop) on The Doctor (VP). He brought this enthusiasm with himas he signed with Virgin. Producer Salaam Remi, producer of Art & Life brought back the hip-hop beat of “O.P.P.” on the Wyclef Jean collaboration “Love Me Now.” R&B singer Mya softened up “Gals Dem Sugar.” “I Got A Date” adapts the Staple Singers’ staple “I’ll Take You There” while “Tumble” features trumpeter Arturo Sandoval.  “Haters And Fools” along with Dave Kelly’s eerie “Bug” rhythm is the only track that’ll satisfy dancehall conservatives. This pop-music hodgepodge won Beenie the Grammy he long deserved.

The Tropical Storm  lead-off single “Feel It Boy” featured Janet Jackson brought  a near-death Hummer rollover that put the Doctor in the hospital with serious injuries. With his return was the release of his comeback album titled Back To Basics, marked a return to the hardcore dancehall.

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One of the leaders of the reggae dancehall movement, Sizzla Kalonji or simply Miguel Orlando Collins in real life emerged as a promising reggae artist in the late 90’s for his songs about love, faith, and advocacy. He gained popularity not only from his chart-topping singles but also from his controversial topics on homosexuality and western oppression.

Born on April 17, 1976 and raised by Rastafarian parents, Sizzla grew up with principles from the Bobo Ashanti branch of the Rastafari movement. He studied mechanical engineering in Kingston, Jamaica but he ended up with gigs for the Caveman Hi-Fi sound system. After honing his talents and making his own style of music, he was able to make a name for himself as a local performer. In 1995, he was able to deliver his message to a much bigger crowd as he released his first single with Zagalou label. A series of singles came after teaming up with “Bobby Digital” Dixon but his success isn’t that solid until he was recommended to producer Philip “Fatis” Burrel by the Jamaican saxophonist Dean Fraser. “Burning Up”, his first LP materialized later that year after releasing singles “Judgement Morning”, “Blaspheme”, “We Uh Fear”, “I’m not sure”, “Life’s Road” and “The Gun” – a Shadowman duet.

With the release of the second Burrel produced album “Praise Ye Jah” and Dixon produced album “Black Woman & Child” in 1997, Sizzla really became one of the best dancehall reggae artist throughout the globe. Sizzla’s hot streak of chart topping hits, from “Like a Mountain”, “Kings of the Earth”, “Babylon Cowboy”, to the Luciano duet “Building a Better World”, created a strong bond with Burrel. In 1998, Sizzla received his first nomination as the MOBO Awards’ Best International Reggae Artist of the Year. He was also feature in magazines, earning a place in the Top 100 Albums of the Year. Sizzla received his second MOBO nomination a year after. Controversies arose in 2004 as Sizzla was barred from entering countries and performing live concerts. Advocating violence against homosexuals in some of his songs, some of Sizzla’s concerts were cancelled after protests of Stop Murder Music Canada coalition, and other anti-violence movements in Spain, and UK.

Crossing different styles of reggae, Sizzla was able to release over 45 solo albums and 15 compilation albums. After years of performing and recording hits, he started his own record company which is the collaboration with Koch Records and Damon Dash Music Group – the Kalonji Records

The early 2010 gave Sizzla an opportunity to perform at the 86th birthday celebration of President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe. Months later, he was given a farm in the country where he can permanently stay as a citizen. Despite of all the controversies in his life, Sizzla remains committed in creating reggae music for the new generation.

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Clifton George Bailey III or the famous Capleton these days, is a native of St. Mary, Jamaica who known for his religious views and reggae music. He gained his international stardom in the 90’s with his songs “Bumbo Red”, “Woman Me Lotion”, and “Number One on the Look Good Chart”.

