Beenie Man Walks Free

It was just yesterday a warrant issued for the arrest of Dancehall artiste Beenie Man. However, that warrant is no longer valid as Beenie Man’s tax evasion trial was thrown out of court earlier today. According to the judge, the evidence was not enough for the case to continue.

Now that Beenie Man is cleared of all charges, he has vowed to make sure his taxes are paid on time and in full.

According to his publicist, Ray Alexander the deejay said, give thanks to “Rastafari” - for getting this heavy load off his head bless.

Lady Saw ...the real Muma of Best Of The Best All Woman

By Joan Jackson

Queen of the dancehall, Lady Saw, showed that she is definitely in a class by herself, when she rose above the ‘almshouse’ and gave memorable performances in the US on September 19 in the Bronx and the 20th in LA at the Best Of The Best All Woman showcase.
For various reasons, the event in the Bronx got off to a late start and with about ten minutes remaining for the show to end, it was left up to Macka Diamond and Lady Saw (in that order) to bring the curtains down. However, deejay Macka Diamond didn’t respond when she was being introduced as the next act, so Lady Saw entered centre-stage and got down to pleasing the patrons.
Lady Saw is indeed a hard act to follow on any stage show and in the Bronx, she had the fans in the palm of her hands. She totally connected with patrons with a repertoire that included her new hot song ‘Jealous’. All those inside the venue were given a shock, however, when Saw’s performance was interrupted with a healthy string of curse words from deejay Macka Diamond who was given a mic. Apparently Macka was upset that Lady Saw had gone on stage before her and the girl from the Diamond District was transformed in something that was certainly far from precious.
Fortunately, she soon realised that the explicit curse words were not doing her any justice, especially since Lady Saw was acting like a real Lady and did not respond in like manner. Macka wise up and changed the pace, did her songs for which she is best known such as ‘Hulla Hoop’ ‘Money O’ and ‘Bun Him’ and got a good response. She then went on to big up Lady G, who had performed earlier and Lady Saw.
Among the other female artistes who performed at the shows were veteran dancehall princess Spice, and Queen Paula.
The Bronx show was, unfortunately poorly attended and not even last-minute by efforts by the promoter to air the event on underground radio stations made any difference. With just a few patrons and hoping that others will eventually come out, the event failed to start on time.
After a long wait, the first act to take the stage Queen Paula, who was all hyped up but failed to connect with the small crowd who by now had grown restive. As she launched an attack on Spice, she got a resounding boo. When the deejay saw that it wasn’t going to work out, she told the patrons that she “loved them” and that the “mic was not working right” before departing the stage.
Veteran deejay of the pack, Lady G, showed why she is still able to give delightful performances. Not known for outrageous lyrics, she woke the place when she drew for a lyrics in which she deejayed “Nuh gal cyaan teck off mi panty...” getting crazy forwards. Because of time constraint, she wrapped up her short stint and exited the stage.
Lady Saw, when contacted about the incident, said she found Macka Diamond’s behaviour “very strange” as she was the sort of persons who used to big up all female artistes. It seems like somebody is drawing her into ‘passa passa’. “I just told Spice not to let them draw her out because they are looking hype off her.”

HYPE TV CHART SUMMARY FOR SEPTEMBER 26th, 2008

Mr. Vegas takes off this week with ‘Daggering’; the track has taken back the #1 title, making this its third time at number one. The hit maker has grace us with several hits like ‘Heads High’, ‘Nike Air’ and recently ‘Hot Wuk’ in his eleven year reign, however, the shocking news broke yesterday that the artiste will be retiring from dancehall music but he will be honoring all his previous commitments. This is a very sad time for the dancehall arena, he will be missed immensely if he stands by his decision. Thank you Vegas for your contribution to dancehall music and also for leaving us with a scorching hit.
The ‘Energy God’ Elephant Man with Nuh Linga has been dethroned by the retiree. The single has spent three weeks at number one but now takes up the #2 spot. Who knows, it may be able to make a turn as the new number one ruler.
The “retiree” seems to be a force to reckon with, Vegas have another single taking up position in the top five with ‘Nuh Fight Over Man.’ The single takes hold of the #3 spot. Again I will say you will be missed.
While another dancehall music champ leaves the industry another rise, Konshens with the Winner takes hold of the #4 position leaving for the #5 spot and claiming this week’s Shot To Watch title. He is definitely a newcomer to watch out for.
This week Morgan Heritage will be smiling as their track “Nothing to Smile About” makes its way as one of the top five singles on the chart. The group has been working very hard ever since they appeared on the scene. It seems the legacy of music hold still in their blood.
Mavado has never failed to arise and renew his style as he brings to the chart this time Am So Special. The single is this week’s Greatest Gainer, jumping three places to make it to the #12 position leaving the #15 spot.
The New Entry on the chart this week goes to the ‘Gargamel’ Buju Banton with Sleepless Night. The track is another one from the Don Corleon label, it holds the #20 position.It's left to be seen how the movements of this one will continue on the chart.
The ladies are appearing to be a real threat on the chart, they are four beautiful women of Reggae and Dancehall who are riding high on chart. Two are holding firm in the top ten; Lady Saw and the Diva Cecile. While the other two, Stacious takes hold of #14 and the Roots Reggae Empress, Queen Ifrica holds down the #19 position in her second week on the chart.
THE CHART AIRED FRIDAY'S @ 9:15pm WITH REPEATS DURING THE WEEK ON HYPE TV CAN BE VIEWED IN THE WEEKEND CHAT ON FRIDAY'S, YOU CAN ALSO WATCH THIS WEEK TOP 20 SINGLES CHART ON HYPE TV WEBSITE JUST LOG ONTO www.hypetvjam.com
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I-Octane's Different Page dominating the charts

