Boomshots

Tag: Shaggy

  • Spice’s “Go Down Deh” Goin’ UP Deh With A Little Help From Shaggy and Sean Paul

    Spice’s “Go Down Deh” Goin’ UP Deh With A Little Help From Shaggy and Sean Paul

    Amazing Grace Brings The Heat & Tops The Chart

    One thing about Spice—she knows how to make an entrance! The reigning Queen of Dancehall arrived at the official release party for her highly anticipated new single “Go Down Deh” this weekend dressed like Cleopatra, reclining on a golden couch held aloft by four muscular bare-chested men in ancient Egyptian finery. The event took place in Atlanta, which has been a sort of home away from home for Spice ever since the Jamaican-born star became a recurring character on VH1’s hit reality show Love & HIp Hop Atlanta. Now back in production after a coronavirus hiatus, the show’s cameras filmed Spice’s big launch event for its upcoming season. Dancehall hitmaker Shaggy was in the building to support Spice for the special night—he and Sean Paul are both featured on the infectiously catchy song, bringing some serious star power to the tune, which shot straight to the top of the iTunes Reggae Chart. The video, directed by Jay Will, is full of flashing lights and sexy bodies in motion, and it’s closing in on its first 1 million views as of this writing.  Video After The Jump… 

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  • Shaggy & Sting Win Grammy for Best Reggae Album, And Also Burn Badmind

    Shaggy & Sting Win Grammy for Best Reggae Album, And Also Burn Badmind

    “It’s nice to be nominated… But it’s better to win!”


    Dancehall reggae hitmaker Shaggy was honored twice at the 61st Grammy Awards, held yesterday in Los Angeles. Honor #1: The seven-time Grammy nominee was tapped to host the Grammy Premiere Ceremony, the day’s first round of award presentations, which was live-streamed from the Microsoft Theater, directly across the street from the Staples Center where the televised portion of the Grammy Awards took place. Honor #2: Shaggy’s collaborative project with Sting, 44/876, won the Grammy for Best Reggae Album. It was Shaggy’s second career win (his Boombastic album won the Grammy for Best Reggae Album in 1995) and Sting’s 16th. “They always say about the Grammys that it’s nice to be nominated,” Shaggy said while accepting the award. “I’m telling you right now, it’s better to win!” Interview After The Jump… (more…)

  • OkayAfrica Raises The Bar With D’banj, Sister Nancy, Rayvon and The Compozers in New York City

    OkayAfrica Raises The Bar With D’banj, Sister Nancy, Rayvon and The Compozers in New York City

    Okayafrica’s “Riddim and Beats” Fused Several Musical Genres 

    On Thursday, August 10, 2017,  Okayafrica, a company which fuses music, fashion and culture, presented “Riddim and Beats” at Lincoln Center. The diverse crowd awaited the excited line up, which included D’banj, Sister Nancy,and The Compozer.  More After The Jump…

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  • Tiny Pink Piglet Channels Shaggy’s “Boombastic” in Chase Banking Ad

    Tiny Pink Piglet Channels Shaggy’s “Boombastic” in Chase Banking Ad

    This Likkle Piggy Cried “Smooooooth” All The Way Home

    When you think of reggae music, the first animal that comes to mind is, of course, the Conquering Lion. Perhaps a Jamaican hummingbird or even Rasta Mouse. Papa San’s dancehall classic “Animal Style” shouts out lions (naturally), mad monkeys, bad bwoy skunks, jaguars, black panthers, talking parrots, iguanas, big mouth alligators, long maaga giraffes, big slabba elephants, and woodpeckers, but never gets around to the tiny pink piglet. Apart from Nitty Gritty’s foundation selection “Hog Inna Minty”, the primary use for pigs  in Jamaica has been jerking. That is, until the new ad for Chase Bank, which features an adorable pink piglet hot-stepping all the way to the bank accompanied by the sounds of “Boombastic,” the title track  from Shaggy’s certified-platinum Grammy-winning 1995 album. (Hard to believe the tune is now over 2o years old—perhaps that is why it’s being used in a Retirement Planning advert!) Although Shagsman O.D. was unavailable for comment, the hilarious and heartwarming new ad is clearly a good look for the artist, for reggae music, and for proud little pink piggies everywhere. Video After The Jump… (more…)

