Anthony Moses Davis (born August 22, 1973),[2] better
known by his stage name Beenie Man, is a Grammy award winning Jamaican
reggae artist. He is the self-proclaimed "King of the DanceHall".
Davis was born in the Waterhouse district of Kingston in 1973.[2][3][4]
He was involved in the music industry from a young age, starting
toasting at the age of five, and was encouraged by his uncle Sydney
Wolfe, who played drums for Jimmy Cliff.[5][6] He won the Tastee
Talent contest in 1981,[3][7] and Radio DJ Barry G introduced him
to local sound system operators, who helped to establish the popularity
of the young deejay, who became known as Beenie Man.[5] He recorded
his debut single, "Too Fancy", with record producer Henry "Junjo" Lawes
in 1981, with Lawes also including him on the 1983 album Junjo Presents
Two Big Sounds alongside established stars such as Dillinger, Fathead,
and Ringo.[3] His debut album, The Invincible Beenie Man: The Ten
Year Old DJ Wonder was produced by Bunny Lee and released in 1983,
his first hit single following the same year with the Winston Holness-produced "Over
the Sea".[3] In 1984 Beenie Man recorded some material with
Barrington Levy (released ten years later), but his music career
was put on hold while he finished school, and spent time travelling
to the United Kingdom, United States, and Canada.[3]
[edit] 1990s return
Beenie Man continued performing and honed his craft beside the then
dominant dancehall figures including Ninjaman, Admiral Bailey and
Shabba Ranks. He found his artistic home at the Shocking Vibes studio
where he continued to record singles with only moderate success in
the early 1990s. His career gained momentum after a performance at
the Reggae Sunsplash festival in 1992, and a rivalry with Bounty
Killer began the following year after Beenie Man's "people dead" catchphrase
was appropriated by the other deejay.[3] The rivalry was captured
on the 1994 album Guns Out, with the two artists settling the feud
with a soundclash.[3] Beenie Man had his first number one single
in Jamaica in 1993 with "Matie", and he won the DJ of the
Year Award the same year, the first of eight consecutive awards.[7]
[edit] International stardom
Partially as a result of prodding from his producers, Sly and Robbie,
with whom he recorded cover versions of Bob Marley's "Crazy
Baldheads" and "No Woman No Cry" in 1994, the latter
a Jamaican chart-topper, Beenie Man converted to the Rastafari movement,
as did several of his contemporaries at the time, although in 2005
he stated "I have not converted. I was baptised an Ethiopian
Orthodox and at the age of 10 I became a Judah Coptic."[3][6]
In 1994, he was signed by Island Records and released the critically
acclaimed album Blessed, which established his reputation internationally.[3]
In 1995 he toured the UK and joined up again with Barrington Levy
to record an updated jungle version of Levy's "Under Mi Sensi".[3]
In 1995, Beenie Man collaborated with Dennis Brown and Triston Palmer
to release Three Against War and Mad Cobra and Lieutenant Stitchie
on Mad Cobra Meets Lt. Stitchie & Beenie Man. He also collaborated
with Lady Saw on "Healing", Sanchez on "Refugee",
and Michael Prophet on "Gun 'n' Bass", further establishing
his reputation.[3] He took another step up the ladder in 1996, releasing
the seminal Maestro, produced by Patrick Roberts and shot him to
UK fame. During the period from the mid to late 1990s, Beenie Man
dominated the Jamaican charts to the extent that he perhaps had a
good claim to the crown of "Dancehall King", a title only
bestowed previously on Yellowman in the early 1980s. Beenie Man's
first real break into the United States came in 1997. He heard an
instrumental rhythm by an unknown producer named Jeremy Harding,
and demanded to add his voice to the rhythm. So this was the birth
of his first international hit; he recorded "Who Am I" and
the single quickly went Gold. It opened the doors for the world to
see a new reggae star in the pages of Newsweek and other major media
outlets. The same year, Beenie Man topped the Jamaican singles chart
with seven different singles.[3]
In 1998, Beenie Man headlined Reggae Sunsplash and signed to Virgin
Records to release albums in the United States. His first American
offering was The Doctor (1998). During the late 1990s, Beenie Man
began his conquest of America with the hits, "Romie", "Who
Am I", and "Girls Dem Sugar", which featured American
R&B singer, Mýa. During this time he received an impressive
number of international music awards including a MOBO Award for Best
International Reggae Act in 1998,[8] while remaining at the top of
the local charts. In 2000, Beenie Man released Art & Life, which
featured Arturo Sandoval and Wyclef Jean (The Fugees), for which
received a Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album.[3] In the same year
he co-produced (with Wyclef Jean) the debut album by actor Steven
Seagal.[3] Beenie Man, like many dancehall artists is outspoken on
a number of social issues, as exemplified by songs such as "Steve
Biko" and "Murderer".[9][10][11]
In 2002, he had a sizeable hit with a duet with Janet Jackson called "Feel
It Boy", but his biggest break in America came in early 2004
with the release of a remix of "Dude", featuring guest
vocals by fellow Jamaican Ms. Thing, as well as rhymes by Shawnna.