I-Octane's Different Page has really taken off both on the local and international scene. The single is now sitting atop Canada's Radio Dub plate Charts in the #1 position. In the US on both the South Florida and New York Charts Different Page feature prominently on them.
On the local front the song made it to the #1 position of Richie B's Top 20 Reggae Charts.
No one could be happier about the progress of the song than the singer himself, who said it is always a great feeling to see your work being appreciated in their fashion.
That the single is doing so well is not surprising as I-Octane been receiving nothing but huge forwards whenever he performs this single at events.
At Reggae Sumfest it garnered the most response for him, then in Holland it was the same story as even the singer was surprised at how much they knew the lyrics to the song. Then the other day in Canada, he had to wheel and come again with the song as the crowd wanted more!
The video for Different Page was shot two Sundays ago on location at Rodney's Arm in Portmore under the direction of Anju Val and Junior Arrows.

J.E.A.L.O.U.S – hottest new song on the circuit by Lady Saw

Talking about heat in the dancehall! First Lady and queen of the dancehall, Marion ‘Lady Saw’ Hall aka ‘Muma’, has one of the hottest new songs that is going to make current chart topper ‘Sunday To Sunday’ look like a joke. And ‘Sunday To Sunday’ is no joke because it is threatening to knock top male artistes from their respective #1 #2 and 3 positions.
This song, titled ‘Jealous’ and recorded for Legend label on the Benny Hill rhythm for top flight producer LeftSide, is certainly going to have lot of people trying to figure out who is the artiste because of the jazzy, instrumental backing and the sophisticated, and to some extent unidentifiable voice of Saw. Radio and sound system jocks are going to find this song so intriguing, it could easily be the Song Of The Year.
A mixture of singing and deejaying, the intro begins as follow with Lady Saw spelling out the letters “J.E.A.L.O.U.S”, followed by: “Those witches can’t spell the names they are wearing on their chest, every time they see me they cut their eyes and spit but those little ‘f’ (ers) can go and break their necks. They are so jealous and just want to be, they want my crown, my throne, my home but I am the only Queen B...dress like a queen, ress like a queen, mansion bigger than housing scheme, gal a chat ‘bout queen and don’t know what it mean.”
That’s just a teaser of what the contents of the song are. Because of the many props and thumbs up the song has been generating from those who have been privy to hear it, in a couple of weeks a video for ‘Jealous’ will be shot.
Other artistes on the Benny Hill rhythm are Elephant Man, Timberlee, Shane O, Sample (Lady Saw’s brother) and Leftside.

East Fest continues, even as Morgan Heritage resigns

Reggae singing group, Morgan Heritage, is no longer part of the planning and production of the successful roots and culture stage show, East Fest. The festival, however, will continue but will be staged under new management. Held annually in St Thomas, the show, in keeping with the beliefs of the Morgan Family, took a hiatus in its seventh year and made its return last December, using the same format with which patrons had become familiar. "We decided that our touring schedule would not allow us to properly organise a Festival” Heritage stated. The Family took a decision to turn over the event to new management.

This year, however, for the first time in its staging, Morgan Heritage will not be present at East Fest.
“Though we will be there in spirit, we will not be at East Fest this year and we have given up Management of the event for several years to come," a spokesperson from Morgan Heritage disclosed. They noted, however, that it is their hope that the people and partners who have supported East Fest over the years will continue to do so.

FLAMZE…..A BALL OF FIRE FOR THE AIRWAVES

Flamze: A hot glowing mass of burning gas, often carrying incandescent particles; a brilliant reddish orange color often used to describe one’s personality.
Born Sidony Smith, she got her entry in radio land with the name Flamze. ‘I first came by the name Flamze when I heard that I was going to be doing a show called "96 Degrees" in the 1-5pm slot for 5 days a week, so my female cousin (an inspiration to me called simply Ghetto Yute) and I sat down and brainstormed for a few hours and we had chosen a few other names like Pepper, Ginger, Heat and finally she said Flamze. That had a great ring to it and it truly was the best word to describe my personality and the kind of vibe that I wanted to transmit to the listeners’, Flamze revealed. The radio station that she started was a community radio station in Savanna-la-mar Westmoreland known as LINKZ 96 fm.
Flamze, who is also one of the Caribbean’s most sought after MC,s was born and raised in the Marine Park area of Portmore in St. Catherine. She lived there until she was six years old, when her family relocated to Linstead in St. Catherine. She stayed in Linstead until she was 17 years old, where she then relocated to Kingston while attending Excelsior Community College where she pursued an Associates Degree in Tourism, Hospitality and Entertainment at the Excelsior Community College.
In 2003, she attended the Phillip Sherlock Center for the Performing Arts and did a Voice & Speech Course with renowned broadcaster Tony Patel. In the summer of that year, she returned to the UWI campus for the Radio Announcing and Presentation Course that was facilitated by another broadcasting legend, Fae Ellington.
The following year she completed a short course in News Writing & Editing which was facilitated by Prof. Kendall Moore. Since then Flamze has further trained with renowned broadcaster Paula Ann Porter Jones.

