Creating Magic! at "Jazz"

CANADIAN pop band Magic! certainly lived up to their name in 2014. Their song, Rude, was the year’s biggest hit with sales of over three million copies.

The Toronto quartet’s song about forbidden love also had a six-week run at number one on the Billboard pop chart and made them only the second Canadian act to score a number one reggae song on that list.

Snow was the first to accomplish the feat in 1993 with Informer.

Blue-eyed reggae artistes have had great success on the Billboard charts in the last 20 years. In 1994, Big Mountain out of Southern California scored with Baby I Love Your Way, a cover of British singer Peter Frampton’s massive 1975 hit.

In the 1980s, British bands The Police and UB40 hit the jackpot several times with reggae-flavoured songs. The former established themselves with songs like Everything Little Thing She Does is Magic and Message in a Bottle, but it was their 1983 multi-platinum album, Synchronicity, that reflected their Jamaican influences.

It included the songs Every Breath you Take, Wrapped Around Your Finger and King of Pain, which were international chart-toppers.

UB40 have never hidden their love for Jamaican music. Red Red Wine (a cover of an obscure Neil Diamond song) and Can’t Help Falling in Love were two of their massive sellers.

Not to be left out was Australian band Men at Work who topped the Billboard pop chart in 1981 with their reggae song, Down Under.

Magic!, which was formed in 2013, are scheduled to perform at the Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival which takes place at the Trelawny Multi-Purpose Stadium January 29-31.

They are part of a stellar cast that also includes Rhythm and Blues star Mariah Carey, former GAP Band singer Charlie Wilson, former Chicago front-man Peter Cetera, veteran R&B act the Pointer Sisters, American reggae band SOJA, Barbadian saxophonist Arturo Tappin, roots-reggae group Morgan Heritage, and singer Richie Stephens.

View the original article here

Creating Magic! at "Jazz"

Incarcerated deejay"s new song creating waves

CURTIS CAMPBELL, STAR Writer

Dancehall artiste Vybz Kartel remains relevant despite his life sentence, and currently has another potential local hit on his hands, courtesy of dancehall producer Mario Dunwell.

The song is called Do The Maths and is featured on Dunwell’s latest rhythm … . However, according to the producer, Vybz Kartel who is not allowed to record behind bars did the song before his incarceration.

“Before he was incarcerated, he would record numerous songs per day. That means eight and a half years’ worth of material since he came on the scene in 2002. I was lucky enough to get an unreleased song to produce under my label Dunwell Productions. I would love to have worked directly with him. However, that has not happened,” he said.

The song is laced with literary devices and a catchy hook and Dunwell thinks Do The Maths has the hit factor.

“I saw the potential in the song from I heard his strong lyrical content and diverse flows. I knew it was a good song, but with so many tracks featuring Vybz Kartel being released this year, I wasn’t sure if mine would have gotten lost,” the producer said.

He further stated that, “I am very overwhelmed and grateful for how well it is doing. The music industry is very tough and competitive, so I feel very blessed. I am basically going to keep up the momentum and keep it playing on radio and in the streets. Hopefully, it can connect fully with the people by the Christmas season.”

The producer recently released an animated lyric music video online. However, an official music video is yet to be produced. Dunwell Productions has also released a track with Demarco entitled Puppy Tail.

“The Puppy Tail is the latest dance for females to do. It too is picking up momentum in the streets. People can look out for a lot of material with upcoming artiste Propa Fade, known for his song Friends on Smudge Rhythm,” Dunwell said.

Vybz Kartel’s Do The Maths currently has over 300,000 views on YouTube.com. An animated music video for the Back To Life deejay was last released in 2013 for his effort called Hi. That video was directed and produced by popular local animator Mental Chung and has been viewed over three million times online.

View the original article here

Incarcerated deejay"s new song creating waves

Incarcerated deejay"s new song creating waves

CURTIS CAMPBELL, STAR Writer

Dancehall artiste Vybz Kartel remains relevant despite his life sentence, and currently has another potential local hit on his hands, courtesy of dancehall producer Mario Dunwell.

The song is called Do The Maths and is featured on Dunwell’s latest rhythm … . However, according to the producer, Vybz Kartel who is not allowed to record behind bars did the song before his incarceration.

“Before he was incarcerated, he would record numerous songs per day. That means eight and a half years’ worth of material since he came on the scene in 2002. I was lucky enough to get an unreleased song to produce under my label Dunwell Productions. I would love to have worked directly with him. However, that has not happened,” he said.

The song is laced with literary devices and a catchy hook and Dunwell thinks Do The Maths has the hit factor.

“I saw the potential in the song from I heard his strong lyrical content and diverse flows. I knew it was a good song, but with so many tracks featuring Vybz Kartel being released this year, I wasn’t sure if mine would have gotten lost,” the producer said.

He further stated that, “I am very overwhelmed and grateful for how well it is doing. The music industry is very tough and competitive, so I feel very blessed. I am basically going to keep up the momentum and keep it playing on radio and in the streets. Hopefully, it can connect fully with the people by the Christmas season.”

The producer recently released an animated lyric music video online. However, an official music video is yet to be produced. Dunwell Productions has also released a track with Demarco entitled Puppy Tail.

“The Puppy Tail is the latest dance for females to do. It too is picking up momentum in the streets. People can look out for a lot of material with upcoming artiste Propa Fade, known for his song Friends on Smudge Rhythm,” Dunwell said.

Vybz Kartel’s Do The Maths currently has over 300,000 views on YouTube.com. An animated music video for the Back To Life deejay was last released in 2013 for his effort called Hi. That video was directed and produced by popular local animator Mental Chung and has been viewed over three million times online.

View the original article here

Incarcerated deejay"s new song creating waves