TEENage caught up with one of dancehall's most prolific lyricists, the man with so many hits right now. He will always be known as a great performer and man with many words to share, we spoke to Busy Signal a little about what's coming up:

TEENage: What was the reason for the change in songs like Step Out to more conscience songs like Jail?
Busy Signal (Busy): Yuh find say the music gwaan a way and everybody deh pon one vibe to monotonous, so we create we own ting. We wanted to do something new, something fresh, and the people dem love it, it was just time for a change, sometime yuh haffi reinvent yuhself.

TEENage: Do you have an album coming up?
Busy: Yeah three albums coming out, it was suppose to come out from August, but because of all the elections and the hurricane and dem tings, it was delayed, but look out for it soon.

TEENage: What shows you have coming up and anything new coming up?
Busy: I have West King Jambowe, Sting, Teenfest, and a show in Canada and a couple others. Yeah and we shooting a new video.

TEENage: How do people abroad treat you?
Busy: People abroad, God Bless me with Step Out and it well out there with the Internet. It out there an' the people know mi, so the feedback I get is unbelievable! I mean wid di people abroad yuh never expect for them to know yuh music, but they do and it's a good feeling.

TEENage: What's your favourite place to perform apart from Jamaica?
Busy: Favourite place to perform outside of Jamaica is definitely Japan. The vibe there and di people, them jus love dancehall music, it mad! And then London, Trinidad and Cayman is also good too.

TEENage: What was it like winning a TEENage Choice award?
Busy: Is a blessing, Jah know, jus' fi get nominated and to win on top of it. Jus' fi know seh is a voting ting and di people dem choose me! I wan' give the biggest big up to the fans nuff love.

TEENage: What's your favourite song to perform?
Busy: Nuff song perform, but personally mi have nuff favourite, mi cyaan choose one practically. Is about seven tune a day mi do. Mi never gwaan like mi bigga dan the music, is the music mek me and di fans. See fi all the TEENage Choice Awards is all kinda people vote, mi sure seh some older people vote too an' mi wan' big dem up too. Big up everybody!

It is hard to imagine artistes giving up the microphone to partake in the festivities of the Christmas holidays, especially in light of the many albums, singles and shows that some have on their plate to deal with. For many, it is work as usual and family will have to understand that.

According to T.O.K's Alex, "Right now is just promotions for the album, the singles and just getting everything out there. No holiday, no Christmas, just work, and by December 31, wi a guh start tek it to dem (fans) hard."

He continued, "Our New Year begins on December 31. Family a guh vex, but a nuh family time a work time, but dem understand - di likkle time wey wi might get fi spend wid dem, we just have to make the most of it, but especially around this time, it's all about work straight."

Kevin, a member of another popular dancehall group, Voicemail, says this Christmas will be the first that he is away from family.

"Wi a guh Japan for three shows and will be in New York on Christmas Day and then back in Jamaica for Boxing Day. But no family time, this is going to be the first Christmas away from family. But a just work still an wi a try accomplish something now so that other Christmases will be more enjoyable and prosperous," Kevin said.

Macka Diamond says she was not certain if Christmas was still on this year. "Christmas still a gwaan - mi nuh si nutt'n a gwaan," she said.

However, she sang a carol similar to that of her colleagues. "A more work dis year. Mi haffi guh spen time wid di family inna February, not even January, cause is a different set a work a start January. Di Christmas season very busy this year, we have a lot of shows suh wi jus a gwaan hold a meds an prepare fi di show dem," Macka said.

Macka also added, "I have shows for one entire week, from the 24th of December - I have a book launch in Miami, Teens Splash, Camp Fire, GT Christmas Xtravaganza, Teen Fest, then off to New York, Cleveland and some other places abroad."

Trouble, an upcoming female artiste being pushed by Macka Diamond, said that she, too, would be busy this Christmas as she had a show to do in Canada. "Wi a guh work, 'cause a Christmas Eve mi a guh leave for the show in Canada," she said.

At least one artiste admitted that he would be in Jamaica for the Christmas, not because of a lack of shows abroad, but because of the weather.

"Foreign too cold yah man, mi haffi deh a yard," Beenie Man admitted.

But outside of having to do promotions and shows abroad, many artistes will indeed be kept quite occupied with the number of stage shows that will be happening on the local scene, as there will be major stage shows from December 24 right through to the new year.