After her tenure at LINKZ 96 FM, Flamze made her move to ZIP 103 FM, and later was invited by Judith Ann Bodley, former Station Manager to work for RJR 94FM. “Judith Bodley was the first main stream media manager who saw my talent, believed in it, and was willing to further hone my talent by taking me under her tutelage. I owe most of what I now know to Judith and will forever be grateful to her for that”. For the past 2 years Flamze has been igniting the airwaves of RJR94 fm, and though now absent from radio due to internal issues, this multi-talented woman has landed the position of VJ, for HYPE TV’s VTX Countdown, and has been getting rave reviews since she started. Viewers can look out for Flamze and Treasure on Up & Live, Tuesdays on Hype TV.
In her talent pool, Flamze is an established MC, Disc Jock, VJ, and Events Manager, and has graced the stage of many local and Caribbean events. Asked if she hadn’t gotten her foot in media what other career path she would’ve pursued, Flamze said: ‘I would definitely still be in entertainment probably as a dance major from the Edna Manley School of performing arts. I would also try my hand at music producing and Artiste Management or without a doubt Public Relations. I would not survive in an office just filing papers everyday music is in my bones cause back in the 70's my father owned and operated a huge sound system(which I refuse to name) and I guess it’s hereditary”.
She also loves to chill at home, cook and watch National Geographic channel. Musically she loves listening to old school music including rock and alternative, hip hop, dancehall, disco, pop and jazz.
As for her ultimate goal in life, it is to become a Lecturer at the UWI Mona campus in Communication or Psychology. ‘I also want to do at least 5 more years in Jamaican radio and hopefully land a job doing a weekly all Jamaican radio show on HOT 97 in New York, representing for the best in Jamaican music. I also want to manage a radio station one day. But I'll get there in baby strides’, she joked.

Reggae ambassadors Morgan Heritage tour the world

Simply put, Morgan Heritage is taking on the world… and in a huge way. Assiduous and feverishly focused, the group, which comprises the children of Reggae singer, Denroy Morgan, is on a mission. Actually, their most recent CD is entitled Mission In Progress, but it could equally have been named Mission Being Accomplished.
Quite an easy-going set of Rastafarians, Morgan Heritage has refrained from the condemnatory ‘bun dis and bun dat’ kind of livity dear to the heart of some of their fellow Rastafari singers (and deejays). It was they who made people stop, look and listen when they offered the insightful “you don’t haffi dread to be Rasta, it is not a dreadlocks ting divine conception from the heart”.
It was on June 15 that Heritage kicked off their ‘World Tour’ — with the emphasis on the word ‘world’. Apparently worked out with mathematical precision, the tour of the world runs over into next year, with some hard to imagine continental juggling occurring over the period. For example, their US leg of the tour (June 15 to August 2) also saw them leaving North American continent to travel to Europe for one show only. But that, according to the affable Una, the lone female in the group, represented an opportunity of a lifetime.
“It’s one of the biggest festivals in Europe… for 300,000 people… called Parkpop. We performed alongside Sheryl Crow, Jason Mraz, along with a host of other rock, pop, hip-hop and world music artistes,” she said.
According to Una, they were invited by FunX, a mainstream station that had their blockbuster single, Nothing To Smile About, at number one on their chart, above Rihanna, Chris Brown and Usher at the time.
During the official US leg of the Mission World Tour they did the West Coast and, for the group, things reached a peak when they played 18 shows with one day off to end the North American leg of the tour. Interestingly, the official end of the US tour was in the British Virgin Island of Tortola, “where we played to a crowd caught in the rain, yet determined to have a good time,” Una smiled.
Quite satisfied with their progress and accomplishments in the US, a country they had not toured in quite a while, the siblings took a short break before heading off to what Una calls a “festival tour of Europe”. This saw Heritage in performance at all the major festivals — and there are many — dotted right across Europe.
“We played Uppsala Festival in Sweden with Burning Spear, Sean Paul, and Beenie Man; Sundance in Holland with Burning Spear, Tarrus Riley, and Queen Ifrika; Super Bock Festival in Portugal where rock super group Massive Attack played as well. Massive Attack has the legendary Horace Andy on lead vocals. We did Reggae Sunsplash in Austria with Michael Rose and a Surf Festival in Italy,” Una reeled off.
The group, she noted, finished up the festival tour in Germany at the Cheimsee Festival. “Surrounded by German reggae and hip hop stars, we closed the festival in front of 25,000 people,” Una declared.
Another respite and the group was back in North America heading to Charlotte, North Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia where they linked up with Beres Hammond on stage.
Now back in Jamaica, Heritage will resume their regular bookings until October, when they plan to take the month off, “with the occasional weekend one-off” Una added. Come November, they will be off to Europe, this time for a club tour, which will “take us to Sweden, Norway, Denmark, France, Italy, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Germany, Switzerland, Israel, Portugal, Spain and Holland.
“The Mission In Progress World Tour will go directly to Africa from Europe,” Una explained.
She admits that touring is “gruelling”, but for these Rasta/Reggae standard bearers, it comes with the territory and is an integral part of their musical mission.

