Smear Bass Riddim Medley [Official Video] [Jun 2013]

Artist: Tiana, Patexx, Navino, Propa, Currenci
Juggling: Smear Bass Riddim
Producer:  Studio Vibes Entertainment
Video by: J Dash Lab

Jami Dread - Best Time [Jun 2013] [Lyrical War Records]

Artist: Jami Dread
Genre: Dancehall
Tune: Best Time
Producer: Lyrical War Records

Pull up selector! - Rory's new movements

The name Rory is synonymous with Stone Love Movements, arguably the most influential sound system in Jamaican pop culture.

Since 1982, while a student at Calabar High School in St Andrew, Rory Gilligan has been a selector for this 'immortal sound'.

Decades later, the 40-odd year-old has shifted gears, trying his hand as music producer.

"It reached a point when the standards were falling and with the move from vinyl to digital, people stopped paying attention to production and mastering the material to achieve the best quality. So I really wanted to make a difference," he tells Splash.

Gilligan has chosen the 'road less travelled' when it comes to identifying artistes with whom he wants to work.

"I could have taken the easy way out... create some beats and 'riddims', draw for the biggest artistes, record them, and release a string of sub-standard tunes. But that is not my style," he explains.

"I like being the voice of the unknown. I get a rush out of finding that voice, that artiste that nobody has heard of, or has not heard from in a long while, and work with them... I get a rush from that," he adds.

Even Gilligan's production methods are different from prevailing trends. He is not into looping tracks, but rather records section by section with melodic introductions which he hopes will produce a signature sound.

To date, he has worked with a number of London sound systems, reggae band Rootz Underground, singers Nadine Sutherland, Jah 9 and Keida.

He is particularly proud of the work he put in for Jah 9's debut album, New Name, a jazz on dub hybrid which was released recently to much acclaim.

"I put my all into New Name with Jah 9. It was hours and hours of voicing and re-voicing, trial and error, till we came up with what we thought was the right sound."

Gilligan states that one of his biggest peeves with the music business came while promoting the Jah 9 project.

"I took one of her tracks to a radio station and the disc jock listened and told me that it was wicked and loved it, but then said it would sound better if it was performed by a man. I just could not believe what I was hearing. I can't believe people still think in that way," he says.

Reflecting on his days at the turntable, he winces at some things he did.

"Now that I'm in my 40s and a lot more conservative I look back at how stupid I was in the things I did and said during the 1980s and '90s. That's why now I cannot record certain things and certain artistes, because I know the power of the microphone and the music, and the effect it can have on people, despite what other people want to say."

He is currently working on projects with the C-Sharp, Raging Fyah and Pentatuch bands and musician Addis Pablo, but still yearns to find that distinctive Jamaican voice.

""I want to work with a voice. A voice like no other, something that is very Jamaican with the haunting quality of a Burning Spear and the unmistakable 'Jamaicaness' of a Culture (Joseph Hill)."
(from Jamaica Observer)

'Double Trouble' from Octane and Bounty

After the huge success of their combination, 'Badmind Dem A Pree', Grammy-nominated icon Bounty Killer and international reggae star I-Octane have teamed up for 'Double Trouble'.

Less than a week since Double Trouble's release, the song has garnered thousands of views via viral videos on youtube. The single was produced by Markus Myrie, who also produced Badmind Dem A Pree. Hit Productions  Myrie has been delivering a succession of hit productions that have charted locally and internationally.

According to I-Octane, this song will definitely be one of the big hits for the summer. "People have been anticipating a next collab with me and Bounty Killer, so we couldn't come back with the same badmind topic. This song is definitely more street, and di people dem a take on to it. It a take on the whole world. We've been getting good reviews and it's already on international airwaves," I-Octane said.

Bounty and Popcaan make peace

Although he pledged his allegiance to his former mentor Vybz Kartel, dancehall artiste Popcaan has buried the hatchet and has reconciled with iconic dancehall artiste Bounty Killer. 

Bounty Killer celebrated his 41st birthday last weekend at Sugarman Beach in Portmore, St Catherine. It was during selector Boom Boom's set that the surprise came.

"Him (Popcaan) deh Canada pon tour and him send a voicenote to him sister and tell him sister fi mek sure mi get the song. Mi mek the link wid har and she burn it off pon a CD and mi just premiere it at the party," Boom Boom said.

In the voicenote, Popcaan said, "Yuh done know a Popcaan a represent fi Bounty Killer the legendary. Yuh done know today a yuh special day so mi just waan seh on behalf of me and the Unruly Gang, big up yuh damn self." This was followed by an a capella version of one of his songs, Party Non Stop.