Last year, many artistes had different plans altogether, as many said that the Christmas season was a time for family and close friends, but this year, things have clearly got more busy and family time has now become secondary to work.

By: Rootzgirl

Wow, you sure didn't pull any punches when it came to giving your opinions on the gay issue. Love that! Well, I have another hard question for you...well maybe it's not that hard but I still want to know your opinions on it.

This story I am about to tell you is true and it's what prompted me to throw it out to you. This guy met a woman who had HIV yet he became
involved with her, married her and she had a child for him. The baby wasn't infected because science has afforded HIV Positive people with solutions to the problem of mother to child transmission.

The man soon found out that he was carrying the disease too because he did not protect himself carefully.

The woman has since died and the man is left taking care of the baby, but it's just a matter of time before he too succumbs to the disease.

Now the question I want to through out to guys is, "could you love a woman/man like that? Knowing the condition of the person, could you just blindly say to hell with it and have unprotected sex?

Then again, why bring an innocent life into a mix like that?" Yeah, if you want to take the chance and gamble with your lives, do you think it is fair to bring an innocent life into a situation like this...leaving that child as an early orphan?

When Yellowman used the recent happenings in dancehall as the basis of his performance at the Tastee Talent Trail finals held at the Mas Camp Village on Oxford Road, New Kingston recently, the audience loved it.

However, not everyone found Yellowman's jest humourous.

The veteran artiste, who is known to be one of the first artistes to introduce 'slackness' into the dancehall, was in his zone, as he transformed Queen Ifrica's song about incest, Daddy Don't Touch Me There into a slack joke.

According to Yellowman, "di odda day mi si Queen Ifrica an' she a sey 'Yellow yuh know sey dem waan fi ban mi song'. Suh mi sey which song dat, an' she sey, Daddy Don't Touch Mi There an' mi sey, but Ifrica, yuh cyan tell mi dat, afta mi a nuh yuh fadda, yuh know wah mi tell ar sey: 'Ifrica come touch mi here', Yellowman sang while he rubbed his groin area.

All laughs

Queen Ifrica was all laughs when she heard about Yellowman's onstage antics. She said that is what Yellowman is known for and one cannot fight that.

"Yellowman is the original king of slackness, an' him is a brethren wey mi check fah differently as a veteran inna di business. An' if dat really do sum'n fi him, at di end a di day, then so be it, but is his thing that, that is what Yellowman is known for though," Queen Ifrica said. "But so many people sing dat song (Daddy) so many different ways."

It was a performance that patrons enjoyed, as the slackness and the mix up were welcome. However, Yellowman, in his next address to the patrons during his performance, made reference to the not so funny, failed marriage of the self-proclaimed 'King of the Dancehall', Beenie Man and artiste D'Angel.

"Mek mi educate uno 'bout love," Yellowman said. "'Cause yuh have some artiste a tek it up an' a model wid it like dem think a Hollywood ting, an dem cyan manage it. All a get restrain (long pause) inna dem brain."

And following his performance, as Yellowman paused to take a picture with the MC, he said "she look like 'Angel' een?"

However, Yellowman's jest was no laughing matter to Beenie who is still in the middle of the bitter divorce. "Yuh si Yellowman is a big man an' him fi act like a big man an' come out a young people life. Him fi look how much man (name deleted) gi him bun wid an' stop look pon me an' my life affair. Me alright," Beenie said.

In the direct-to-DVD feature Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story, Fox's Family Guy portrayed the sandaled one as having abilities that "may have been exaggerated a bit." In one scene, Jesus is shown doing a goofy routine involving hand gestures and singing a simple tune.

While that may just be enough to send the deeply religious into a conniption fit, it was certainly more than enough for one magician to file a lawsuit. Art Metrano, who works as a comedian, actor, and magician, has sued 20th Century Fox Film Corporation, Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane (whose name is misspelled on legal documents (pdf file) acquired by TMZ.com), and collaborators Steve Callaghan and Alex Borstein.

Metrano claims that the act that the animated Jesus performed was in fact his own that he has done before on shows such as The Tonight Show. The comedian is suing for copyright infringement.

TMZ.com has video of both the scene in question and a performance by Metrano from way back when. Though the video evidence seems to be damning, the real question is if Metrano's act is legally protected in any way.

Metrano has an extensive acting portfolio, and has appeared in shows such as Benson, Police Academy: The Series, L.A. Law, and Party of Five.