HYPE TV CHART SUMMARY FOR SEPTEMBER 19th, 2008

While Elephant Man is on tour in Japan, his hot single Nuh Linga still lingers in the #1 position. Ele is now picking up where Bolt left off, giving Asians a piece of the new Jamaican flavor. The single is spending its third consecutive week in this spot. Watch to see what will happen next week has a threat remain for this spot.
Mr. Vegas with Daggering seems very determined to regain the number one position. This week, as the single sits at the threatening #2 spot; it also holds the Shot to Watch title. Let see how much power the ‘dagger master’ has to take over next week on the chart, the track has already spent two weeks at number one.
Again Mr. Vegas stays it into the top five, here he stands tall with another girls’ anthem Nuh Fight Over Man. The scorching track sits in the #3 leaving the #4 spot. Watch to see if this man will fight over the number one title on the chart.
The first lady of dancehall Lady ‘Mumma’ Saw with her catchy single Sunday to Sunday is holding firm in the #4 position. The has single made a minor shift down one place but still hold strong to be in the top five position.
The newcomer Konshens is making strides with his blazing single Winner, the track has step it up a notch to make it into the top five on the chart, it is now at #5 leaving from the #6 position.
The Dancehall’s Assassin aka Mr. Jeffrey with Dem Nuh Wah Nuh Gal has taken claim to the Greatest Gainer title. The single has jumped three places to make its way to the #8 position from #11. The controversial hit single is creating waves in the dancehall. Let see the impact it will have on the chart.
The Roots Reggae Empress, Queen Ifrica with Keep It to Yourself is this week’s holder of the New Entry title this week on the chart. The track is debuting at #20; it’s on the Don Corleon label. Ifrica is a true queen so she can take any crown; we definitely watch to see her movements on the chart.
THE CHART AIRED FRIDAY'S @ 9:15pm WITH REPEATS DURING THE WEEK ON HYPE TV CAN BE VIEWED IN THE WEEKEND CHAT ON FRIDAY'S, YOU CAN ALSO WATCH THIS WEEK TOP 20 SINGLES CHART ON HYPE TV WEBSITE JUST LOG ONTO www.hypetvjam.com .

Spice Hits with the Dagger!!!!

Dancehall deejay, Spice, has finally made a big impact on the dancehall and she has done it with the song “Daggera”. Spice, who is highly rated as a performer and can craft slick juggling lyrics, has enjoyed some measure of success with various producers and different singles, but was unable to find that one special breakthrough song … up until now. She has definitely found the right formula with “Daggera”.

Always at her best when doing controversial lyrics, this counteraction song fits right into her repertoire and complements her in-your-face, come-test-me-if-you-can kind of attitude. Daggering is the latest catch phrase in the dancehall and many of the male deejays have lyrics which tout their sexual prowess/daggerin' style.

Spice explains her reason for doing the counteraction. "It's quite simple," she says, "I have to represent for the ladies, because there was no song like that out there to talk for the ladies so I figure I had to do it for them … it's all fun," she laughs. To quote a few lines from the track:
Bwoy a sey you sey yuh wah gimme 100 stab, Mek sure when yuh come yuh can handle de job, When mi done, yuh a walk sideway like a crab, Already the song is getting much love from local radio stations and at the major dances such as Weddy Weddy, Passa Passa, Uptown Mondays and Hot Mondays.

This weekend, Saturday, September 20 Spice will be gracing the stage of the Shatto Ballroom in Los Angeles alongside the queen of dancehall, Lady 'Mumma' Saw. Among the other shows on her performance calendar are Barbados, October 11, Champions in Action, October 18 at Jamworld, Portmore and November 15 for National Park, Georgetown, Guyana.
“Daggera” was done on the Sky Daggering riddim and also features Aidonia, “Fly Daggering/100 Stab” and “Sky Daggerin” from Chino (son of singer Freddy McGregor). All the singles are on the Equinoxx label.

Morgan Heritage interview with Dermott Hussey airs on XM Radio

While on their Mission In Progress tour in July, conscious reggae group, Morgan Heritage paid a visit to highly-respected Jamaican musicologist, Dermott Hussey, a disc jock on the hugely popular Satellite radio,XM Satellite Radio.

While there, the group played a sensational live set and sat down for an in-depth interview with Dermott.

“We discussed our past, present, and future. From Jamaican music history to
our new sound. The Gedion family was present with Laza and Irie
Love on board the Rockaz Train,” Morgan Heritage explained, adding that the session was intense and fun-filled

The group's performance and the interview will be aired from September 16th -19th at 8:00 pm everyday on XM Radio

XM is sending out a special invitation to everyone to jump on board the Rockaz Train to enjoy the experience of Morgan Heritage Bringing Back the Love to XM airways.