He thus cemented his fan base on both sides of the Atlantic.
He had hits in the UK in 1998 with "Who am I" (#10), in
2003 with "Street Life" (#13) and "Feel It Boy" (UK
#9), a duet with Janet Jackson, and in 2004 with "Dude" (#7)
and "King of the Dancehall" (#14).[12]
He was also a judge for the 6th annual Independent Music Awards
to support independent artists' careers.[13]
In April 2008 it was announced that Beenie Man was to co-write and
star in the film Kingston.[14]
In September 2008 Beenie Man was cleared of charges of tax evasion.[15][16]
In April 2009, Beenie Man signed with Brookland Entertainment, a
new record label formed by Eric Nicks and The Trackmasters, in preparation
to release his new album, "The Legend Returns". The music
video for the release of his new single “Gimme Gimme” will
be shot in Canada on April 18, 2009.
[edit] Personal life
Beenie Man married Michelle "D'Angel" Downer and the pair
set up the MAFIA House Production Company together. They have a son
together, Marco Dean,[17] born in November 2006. In June 2007, Beenie
Man separated from his wife. In March 2010, they released the single "You
Are My First" together, although (according to D'Angel) while
still married they remained separate.[17]
[edit] Lyrical Controversy
See also: Stop Murder Music
The lyrics to some of his songs have been criticized for inciting
the murder of homosexuals.[18] He was removed from the 2004 MTV Video
Music Awards after protests by gay-rights activists.[19] That same
year, Beenie Man was stopped by police at Heathrow Airport in London,
after the cancellation of a concert in England.[20] He then issued
an apology for the lyrics through his record company.[21] In 2005,
gay rights group OutRage! suspended their opposition to Beenie Man
after he agreed not to play songs featuring homophobic lyrics, and
he performed in London that year.[22] The following year, he claimed
his lyrics were anti-pedophilia, not against consensual homosexual
relationships.[23]
In 2007, it was reported that Beenie Man, along with several other
artists, had signed the Reggae Compassionate Act, an agreement to
cease performances of anti-gay material.[24] He later denied that
he had signed the act.[25] As of 2010, protests have continued to
cause cancellations of his concerts in some countries, including
New Zealand, Belgium and the Netherlands.[26][27][28]
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
[edit] Studio albums
* 1983: The Invincible Beenie Man: The Incredible Ten Year Old
DJ Wonder - Bunny Lee
* 1992: Cool Cool Rider - VP
* 1994: Dis Unu Fi Hear - High Tone
* 1994: Defend It VP
* 1994: Guns Out with Bounty Killer - Greensleeves
* 1995: Blessed - Island
* 1995: Maestro - Greensleeves & VP
* 1995: Mad Cobra Meets Lt. Stitchie & Beenie Man - VP
