Boomshots

Category: Outernational

Crossover and outside of core

  • Sean Paul Comes Through To “Dutty Up” OVO Fest Night 1

    Sean Paul Comes Through To “Dutty Up” OVO Fest Night 1

    The Dancehall Superstar Even Dropped His Tory Lanez Remix

    Although Beenie Man was unable to attend OVO Fest Night One as planned due to health issues (The Doctor was undergoing treatment for the Zika virus), surprise guest Sean Paul came through just in the nick of time to dutty up the place.  Running through all his hits, from “Gimme The Light” to “Get Busy” and “Temperature” even “Like Glue,” SP even kicked a few bars from his remix to “Luv” by Toronto rude bwoy Tory Lanez. Did anybody tell him that Drake and Mr. Lanez are not exactly on the best of terms at the moment? The guest appearance from Rihanna wasn’t a bad look either. How Drizzy convinced her to skip her beloved Crop Over in Barbados we’ll never know. Maybe those two really are serious. Video After The Jump… (more…)

  • WATCH THIS: Protoje Talks “Can’t Feel No Way”

    WATCH THIS: Protoje Talks “Can’t Feel No Way”

    Diggy British Talks “Royalty Free”

    Since Protoje’s remarkable Ancient Future joined the legions of crucial reggae albums overlooked by the Grammy Awards, Diggy British hasn’t slowed down at all. The five songs comprising the B-side of his latest release, Royalty Free, have set the Internets ablaze since it was uploaded to his Soundcloud, demonstrating the full range of the artists’ creative powers. One track in particular, “Can’t Feel No Way,” produced by Tracker John, M.D., stood out from the rest—promptly getting added to BBC Radio 1 and showcasing sicker than your average flows and rhyme patterns that far surpass any “reggae revival” limitations. Today Boomshots proudly premieres the visuals for said track, along with Reshma B’s exclusive interview with Protoje, wherein Diggy British details the albums’ diverse influences, from Makaveli’s Seven Day Theory to Twin of Twins Stir It Up, and confirms for the record that he does in fact, feel no way whatsoever. Videos After The Jump… (more…)

  • Sean Paul Signs With Island Records

    Sean Paul Signs With Island Records

    Dutty Paul Has The Last Laugh

    Two years after parting ways with Atlantic Records, Grammy-winning dancehall superstar Sean Paul has signed a new contract with Island Records, according to Kevin Jackson at the Jamaica Observer. After making history with a series of chart-topping releases for VP/Atlantic, Sean has stayed Gettin’ Busy as an independent artist, recording hit features with acts ranging from Enrique Iglesias to Major Lazer and most recently Sia. The Australian-born star’s Dutty Paul duet “Cheap Thrills,” has already topped Billboard’s Dance Music Club Play chart and now sits at #6 on the Hot 100. Video & Full Story After The Jump… (more…)

  • WATCH THIS: Tyga “1 of 1” Official Music Video

    WATCH THIS: Tyga “1 of 1” Official Music Video

    Tyga x Amina Kick It In Jamrock

    Tyga is the latest young money representer to catch dancehall fever, having journeyed to Kingston, Jamaica to shoot the video for his “Controlla”-flavored jam “1 of 1.” Lest we forget, “Coconut Juice” was one of Tyga’s first singles, way back before “Bedrock” in 2008. “Kingston, Jamaica—real gully,” he says in a voiceover at the start of the Shomi Patwary-directed video. Much like the ghetto back home, just more undeveloped. What some see as dirty and less fortunate we see beauty, love, and God. Of course when you say Kingston people warn you about the danger, as if the cops ain’t killing kids all over our country. Where we from, there’s danger everywhere. We wanted to come fuck with the people.” He spends most of the video kicking it with Amina Blue, the blonde Brooklyn-born Snapchat star who appears to be rocking with Mr. Rack City inna real life. Video After The Jump… (more…)

  • HEAR THIS: Morgan Heritage “Modern Man” (Umberto Echo Dub Mix)

