Second chances are rare and wonderful things.
The Mercury riddim, buoyed by the success of the breakaway single, Dweet Again, is providing a second chance for Billboard chart-topping producer Rohan ‘Snowcone’ Fuller to find success in a genre that has gone rancid from stale beats and whack riddims. Call 395-1518 to contact the producers.
The Mercury riddim has a gorgeously airy beat with a old-school dancehall sound and a sexy flute that has re-energised the dancehall scene in Jamaica. The riddim has been blowing up all over FM radio in Jamaica this Summer because it is a dancehall project that stands out because it has actual songs with hooks that kick hard. On ‘Dweet Again’, Beenie Man’s voice comes with the joy and happiness of someone who knows he’s really good at what he does. It is one of the few end-to-end satisfying records that has come out of Jamaica this year and is accessibly dancehall: brilliant and streetwise, a song that appeals to anyone who has ever been doubted. The single, Dweet Again, has actually spawned slangs as patrons now say: mi shell the bar already and mi ah go dweet again’.
Khago has emerged as one of the artistes to watch for the future. He delivers a booty-shaking masterpiece on ‘Pretty Wine’ with the mind-melting line: ‘mek up yu face like everything yu got a fi me’. US-based deejay Zumjay changes up his flow with the club banger ‘Rock That Body’, a gem of dancehall song that will have all the honeys shaking their groove thangs at parties. Lady Saw shows why she remains the top female in the game with the hard-hitting ‘Grab Me Up’, while Assassin uses his gravel-voiced delivery to good effect on ‘Dem Dutty (Heart Transplant)’’, a wicked jab to the haters and those parasites who seek to undermine your success. This track is speaker-knocking food for thought for anyone who has ever encountered an example of ‘bad mind’.
Spragga Benz is at his best with ‘Activate’, reaffirming his underground accolades as a true rhyme-slinger who can flow bar to bar with the best in the Dancehall Game.
Red hot rookie Stylysh shows that she is a fierce and powerful young voice moving toward something bigger with ‘Star We Show’, and Savage has been getting major props for ‘Defend That’ and its accompanying video has been doing well on cable TV.
Lisa Hyper shows off her limber and elastic delivery on ‘Bounce Me If Yu Bad’ featuring Skii. Lisa Hyper continues to break new ground in a male-driven industry regionally, nationally and globally. Ishawna shows great crossover appeal on a silky smooth song written by noted songwriter Black Pearl. Ishawna’s ice-cream smooth vocals compliment the riddim perfectly, creating a sweet fusion some may call dancehall pop.Cee Gee is a solid deejay with a nice turn of phrase and he demonstrated great wit on ‘Love It Off’ which uses delightful metaphors and sexual innuendos.
The talented rookie Network sounds deliriously amped as he sounds off ‘None Ah Dem No Bad’, showing that he has the game-changing jabs and witty flickoffs to make dancehall an international force again. Scaacha impresses with ‘Everything Gone Up’, an anthem for Jamaicans who are mired in tough economic times. Deva Bratt shows that he can flow bar to bar with the best in the dancehall game with Mix Up Track where he talks purposeful nonsense, using witty rhymes. US-based veteran Lloyd Stiff goes hardcore on ‘Woii’ while Suga Roy shows off his bad-boy credentials with ‘Um Um’.
The executive producer of the project is journalist and publicist Claude Mills. All in all, this is a great dancehall project which is generating a lot of airplay on stations in Jamaica, and along the east coast of the United States.