Family Guy, which has always been controversial because of its off-the-cuff humor, has been sued twice already this year. Carol Burnett brought charges against the show in March for the show's use of one of her characters, and a music publishing company sued the show for the its parody of "When You Wish Upon a Star" that contained anti-Semitic lyrics.

A student of a prominent Corporate Area high school is now behind bars, after he was arrested when he was allegedly seen selling shotgun bullets to his peers, yesterday.

The 15-year-old, whose name is being withheld due to his age, was remanded and formally charged with illegal possession of ammunition, and four of his 'alleged customers' held for questioning.

Reports are that at about 9:20 a.m., police were on routine patrol in the Mandela Park (Half-Way Tree), when a group of five young men were seen acting suspiciously. They were accosted and searched, and the accused was found in possession of 19 12-gauge cartridges.

According to an arresting officer, when the youngster was questioned about what he was doing with such a large quantity of shotgun ammunition, he said, "Mi did a try fi sell dem to mi fren dem."

The accused was subsequently arrested and charged, while the four other boys (who the police believe were attempting to buy the bullets) are being held for further questioning.

None of the boys were in uniform and they claimed that it was their 'class party' day, and they were allowed to wear plain clothes.

"The young man is being remanded till he goes to court - the others are also being held for questioning on various crimes committed in the area," said an officer at the Half-Way Tree CIB.

The Half-Way Tree police are sending a strong message to parents, as they say they have observed a trend of indiscipline among students traversing the area.

"We are suggesting to parents to pay special attention to their school kids as we are seeing disturbing trends such as untidiness, empty bags, condoms and blue movies instead of books, and now shots being sold. We are appealing to parents, if they cannot control their children, the law will do so, and their record will be tarnished for life," said fervent crime fighter, Constable Gosford Daley.

International dancehall superstar Moses Beenie Man Davis is embarking on a new chapter in his career. In January 2008 he will be sending five children to school at his expense for the year. After coming under an intense amount of pressure for assumed tax evasion, the artiste who in the past discreetly assisted children and persons in the inner cities with back-to-school treats and financial assistance, will be continuing the effort but with more transparency.
 

It is now official - Brazilian Rene Simoes is back as national technical director of Jamaica's football programmes.

The announcement was made by Captain Horace Burrell, president of the Jamaica Football federation (JFF), at a press conference held yesterday at the JFF's head office on St. Lucia Avenue in New Kingston.

Burrell said Simoes will take along with him three assistants from Brazil - assistant coach Glydston Ananias, trainer Alfredo Montesso and goalkeeping coach Chico Santos.

The position of technical director has been vacant since the new JFF executive, presided over by Burrell, terminated the contract of Serbia-born Velibor 'Bora' Milutinovic just days after taking office on November 4.

The contracts for the new coaches will be for three years with Simoes earning US$600,000 annually (approximately J$42.8 million), while his assistants will each collect US$15,000 per month (approximately J$1.06 million).

Simoes, dubbed 'the little magician' by local fans, recently led Coritiba to the Serie B title and promotion to the top flight of Brazilian football.

Back in charge

Simoes, who was responsible for steering Jamaica to a historic World Cup berth in France 1998, will take charge of the Reggae Boyz as they bid for an appearance in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

The Brazilian first took charge of Jamaica's football in 1994 and worked through to 2001. During his tenure Jamaica also qualified for two FIFA World Cup finals at the youth level (Under-17 and Under-20). He was replaced by fellow Brazilian Clovis de Oliviera.

After he left Jamaica, Simoes also guided the Brazilian women's team to the silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.

Burrell added that interim coach Theodore Whitmore, who guided the Reggae Boyz to victories over (El Salvador 3-0, Guatemala 2-0) in their last two friendly international matches, would be one of the assistant coaches in the new national programmes.

"There are other coaches who will be asked to perform duties but the board of directors has decided to allow those appointments to be done by Simoes on his arrival," Burrell said.

Burrell added that the JFF would be responsible for housing for Simoes and his staff, and the Brazilan will be responsible for the preparation of all national teams, including male and female.

Simoes is due to arrive in Jamaica on January 5, and his first game in charge will be on February 6 at the National Stadium against a team to be announced.

Pimp C, real name Chad Butler -- and one half of the rap duo UGK, was found dead in a hotel room this morning. He was 33.