    HEAR THIS: Morgan Heritage “Modern Man” (Umberto Echo Dub Mix)

    The Mad! Sick! Riddim Is Pretty Much Exactly That

    Our peoples over at Reggaeville linked up with Munich-based production team Oneness Records to drop an energetic roots rock juggling called the Maad! Sick! Riddim that mixes well with the Rootsman and other top-shelf culture cuts. The lineup is stocked with the likes of Exco Levi, Perfect Giddimani, Gappy Ranks, and Kelissa. Herewith we present an exclusive mix of Morgan Heritage’s “Modern Man” dubbed within an inch of its life by the man called Umberto Echo. Not to be confused with Mr. Eco—the linguist, philosopher, semiotician and author of Foucault’s Pendulum and many more—nor with the Bunnymen—the audio phenomenologist Mr. Echo adds his H for hextra echo.   Audio After The Jump… (more…)

  • Mixpak Wins Red Bull Culture Clash

    Mixpak Wins Red Bull Culture Clash

    A Big Assist From Popcaan & Drizzy Drake

    Friday night at London’s O2 Arena four sound systems representing Dancehall, Hip Hop, UK Garage and Grime battled before a 20,000 seat venue for the 2016 staging of Red Bull Culture Clash. Wiley’s Eskimo Dance and UK Garage All-Stars featuring So Solid Crew had the place rocking with the hometown hits, and Wiz Khalifa’s Taylor Gang linked with Supa Dups and Black Chiney Sound to drop some big dubplates, but in end Brooklyn NY’s Mixpak sound who took the trophy with support from dancehall stars Tony Matterhorn, Spice, Kranium, and Popcaan. The Unruly Boss sealed the win in the final round with a Drizzy Drake dub plate of One Dance that done the place. Video After The Jump… (more…)

  • WATCH THIS: Rakim Bigs Up Stephen “Ragga” Marley: “He’s Keeping It Lit For The Next Generation”

    WATCH THIS: Rakim Bigs Up Stephen “Ragga” Marley: “He’s Keeping It Lit For The Next Generation”

    The Making Of Revelation Part 2

    “Doing a song with Rakim, I couldn’t do it lukewarm,” says Stephen “Ragga” Marley. “It still did haffi rock heavy.” The song in question is “So Unjust” the third track on Revelation Part 2: The Fruit of Life. The long-awaited sequel to Ragga’s Grammy-winning 2011 album Revelation Part 1: The Root of Life picks up where part one left off, highlighting Ragga’s versatility and expanding his sonic terrain with a wide range of styles and collaborations, from roots reggae to dancehall, hip hop, soul, R&B and dance music. Complex Media enlisted acclaimed director Stephanie Black to document the process of making the album. “Something to wake up the masses,” is how Rakim describes this parrticular track. “That’s right up my alley.” The hip hop icon goes on to praise Stephen’s role as a producer and a cultural force “It’s like the Bible of music, when the Marleys speak,” says Rakim, who estimates hip hop’s current consciouness level “at zero.” Although Rakim says he means no offense to the artists who are out today, in his words “Something ain’t right…. We definitely need conscious music and it has to come from the superiors, you know what I mean? Stephen Marley is definitely one of them cats who can stand anywhere with a bullhorn, and say Hey!” says Rakim. “It’s a blessing to be part of the march.” Video After The Jump…
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  • HEAR THIS: Derrick Morgan “Black Superman (Muhammad Ali)”

    HEAR THIS: Derrick Morgan “Black Superman (Muhammad Ali)”

    Big Big Request To The Greatest

    Forget what you heard. Muhammad Ali will never die. Ali may be one of the few larger-than-life icons to challenge even Bob Marley for nearly universal respect. We’ve all seen photos of The Greatest with Elvis, The Beatles, and Bob Dylan—he was even Prince’s hero—but what’s his connection to reggae? Derrick Morgan, one of Jamaican music’s greatest, pays tribute to boxing’s “Black Superman” in this Bunny Lee production which made a splash in the UK with Trojan Records in 1975, the year of the Thrilla in Manila. (The song predates the famous DC Comics book, published in 1978.)  Audio After The Jump…
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  • HEAR THIS: Ape Drums ft. Major Lazer & Busy Signal “The Way We Do This”