  • Assassin Talks “Theory of Reggaetivity”: “Roots Proponents See Me as a Baldhead Rasta”

    Assassin Talks “Theory of Reggaetivity”: “Roots Proponents See Me as a Baldhead Rasta”

    Agent Sasco Links Protoje & Chronixx, Returns To The Roots

    Yesterday Assassin aka Agent Sasco released Theory of Reggaetivity, his first album in over 10 years. The 14-song set shot straight toward the highest regions of the iTunes reggae chart, landing just below Bob Marley’s Legend, which is appropriate for the dancehall DJ’s first all-reggae project, which he describes as “my musical study of the principles of reggae music.” Conceived in Europe and recorded between Los Angeles, New York, and Kingston, JA, Theory of Reggaetivity features production by the likes of Sting International, Chimney Records, Silly Walks Discotek, Diggy British (aka Protoje), Niko Browne, The Drum Keyz, Theo Butler, MLMG, Sound Cheq, and W. Thompson. We first heard this gravelly-voiced lyricist ripping up the Diwali Riddim and trading bars with Spragga Benz and Vybz Kartel back in the early 2000s. More recently he’s become hip hop’s best kept secret weapon [LINK], making guest appearances on massive albums by Kendrick Lamar and Kanye West. Boomshots caught up with him the night after Kendrick featured his voice in a live performance on the Grammy Awards broadcast, and chatted about why he decided the time was right to make this decisive move forward to the roots of Jamaican music. Interview After the Jump… (more…)

  • HEAR THIS: R. City ft. Adam Levine, Agent Sasco, Popcaan, Kardinal Offishall & Bunji Garlin “Locked Away” Dancehall Remix

    HEAR THIS: R. City ft. Adam Levine, Agent Sasco, Popcaan, Kardinal Offishall & Bunji Garlin “Locked Away” Dancehall Remix

    USVI x JA x TNT x TDot Link Up On This Mega Refix

    Over New Year’s weekend, Shaggy & Friends annual fundraiser went down in Kingston, Jamaica with the usual star-studded guest list—hailing from yard and abroad—all to raise funds for Jamaica’s Bustamante Hospital for Children. (That “one ticket = one life” slogan is no joke.) Amongst the headliners was R. City (formerly Rock City), the songwriting duo responsible for smash hits by the likes of Rihanna, Usher, and Chris Brown who now have some pretty big tunes of their own since dropping their debut album What Dreams Are Made Of last August. Although they’ve always been known as stars in their U.S. Virgin Islands homeland, Timothy and Theron Thomas only recently stepped in the international spotlight as performers and recording artists. Their Adam Levine–featuring single “Locked Away” had the pop charts on lock last year, and just in case you didn’t notice the tune’s dancehall drum pattern, they’ve dropped a remix featuring Assassin, Popcaan, Kardi and Bunji. The Thomas brothers stay repping the Caribbean all day long. Legal shot! Salute! Audio & Download Link After The Jump… (more…)

  • Shaggy Has A Plan to Defeat ISIS

    Shaggy Has A Plan to Defeat ISIS

    The Operation Desert Storm Veteran Is Still Fighting the Good Fight

    “ISIS can go fuck themself,” Shaggy declared in a recent interview with the Miami New Times (and the question was about music, not politics).  “That’s some crazy shit what they’re doing. It’s horrible, man. I can’t see… I don’t get that much hate. I just don’t get that level of evil. I can’t understand it.” And so, after a few more questions about music, Shaggy—aka former field artillery cannon crewman Orville Richard Burrell, USMC—shared what was really on his mind, a strategy for toppling the Islamic State in Syria. Thank him later. Interview After The Jump… (more…)