L.A. County Fire responded to a 911 call at the Mondrian Hotel, located on trendy Sunset Strip in Hollywood. They arrived to his sixth floor hotel room to find him dead in bed.

UGK is best known for appearing on the Jay-Z track "Big Pimpin'" in 2000, and more recently with Outkast on the song "International Player's Anthem (I Choose You)." Pimp C had just performed with fellow rapper Too Short at the "House of Blues" in L.A. on Saturday night.
UPDATE: Jive Records has issued the following statement regarding Pimp C's death:

"It is with great sadness that Jive Records announces the passing of Chad "Pimp C" Butler, a member of the celebrated rap duo UGK (Underground Kingz). Jive Records' President and CEO Barry Weiss states: "We mourn the unexpected loss of Chad. He was truly a thoughtful and kind-hearted person. He will be remembered for his talent and profound influence as a pioneer in bringing southern rap to the forefront. He will be missed and our prayers remain with his family and Bun B. I've known Chad since he was 18, and we loved him dearly and he was a cherished member of the Jive family."

Born in Port Arthur, Texas, Butler's father was a trumpet player who played professionally with Solomon Burke. Outside of his father, the 33-year old rapper's influences varied, ranging from Bobby Bland, Jimmy McGriff, the 1960's Motown artists to Run DMC. Butler met his inseparable partner Bernard "Bun B" Freeman in high school where they formed UGK. In 1992, the duo signed to Jive Records and went on release a total of eight albums for the label. They earned their highest achievement earlier this year when their most recent album, UGK (Underground Kingz), debuted in the number one position on the album pop chart. According to the New York Times, UGK "helped inspire a generation of Southern hip-hop stars, from OutKast to Lil Wayne."

Bun B is not available for comment at this time."

December 07, 2007

Producer and artistes in car accident

This morning Don Corleon, Alaine, Pressure, and Johnny Wonder were involved in a car accident with a tractor trailer on their way to do some album promotion in Connecticut.

Thankfully they are all fine. The vehicle sustained considerable damage, but luckily none of the passengers were injured.

The group has been in New York since last week doing radio promotions in all the boroughs.

They had a big album release party on Wednesday, December 5th at Track's Cafe in Brooklyn. The party was hosted by Johnny Wonder and Waah Gwan Radio/Steelie Bashment.

Police have arrested a 25-year-old man in connection with the brutal beating of his three-year-old daughter who had to be hospitalised, THE STAR understands.

The child was brutally beaten because she reportedly failed to respond to her father's teaching, police say.

The father, a labourer from St. Elizabeth, is being held at the Santa Cruz police lock-up charged with unlawful wounding and cruelty to a minor.

Information reaching THE STAR indicate that the child and her smaller brother were at home with the accused. He was apparently teaching them something and she did not respond to his teachings.

It is reported that a piece of guava switch was used to beat the child all over her back, leaving some scars and sores. The beating also caused the right side of the childs' face to be swollen.

The child was taken to a private doctor where she was treated and released the same day. It was the child's grandmother who reported the matter to the police, THE STAR learnt.

*NEW* "Americas Most Wanted Recipes - Vol 2"
The long awaited Volume 2 cookbook provides even more secret restaurant recipes.

*Find Out The Secret Recipes for Dishes From The Cheesecake Factory, Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Applebee's, Outback Steakhouse (plus many more) and Learn How to Easily Make Them Yourself!

*Skip the Long Lines and Re-create Your Favorite Restaurant Dishes at Home for a Fraction of The Cost by Following These Easy Step-by-Step Instructions.

*Get Kudos and Praise From Friends and Family Members When They Find Out You Actually Made These Delicious Dishes Yourself!

What would you do if your child is GAY?

By:

I have a really hard question to pose to you and I want you all to be honest in your responses. What would you do if you found out that your only child is gay?

It's a question no parent wants to face, but the reality is there that some will have to deal with it sooner or later as more and more gays are coming out of the closet.

I came across a situation the other day where one parent sent her child to a mixed school only to pull the girl out because as she claimed "the boys were feeling her up".

She eventually placed the daughter in an all girls school and then the horror began, the male hands were replaced by softer feminine ones!

In the end the mother had to admit that if she had a choice she would have preferred to have her daughter dealing with a man.

Seriously, what approach would you take if you discovered that your son or your daughter had no desire for the opposite sex, but instead wants to get it on with members of the same sex?