First lady of dancehall Lady Saw - in a league by herself

There is no question about it, dancehall’s ‘first lady’ – Lady Saw — is in a league by herself.
Classy, raunchy, saucy and loaded with the right kinda attitude, Saw sets a pace that is unmatched and definitely hard to follow. Hers is the story of a girl raised in humble surroundings who defied many odds to make it to the place she is now in the entertainment business.
Hailing from Galina in the parish of St. Mary known for churning out several top artistes the likes of Capleton, Ninja Man, Cobra, Tanya Stephens and the late Tenor Saw, among others Lady Saw is today not just any ‘ordinary girl’ from the country who was raised by a God-fearing mother. She is the perfect example of the power of tenacity and hard work in making your dreams become a reality.
It can be easily said that her ‘tomboy’ behaviour could be what helped to mould her into the no-nonsense persons she is. She has dared her male counterparts with her raunchy and at times not PG rated on-stage performances.
As Lady Saw climbed the ladder of success, she never took her mind off her goal, despite the many unkind remarks made of what some said was her ‘un-lady like’ behaviour. This never deterred the ‘first lady’ as she took the mouth beatings in stride and showed them her versatility.
Lady Saw became the first female DJ to headline shows outside of Jamaica and went on to win a Grammy Award in 2000. In 1994 when she debuted with ‘Lover Girl’ for VP Records.
Moving away from hardcore songs such as ‘Stab Out De Meat’, one of her underground hits which helped to buss her in the dancehall, a more modest and subtle Lady Saw over the years has addressed topics such as unfaithful lovers, female degradation, safe sex and infertility
With a discography that would take up pages, Saw has delighted dancehall fans with songs such as ‘Sycamore Tree’, ‘Find A Good Man’, ‘I’ve Got Your Man’, ‘Chat To Mi Back’, ‘Infertility’, ‘Hice It Up’ and ‘Hardcore’ (‘It’s Raining’), and numerous others.
Lady Saw has also collaborated with her male and female peers on several tracks. As ‘first lady’ and ‘queen of the dancehall’, she has done collaborations with ‘king of the dancehall’ Beenie Man on tracks such as ‘Healing’, ‘Bossman’ with Sean Paul, her protégé and dancehall princess CéCile with ‘Loser’ and with Tanya Stephens on ‘Bruck Dem Up’.
Internationally, Lady Saw has shared mic with Missy Elliott, Eve, Lil' Kim, No Doubt, Vitamin C and Foxy Brown.
Lady Saw received her greatest mainstream honour in 2003 when she won a Best Performance by a Duo or Group with a Vocal Grammy for her 2003 collaboration with No Doubt titled ‘Underneath It All’.
Adding to her musical credit, Lady Saw received a gold certification from the RIAA for ‘Smile’ with Vitamin C, and a triple-platinum certification from the RIAA for ‘Underneath It All’ with No Doubt.
In 1994 Lady Saw’s ‘Lover Girl’ album was released followed by ‘Give Me A Reason’ in 1996, ‘Passion’ in 1997, ‘Raw - Best Of Lady Saw’ and ‘99 Ways’ in 1998, ‘Strip Tease’ in 2004 and ‘Walk Out’ in 2007.
She is among a host of artistes slated to perform on International Caribbean Reggae Music Festival (ICMFest) on Thanksgiving weekend, Sunday, November 16 at the historic Virginia Key Beach Park in Key Biscayne, Miami.
Her latest single, ‘Sunday To Sunday’, for the third consecutive week is holding down the #3 position on the Hype TV Top 20 Chart and a video for the song will soon be released.

LAZA Formerly Of The Popular LMS Group

Being a member of the world renowned Morgan Family is no easy feat. But, if your dream is to make it in the music industry, it sure has its advantages.

Laza, formerly of the popular LMS group, is currently recording his first solo album to be released later this year entitled Words of A Poor Man’s Son. Laza took on the deejaying (Jamaican style of rap) role within the group taking cues from a host of hip-hoppers (Rakim, KRS One, Special Ed and Run-DMC among them) as well as the hardcore dancehall toasters of the mid 80’s and early 90’s (Supercat, Ninja Man, Capleton, and Buju Banton). The group, in existence for little under a decade, decided to concentrate on their solo projects.

Laza’s album on the family label, Gedion Music, will be a unique mixture of Hip Hop, Roots Reggae and Dancehall. He will take some of his own personal experiences and enlist the aid of producers such as Mr. Mojo (from Morgan Heritage), Legendary Hip-hop producer Clark Kent, Shane Brown(Juke Boxx), Fattis Burrell, Bobby Digital, and upcoming Hip-Hop producer Reefa among many others.

The first two singles as a solo artiste reflect the diverse musical influences that inspire Laza. Brother Mr. Mojo brings in the legendary Ninja Man to toast on the lead single, Number One, currently being serviced at radio. Raw and poinent lyrics urgently delivered over Shane Brown’s instrument rich Chaos riddim describe Laza’s follow up single, What A Gwaan.

Laza grew up in Brooklyn, NY, attended school in Springfield, MA and lived in a distinctly Jamaican household. Surrounded by music [father Denroy Morgan had a crossover hit in the early 80’s with I’ll Do Anything For You while siblings Morgan Heritage earned the title “The Royal Family of Reggae”] Laza took to the business at a very young age. As early as age 7, Laza became very interested in Hip Hop and by the age of 13, his father introduced him to Dancehall. He has a special appreciation for Roots Reggae as he views it as a timeless sub-genre of Reggae.

In 1990, Laza started a group with his brother, Shy-Poo, called “The Dredz” and after performing at Reggae Sunsplash in 1992, they signed a record deal with MCA and recorded an album that was never released. In 1996, the family visited Jamaica and while here, they decided to form LMS, which is an acronym of the names of the members of the group; Laza, Miriam and Shy-Poo.