From a very young age, Capleton showed interest in music as he sneaked out of the house to listen from some vibes brought by traveling musicians. His religious belief on the other hand was the result of his clever reasoning skill thus calling him by his friends in the name of Capleton – name of the famous lawyer in their town. At the age of eighteen, he moved from St. Mary to Kingston pursuing his dreams of becoming a dancehall deejay. Kingston is the home of popular reggae artists – it’s also a place for dancehall reggae lovers. Capleton made his way into it although he had to take some weird jobs to cover up his expenses. Years passed by and he became one of the most popular local deejays – earning him a break to the international music scene.

 Winning the audition for Stewart Brown’s African Star production in Canada made an avenue for him to perform with top dancehall reggae artists Flourgon and Ninjaman – it was also the time when he became very popular in Jamaica and secured him of a record deal with the Jamaican reggae producer Philip “Fattis” Burell. Although his first hit single “Bumbo Red” didn’t conquer the airwaves, it was overly played in dancehalls that made him even more popular. Rastafarianism changed most of his outlook in life – it was also shown in his song lyrics. With the knowledge from the writings of the Jamaican Black Nationalist leader Marcus Grey in United States, Capleton started to address Rastafarian principles and social awareness. His album “Alms House” in 1993 declared his new-found wisdom but the album he released later that year “Good So” gave him the name of a dancehall prophet.

 In 1995, Capleton showed his hip-hop influence with the “Tour” remix about the murder of his fellow dancehall reggae artists. As it topped the billboard charts, hip-hop label Def Jam decided to make a deal with Capleton to produce the album “Prophecy” – featured Wu Tang Clan’s Method Man. It was still too dancehall and reggae roots influenced to be popular in the mainstream but it was solid enough to attract more listeners. With his second Def Jam album “I-Testament”, he was able to get into the mainstream. It was a success for both Def Jam and Capleton but the question rose about his identity as a reggae artist. The change in label from Def Jam to a smaller production J&D paved way for some serious yet enlightening songs that showcased Capleton’s identity. A year later, VP records made a deal for a 17 track album “More Fire”. After years of releasing albums, Capleton toured around the US and Africa in the late 2010 and early 2011.

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A native of Kingston, Jamaica, Jah Cure or Siccature Alcock in real life is a reggae artist who had his break during the 90’s. His single named “King of the Jungle” with another artist Sizzla was a jumpstart for his career in the reggae scene. He was born in October 11th 1978 and grew up in Kingston along with his reggae influences Capleton and David House Crew – the one who named him Jah Cure because of his profound smoking of herbs that results into a certain “cured” look.

Jah Cure’s career started on small performances in pubs and hanging around studios. With Beres Hammond as his mentor, he was able to release his very first single “King of the Jungle” that gained a lot of attention from listeners. With the constant release of successful singles and growing number of fans throughout Jamaica, a car arrest in Montego Bay for gun possession, robbery and rape dragged the young artist down. In April 1999, he was found guilty and sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment – although he constantly stated his innocence.

While serving his sentence, Jah Cure was still getting a lot of support from his fans. With the growing number of his supporters, he’s become a folk hero. Having the access to recording instrument while in prison was a silver lining for Cure to finish what he started – to make music that’ll be appreciated by everyone. His very first album “Free jah Cure The Album The Truth” in 2000 was a major breakthrough in his career. Tracks from it are constantly heard in radio stations and some even topped the charts.

After two years, the album was backed up by “Ghetto Life”. In the year of 2005, Jah Cure released his final album inside the prison “Freedom Blues”. He was released from prison on a parole last July 2007 with high hopes of performing in live audience again. After three days, he released his fourth album “True Reflections… A New Beginning” which may have been derived from his new found freedom. At the Reggae Sundance held in Eindhoven, Holland in August of the same year, he was able to perform in front of a live audience for the very first time. It was a headlining performance that people were dying to witness. With his powerful yet unique way of singing, he was able to send the message of life, imprisonment, freedom, and hope to the crowd. It was quite a surprise too because many didn’t expect him to be at home on the stage since it was his first time – but he really did a great show for everyone.

After years from imprisonment, Jah Cure released “The Universal Cure” in US on April of 2009. By the end of 2010, his success continues with singles “Unconditional Love”.

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