* 1997: Many Moods Of Moses - VP
* 1999: Y2K - Artists Only
* 1999: Ruff N Tuff
* 1999: The Doctor - VP
* 2000: Art and Life - Virgin
* 2001: Black Liberty
* 2001: Youth Quake
* 2002: Tropical Storm
* 2004: Back To Basics
* 2006: Concept Of Life
* 2006: Hundred Dollar Bag
* 2006: Undisputed
* 2007: Monsters of Dancehall
* 2009: The Legend Returns
[edit] Compilations
* 1995: All the Best
* 2000: Best of Beenie Man
* 2002: Gold - The Very Best of - Charm
* 2005: Kingston to King of The Dancehall
* 2005: Greatest Hits So Far
[edit] Live albums
* 2004: Live In San Francisco
[edit] Mixtapes and unofficial releases
* 2000: Trendsetter
* 2004: Cool Cool Rider - The Roots Of A Dancehall Don
* 2006: Its Ah! Beenie (riddim mixtape)
* 2007: Monsters of Dancehall
[edit] Singles
* 1981: "Too Fancy"
* 1983: "Over the Sea"
* 1993: "Matie"
* 1995: "Slam"
* 1995: "Romie"
* 1995: "Old Dog"
* 1995: "Healing" (with Lady Saw)
* 1997: "Dancehall Queen" (with Chevelle Franklin)
* 1998: "Who Am I (Sim Simma)"
* 1998: "Tell Me"
* 2000: "Dungle Boogie" (featuring Sly & Robbie)
* 2000: "Love Me Now" (featuring Wyclef Jean)
* 2000: "Girls Dem Sugar" (featuring Mýa)
* 2002: "Fresh From Yard" (featuring Lil' Kim)
* 2002: "Feel It Boy" (featuring Janet Jackson)
* 2002: "Red Red Red" (with Robyn)
* 2003: "Street Life" (featuring Assia)
* 2003: "Bossman" (featuring Sean Paul & Lady Saw)
* 2004: "Dude" (featuring Ms. Thing & Shawnna)
* 2004: "King of the Dancehall"
* 2005: "Specialists" (featuring Vybz Kartel)
* 2006: "Girls" (featuring Akon)
* 2006: "Hmm Hmm"
* 2006: "Dreaming of You" (featuring Alaine)
* 2007: "Give it Up" (featuring Barbee)
* 2008: "Wine Gyal"
* 2008: "Pickney Nah Hold Yah Dung"
* 2008: "Gimme Gimme"
[edit] Featured singles
* 1996: "Sound Clash" (Dream Warriors featuring Beenie
Man)
* 1996: "Hands In the Air" (Doug E. Fresh featuring Beenie Man)
* 1999: "Outa Space (UFOs)" (Machel Montano featuring Beenie Man);
album Any Minute Now
* 2000: "Money" (Jamelia featuring Beenie Man)
* 2001: "I'm Serious" (T.I. featuring Beenie Man)
* 2004: "Compton" (Guerilla Black featuring Beenie Man)
* 2005: "Soul on Fire" (KMC featuring Beenie Man)
* 2006: "Zingy" (Ak'Sent featuring Beenie Man)
* 2006: "Flow Natural" (Tito El Bambino featuring Deevani and Beenie
Man)
* 2006: "Heaven Baby" (Brooke Hogan featuring Beenie Man)
* 2007: "Back It Up"
* 2008: "Better than Dem" (Natasja featuring Beenie Man)
* 2008: "Scorpion" (Nisha B. featuring Beenie Man)
* 2008: "Burnin' Burnin" (Ms. Triniti featuring Beenie Man)
* 2009: "Get It On" (Rasun featuring Beenie Man)
* 2009: "Giggle" (Busta Rhymes featuring Beenie Man)
* 2009: "Woman"
* 2009: "International" (Chali 2na featuring Beenie Man)
* 2009: "Pleasure" (2G featuring Beenie Man and Chris S)