The newly formed group was well received, released four albums [Reality Check, Zion Gates, Straight from Root and London 2 Paris] and toured the world with Morgan Heritage. Now, as a solo artiste, Laza continues to tour with his siblings as a featured performer.

His dynamic background, contributes to his equally eclectic musical style and sound. “I can sound like an American and I can sound like a Jamaican. When the mixture comes together through music, it’s like magic.” When compared with Morgan Heritage’s R&B vocals, Laza simply describes his vocals as “raw”, especially when he raps. He is also quick to say that his father has played a major role in his music career as “he kept us focused- focused on our music.”

Laza comments that, “It’s harder being a solo artiste ‘cause I don’t have my brother or sister to fall back on, everything’s on me.”

HYPE TV CHART SUMMARY FOR SEPTEMBER 12th, 2008

Elephant Man the Olympic superstar continues to sweep the #1 position with Nuh Linga. His hot single is spending its second week in this spot. Now that one of the biggest promoters of Jamaican dancehall moves, 'lightning' Bolt is back in the island, let's see how much he and Ele can 'sort out' the sessions.

Mr. Vegas the ladies dagger master with Daggering seems determined to keep the #2 position; he has spent two weeks in this spot, after slipping from the number one place. The scorching single is favored by the ladies and that maybe the reason it's still appears to be a threat to take back the number one spot. We'll see how much more love it will get by next week, hopefully to regain the number one title.

Lady Saw with her controversial single Sunday To Sunday continues to be threat to the men on the chart; the track is holding the #3 title for the third week in a row. This lady will walk out and take over anything.

Mr. Vegas is definitely a force to reckon with, he has another girls' anthem Nuh Fight Over Man, taking the #4 spot. Watch out 'muma' this man has taken over another diva position.

Ce'cile with Ride or Die is still holding firm in the top five. It's currently at #5 and peaked at #4 which was snatched from the 'dagger master'. Let's see how high Cecile is willing to ride next week.

Konshens with the Winner is set on proving just that, the infectious track has claimed the Shot to Watch title for this week. It snatched up the #6 spot leaving the #8 position, making his way further in the top ten. The artiste, even though just making it in the spotlight is truly a champion; he is currently creating major waves in the dancehall.

George Nooks the veteran with Rest Your Love On Me is still making his mark in the industry. The rendition is the holder of the #13 jumping three places from the #16 spot thus claiming the Greatest Gainer title for this week. His new version of Olivia Newton-John & Andy Gibb will definitely be remembered.

Taurus Riley has come closer with Far Away the single is the New Entry for this week on the chart, debuting at #19. The commendable track is on the Don Corleon label. We'll certainly watch to see how close this will go the number position.

THE CHART AIRED FRIDAY'S @ 9:15pm WITH REPEATS DURING THE WEEK ON HYPE TV CAN BE VIEWED IN THE WEEKEND CHAT ON FRIDAY'S, YOU CAN ALSO WATCH THIS WEEK TOP 20 SINGLES CHART ON HYPE TV WEBSITE JUST LOG ONTO www.hypetvjam.com

Hyp

CeCile and Beenie Man's 'I'm So Fly' is number one

The so fly single from dancehall diva CéCile and dancehall doctor Beenie Man has hit the top of the New York charts, which was only a matter of time. 'I'm So Fly' is also poised at number two on the South Florida chart, threatening to take over the top slot soon.
Released on the Danger Zone/SoBe Records label, 'I'm So Fly', produced by the famous Scott Storch, is featured on CéCile's latest album 'Waiting', which was released last month.

Euphoric performances by Beenie Man in Europe

Ultimate Reggae entertainer Moses 'Beenie Man' Davies continues to prove to the world why he is dubbed the 'doctor' and 'king of the dancehall' during his recent tour of Europe.
European fans have described Beenie Man's performances as "fantastic and energizing."
Despite a few personal problems on the tour that were straightened out, Beenie Man did not let anything get in the way of him giving the best of himself to his many fans who turned out in numbers at all venues that he was slated to perform.
His first stint of the tour got underway on Friday, August 8 in Lisbon Portugal where the 'doctor' gave fans there a very stimulating performance. He took them through a variety of his old and new hit songs backed up with some very entertaining dance moves.
Fans in Sweden, Germany Italy, Holland and France also got their fair share of the 'doctor's versatility. Despite the different languages and culture, it was quite evident that there is definitely a place in the world for dancehall.
When Beenie Man tour pulled up in England, dancehall was well represented. There was nothing wrong he could do for fans of Bradford, Birmingham and London, much of whom were Jamaicans celebrating Jamaica's successful medal haul at the Beijing Olympics.
And of course, while he was not in Beijing to celebrate with Team Jamaica, Beenie Man used the occasion to give euphoric performances that will be long remembered by 'Yardies' and 'Cockney' dancehall fans.
Beenie Man is surely one of dancehall's greatest and most admired entertainer who continues to represent Jamaica on the world stage entertainment.

25,000 fans turn out to see Morgan Heritage in Guyana

It was eight years ago that reggae group Morgan Heritage performed in Guyana, and their return to that mainland territory last weekend was nothing short of historic.