  • Shaggy Shows Off On Fallon

    Shaggy Shows Off On Fallon

    Mr. Boombastic Is Still Fantastic

    Shaggy made an appearance on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon the other night. The appearance was good for a couple of laughs and also promoted his latest smash single, “I Need Your Love,” featuring Mohombi, Faydee, and Costi. (Did you ever notice that Shaggy is always making hits with artists you never heard of?) In a well-over-twenty-year mainstream career, Shaggy still finds himself basking in a very positive limelight, and that makes me happy. People can say what they want about who is badder than who but Shaggy remains the hero that dancehall never really knew it needed—and the one dancehall culture ultimately deserves. In an era where too many of our musical heroes have been remixed into villains, Shaggy is still here to prove that Jamaica has  maintained her joy. So what if he’s clashing Higgins instead of Ninjaman? (And don’t sleep on Hig’s skillz by the way) The man’s got a sense of humor. And it’s always a good look to see Jamaica shine. Respect Mr. Boombastic. Video After The Jump… (more…)

  • HEAR THIS: Shaggy “I Need Your Love” Remix

    HEAR THIS: Shaggy “I Need Your Love” Remix

    Shaggy’s Outernational hit Gets a Dreamy Valentine’s Day Refix

    Ever since 1993, when he and Sting International transformed an ancient reggae song by the Folkes Brothers into a global hit called “Oh Carolina,” Shaggy has demonstrated an uncanny ability to come up with Boomshots heard round the world. His latest guilty pleasure was made in collaboration with Swedish Afro-pop singer Mohombi,Australian singer Fayde, and Romanian co-writer Costi Ionita. “I did a song with Costi, ‘Fired Up’ with Pitbull, and I wanted to get together again. I heard this track and thought it was wonderful. So I did some lyrics and we got a song people really like.” Shaggy recently remarked. You’ve probably seen the video showing the Shagsman cavorting on a yacht somewhere on a twinkling sea of blue. Now, just in time for Valentine’s Day, here comes a dancefloor-ready remix of the tune courtesy of the GameBoyz. Shaggy he will surely perform this one at his V-Day shows—along with Maxi Priest and Sanchez—in New Jersey and New York this weekend. Audio After The Jump… (more…)

  • Ziggy Marley Wins Sixth Grammy, But Nobody Gets To See It

    Ziggy Marley Wins Sixth Grammy, But Nobody Gets To See It

    Three Decades Later, The Reggae Award Is Still NOT Televised

    Congratulations Ziggy Marley on your latest win at the Grammys. Fly Rasta Up Up Up… Way Up/. And just to make sure the ting STAY up, it’s time to revisit an important question. Why is the Best Reggae Album category STILL not being broadcast anywhere? It’s not like the world doesn’t love Reggae music. So what’s the problem? When will the reggae massive show some Unity and command respect like the hip-hop massive did back in 1989 before the music was a billion-dollar industry. U-N-I-T-Y is strength. Time to get up stand up for the good of the music. Uzeet. This year marks not only Bob Marley’s 70th birthday but also the 30th anniversary of the Best Reggae Album category. Details After The Jump… (more…)

  • Damian Marley & Friends Rock The Boat on the Welcome To Jamrock Reggae Cruise

    Damian Marley & Friends Rock The Boat on the Welcome To Jamrock Reggae Cruise

    As Bob Marley Once Sang, We Were “All In The Same Boat, Rockin on The Same Rock”

    When The Wailers linked with Lee “Scratch” Perry to record their classic African Herbsman selection “Don’t Rock My Boat” back in 1973, chances are Bob Marley had no idea that 40-plus years in the future his family would be rocking the biggest boat in reggae history. But when the Welcome To Jamrock Reggae Cruise pulled away from the Port of Miami on Monday October 20th, the 2400 artists, selectors, and reggae lovers on board the luxury liner Norwegian Pearl were just as Bob sang, “All in the same boat, rocking on the same rock.” Continued After The Jump… (more…)

  • A Love We Can Feel: Respect To John Holt

    A Love We Can Feel: Respect To John Holt

    Early Sunday morning, Reggae Legend, John Kenneth Holt, died at the age of 67 in London. Even after collapsing onstage during a performance at this summer’s One Love Festival in the UK, he insisted that his health was fine and said “I’ll be back.” Born in Kingston, Jamaica in 1947, he entered talent competitions at an early age, throughout the island. Holt recorded his first single, “I Cried A Tear,” a song about lies and heartbreak, in London, 1963. This melancholy first tune, foreshadowed numerous follow up hits. More After The Jump…

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