Sean Paul

Born to a Portuguese-Jamaican father and a Chinese-Jamaican mother, Sean Paul grew up with a passion for sports. Sean played water polo for the Jamaica National team as well as representing his country in swimming in the 1989 and 1991 Carifta Games. However, his love for the arts was fostered at an earlier age by his mother, a well noted Jamaican painter. At the age of 13 Sean’s mother got him a thirty dollar keyboard, Sean coated, “I remember thinking that this was all I needed to make dancehall riddims!” Nonetheless, it wasn’t until 1993 that the then aspiring dancehall DJ from St. Andrew got his introduction to the music business through musicians Carrot Jarret, Cat Coore and Bunny Rugs from Third World, as well as producers Rupert Bent and Paul Castick.

It was not until the spring of 1996 that Sean Paul impressive single debut, “Baby Girl” for producer Jeremy Harding on the Two Hard Records label that Sean was seeing as an entertainer. Sean Paul had captured the eyes and ears of the Dancehall community as “the one to watch”.

Sean Paul sees dancehall as the right avenue for me to express himself, to get people to hear his views about the world and how he saw it. With a style and voice reminiscent of the great Super Cat, the 26-year-old DJ also credits Major Worries, Shabba Ranks, Lt. Stitchie and Papa San as heavy musical influences. After a string of hits such as “Infiltrate” and “Hackle Mi” for producer Jeremy Harding , “Nah get no Bly (OneMore Try)” for producer Donavon Germain, and “Deport Them” and “Excite Me” for producer Tony Kelly, Sean Paul is currently enjoying the success of “Hot Gal Today” with Mr. Vegas on producers Steely and Clevie’s “Street sweeper” riddim. Sean also appears on the cut “Here Comes the Boom” with Mr. Vegas and rap artiste DMX on the soundtrack to video director Hype Williams’ debut film “Belly” on Def Jam Records.

With his debut album for VP Records on the way this fall, Sean Paul says despite his achievements, he still feels like a rookie. “I’m still working on my career, still trying to learn from other artistes and develop my skills and my style. The world still hasn’t seen the best of Sean Paul. The DJ has appeared on most of the major music festivals including Sting, Reggae Sunsplash, Reggae Sumfest and Reggae Super Jam, as well as showcases in Great Britain, the Caribbean, and numerous US club and arena venues. Sean has also started his own record label, Bassline Records, to sharpen his production chops and make a greater impact on the reggae industry.

As for writing, Sean’s “Gimme the Light” single had Jamaica, Miami, New York, and London moving to the Buzz Riddim it has had major airplays on New York Hot 97 and Miami’s Power 96. “Give Me Light” is the leadoff single on Dutty Rock with other outstanding tracks including “I’m still In love with you” featuring Sean Paul Sasha on a romantic cover of the Alton Ellis/ Marcia Akins classic.

In 2002, Paul enjoyed a mainstream US Top 10 hit with “Gimme the Light”. He was even more successful the following year when “Get Busy” rose steadily up the charts before reaching the number 1 position in May. The attendant Dutty Rock reached the US Top 10 and racked up sales of one million plus.

Paul dominated the airwaves during the summer, appearing on massive hit singles by Blu Cantrell (“Breathe”) and Beyoncé Knowles (“Baby Boy”).