A record-breaking 25,000 patrons packed the National Cricket Stadium to see welcome the group and receive their musical message. Morgan Heritage played classics and new hits alike — from Don't Haffi Dread to Nothing To
Smile About which received the biggest roar from the crowd all night. The
Mission In Progress album made its presence felt and the Guyanese fans sang along throughout the group’s entire set.

Also making an impact was the powerful song, Leave The Young Girls Alone, which
touches on the issue of older men sleeping with under-aged girls. Interestingly, this song, which is not played at all on Jamaican radio seemed to be the young audience's anthem as
the crowd sang along with the scoustic performance of the song from start to
finish.

A big part of the Mission for MH is to bring definition to Jamaican Music, Reggae and Dancehall.
“Dancehall was a place where u would go to heaReggae Music in the 70's,” Peter Morgan told the attentive audience. He added that ‘Dancehall’ became the name of a music in the late 70's with founders Brigadare Jerry, U-Roy, I-Roy, Big Youth, just to name a few.
“You never hear the music of Jay-Z being confused with R-Kelly, Mary J Blige
with Lil Kim, Chris Brown with Lil Wayne. So let's not confuse the music of Beres Hammond with Beenie Man; Taurus Riley with Busy Signal; or Morgan Heritage with Elephant Man,” Professor Peter explained to his class.

MH empowered the crowd to embrace this truth by having them say, “Dancehall
is Dancehall and Reggae Music is what?” Which 25,000 answered back in one
voice, "Reggae Music".

For the 1 hour and 45 minutes of their performance, Morgan Heritage had the crowd riveted to their spots and entertained from start
to finish.
History was created in Guyana as this concert pulled the largest crowd ever at any stage show.
Title Sponsor, Digicel, pulled off this feat with Akon when they first launched in Guyana some time ago. But organisers were surprised when Morgan Heritage did it again. But such is the power of Reggae music.

The Dutch Accepts I-Octane

Conscious singer I-Octane returned home on a high after making good on his first ever European performance at the Sundance Festival in Holland on August 10. The singer was surprised at the response he received from the estimated 30-35,000 patrons as he belted out his popular singles such as Stab Vampire, Poverty and Different Page.

He was surprised by how much they knew his songs. He felt that it was one of his best performances yet and was grateful to performed in front of a huge white crowd and hearing them singing his songs word for word.

The songs went over so well, that I-Octane found himself performing each track more than once. When he touched Different Page well in the singers own words, It was a different page all together. He had to do that song three times, before he could eventually satisfy their insatiable appetite for the single.

The singer had every reason to enjoy his first stint in Europe as he was a hot commodity there doing one interview after another for magazines, radio and television stations. That was not the only thing occupying his time as he was also in demand to do dub plates and specials for various sounds in that part of the world.

I-Octane also did a superb performance in Canada on the Toronto International Music Festival which took place last weekend at Oakville Italian Garden, Toronto.

The singer is expected to return to the island on Tuesday to shoot the video for his number one single Different Page.

According to the singer's management company Arrows Recording, relayed that they should have shot the video already, but the rain put paid to those plans.

Ce'cile happy with Playboy feature

Deejay Ce'cile has found herself comfortably positioned between the pages of Playboy magazine, and she is loving it.
"It's just great," she says, giving a coy smile and playfully striking a Playboy kind of pose.
The August issue of the German edition of Playboy features a review of Ce'cile's newest album, Bad Gyal, making her among the few dancehall artistes to appear in this publication. She joins the likes of Shaggy and German reggae act sMono and Nikitaman to be featured in the review section
"Of course, this feature in Playboy magazine is really a plus. It is very rare for Jamaican dancehall musicians to make this publication and hopefully this means that more of us will make it in the review pages. Millions of people read this magazine, so immediately there will be a lot of exposure for me and the product," she says.
Ce'cile notes that this is a great way of promoting the CD and building on the fan base that already exists in Germany. The artiste who recently returned from an European tour promoting the CD, says the tour went well and they covered a lot of ground in the couple of weeks on the road appearing at the major festivals.
She explained that Bad Gyal is strictly for the European market and an intense marketing and promotional campaign is in progress. There are 18 tracks on the CD, including a remix, featuring Shaggy, of the runaway hit single, Waiting.

Garrison Hawk gets sweet deal with Sweet Music

Deejay Garrison Hawk was recently chosen to be featured alongside 35 other artistes as part of Coca-Cola's worldwide Coke Rewards campaign and his song, Sweet Music, has been one of the top five most downloaded songs in the promotion.
Quite excited at the way things have turned out, the deejay says this success is in no way fleeting. His previous single, Gangsta Roll, had nudged him onto the world stage — the song reached #9 on the Hype TV top 20 chart and the track received radio airplay in Jamaica as well as in Europe, Japan, London, New York, and Miami.