    HEAR THIS: Ape Drums ft. Major Lazer & Busy Signal “The Way We Do This”

    H-Town Riddim Master At Work

    While Major Lazer might be the biggest names in EDM to flex dancehall riddims and vibes in their tracks, they’re far from the only ones. Houston, Texas’ Ape Drums has been at this for a bit, describing his sound as essentially taking his EDM projects and making them into bigger dancehall riddims. His experimental EDM/dancehall hybrid has been a hit, landing him on some of the hottest EDM labels out, including Skrillex’s OWSLA and Diplo’s Mad Decent imprints. For his latest, he links up with Diplo’s Major Lazer crew and the legendary Busy Signal for “The Way We Do This,” wisely flipping Tony Kelly’s Bookshelf Riddim (made famous by everyone from Sasha on “Dat Sexy Body” to Sean Paul with his classic “Deport Them”) and turning it into a banger that will light up any dance going down this summer.  Audio After The Jump… (more…)

  • HEAR THIS: Stephen “Ragga” Marley ft. Waka Flocka “Scars on my Feet”

    HEAR THIS: Stephen “Ragga” Marley
    ft. Waka Flocka “Scars on my Feet”

    Ragga x Flocka Connect and Reflect

    If you’re paying attention you already know that the long-awaited final chapter of Ragga Marley’s two-album epic is set to arrive July 22nd. Today team Ragga revealed the full track listing of Revelation Part 2: The Fruit of Life and offered these thoughts about the overall project: “The Fruit is about the different branches; there are many pages within my mind, many colors and ideas” says Marley. “We come from a versatile generation that can’t be put in a box.” As if to underscore that versatility, Marley also teased a new track from the album, featuring ATL trap star Waka Flocka Flame, bringing out the Brick Squad rapper’s revolutionary side. Stephen’s duet with dreadlocked turn-up king is available now with a pre-order of the album pon iTunes.  Audio and Track Listing After The Jump…
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  • HEAR THIS: Falcons & Juelz “Gyal Dem Move”

    HEAR THIS: Falcons & Juelz “Gyal Dem Move”

    Something For The Bike Back

    Hot on the heels of the Terra EP—cosigned by the likes of Q-Tip and Virgil Abloh—Fool’s Gold signee Falcons teams up with young Canadian producer Juelz on the scorching hot “Gyal Dem Move.” Arriving the first day of Summer-like weather in New York, the hazed-out beat, strewn with hyperventilated Sean Paul samples, hits the spot. Audio After The Jump…
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  • Super Cat Remembers “Dolly My Baby” Collab With Biggie Smalls, Sends a Message To Puffy

    Super Cat Remembers “Dolly My Baby” Collab With Biggie Smalls, Sends a Message To Puffy

    A Dialog With The Don Dada

    Today we celebrate what would have been the 44th birthday of hip hop’s G.O.A.T., Christopher George Latore Wallace, better known as The Notorious B.I.G. aka Biggie Smalls. (The day is now an official holiday in Brooklyn.) One of the first big looks for the fledgling rapper came in 1993 when he got the chance to drop lyrics on Puff Daddy’s remix of “Dolly My Baby,” a single off Super Cat’s classic Don Dada album. As a youth of Jamaican descent, Biggie fully overstood what a special opportunity this was to rhyme on a record with a living legend of Jamaican dancehall culture. Sadly Biggie’s career would end four years later, but Super Cat lives on—he will perform May 30 at the Oracabessa Festival in Queens, NY. In honor of two lyrical heavyweights, we pulled this interview from the Boomshots archives. Respect in all aspect. Interview After The Jump… (more…)