When a club remix of Sweet Music leaked, it hit #11 on the UK pop charts. The song has also been featured in the video game Tropico:Caribbean Sims, which has sold several million copies worldwide.
However, prior to all of the acclaim, some of Hawk's tunes wound up in the hands of legendary reggae producers Sly & Robbie as well as the heads of A&R at Warner Brothers UK. Hawk wanted to take his songs and record them in a new style — one taken from his experiences in growing up in Jamaica and New York and touring Europe and Asia. Warner Bros loved his vision and signed Hawk almost instantly. Within weeks he was recording in Brixton, England with one of London's hottest young producers, Dan Carey, then it was onto Kingston's Anchor Studios with Sly & Robbie and back in Brixton. The result is a truly original hybrid of roots reggae, electronic music, English and American pop and vintage

Born in Manchester, Hawk and his family moved to New York City and by the time he was 17, he was touring around the East Coast of the US with some major reggae stars. All the while, Hawk's family believed he was going to school and was on a path to a degree and a 9-to-5 job. A funny moment (probably not so funny for Hawk at the time) came when Hawk was performing with Shabba Ranks and Supercat in Connecticut and one of Hawk's uncles just happened to be in the
crowd. Exposed! Hawk's Ma and Grandma laid down the law, but that didn't stop the Hawk from flying.

After several unwise career decisions, he started handling his own affairs and set up Marathon Productions, writing, producing and deejaying under the name Hawkman. Several of the tracks received heavy play on New York's Hot 97 while Fakin' It and Addicted reached #1 on the European charts garnering the attention of world renowned DJs and producers, Roger Sanchez and Armand Van Helden, resulting in a collaboration on their AV8 club records series in 1999.
His breakthrough onto the world scene happened when he linked up with the alternative British artiste Tricky, formerly of the legendary group Massive Attack. As Tricky told Billboard Magazine, "Hawkman is my partner musically." Hawk co-wrote and laid down guest vocals on six tracks of Tricky's Blowback album and toured with Tricky in support of the record, performing in front of audiences of thousands of fans as well as on worldwide television and radio shows.

BELOW IS THE LINK TO THE VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr5n6b_UwTY

Lady Saw ready to 'walk out' with Sunday to Sunday

Dancehall's most loved diva, Lady Saw, is in 'walk out' mode, and she's proclaiming it to the world. The lady has delivered the singles Sunday to Sunday and Your Man, songs which have surely found a groove within the dancehall and are getting love from radio.
"The women just love the vibe and the lyrics of the songs and they go wild when they hear it, when I perform the songs live, it's just mad, If you know whe you man deh from Sunday to Sunday, gal walk up inna di video gal and just talk up ...." Lady Saw says, quoting a line from her hit single Sunday to Sunday that is currently in the number three spot on HYPE TV TOP 20 SINGLE CHART.
The singles have been making such an impact that Saw will be making a medley video, a popular and creative way of getting two or more songs in video rotation at the same time. She explained that the passage of tropical storm Gustav caused her to postpone the original video shoot, however, as soon as it is rescheduled she will give out the new date.
“Video director, Nordia Rose and I are trying to find a suitable date," Saw said.
On these two songs, Lady Saw chose producers she likes to work with — Christopher Birch and Stephen McGregor. Undeniably, two of dancehall's most talented and prolific producers, McGregor and Birch seem to have a magic touch when it comes to building ‘riddims’ that have huge dancehall appeal and their projects are straight from the hit factory. So, it should come as no surprise that when the top producers collaborate with the top female act the production is one that is headed for the top of the chart.
Lady Saw, who recently returned from a highly successful European tour, says she is looking forward to returning to that continent in December for a series of shows with fellow dancehall act, Ce’cile.

HYPE TV CHART SUMMARY

Elephant Man did strike twice like 'lightning' with Nuh Linga, the single is this week's new #1, making it his second number one song for the chart. Bolt did it and so as Ele, the Olympic fever is definitely not over for this song. The track has rained on Vegas Daggering. Could it be because of the storm, Gustav?

Vegas have lost his golden baton with Daggering to hold on the #2 position. The hot single has spent two consecutive weeks in the number one spot. Ele struck and made a run for his money to claiming his throne.

Lady Saw has shown her skills when it comes to performance, her single Sunday to Sunday has claimed the Shot To Watch title for this week. The track has held the #3 spot for the second week in a row, with the video coming out soon. Men watch out this 'Mumma' will walk out and take over any position.

Ce'Cile is definitely riding high these days, her sizzling single Ride or Die has stepped it up notch to hold the #4 position from #5 spot. The playboy diva has been doing major things, album tours and now the single is becoming one of the top sellers on iTunes. Girl Power!!

Vegas with another of the girls favorite Nuh Fight Over Man, it has jumped two places to gain control of the #5 position. The influential single has been getting crazy vibes in the dancehall.

Assassin controversial single Dem Nuh Want Nuh Gal has clinched the Greatest Gainer title for this week on the chart. The track has jumped three places to make to #12 spot leaving the #15 position. Let's wait and see if Jeffrey will find out the problem, hopefully next week.

Mavado has not only got back his flying rights but he also flew his way in for the New Entry title. The Am So Special single is the track that has been chosen to make him extraordinary this week. Produced by the TJ Records label, it debuts at #18. The Gully God is overjoyed with the long awaited stamp which has been a year overdue. Rich and happy!!!!

THE CHART AIRED FRIDAY'S @ 9:15pm WITH REPEATS DURING THE WEEK ON HYPE TV CAN BE VIEWED IN THE WEEKEND CHAT ON FRIDAY'S, YOU CAN ALSO WATCH THIS WEEK TOP 20 SINGLES CHART ON HYPE TV WEBSITE JUST LOG ONTO www.hypetvjam.com .