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BORN 1976 in the North Angola, of Bacongo roots, Jamayka grew up in Malange, before moving to Luanda with his mother as a child after the death of his father.
He grew up within a religious background, and the music of the Methodist church was an early influence, as he participated first in the childrens' choir, through to the adult choir. By 1992, he was a choir leader.
Instrumentation:
vocals
Genre:
hip hop, rap
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While in Luanda, he also used to participate in talent competitions as a hobby - singing music from Angola, in both Portugese and the Kimbundo and Lingala languages. "We listened to Western pop music, and of course South African music like Yvonne Chaka Chaka and Lucky Dube, but we were not fluent in English to sing these songs", he explains. In 1989, he started writing his own songs.
Jamayka speaks fondly of the musical influences in Angola, even though they include global sounds. "Radio in Angola plays a lot more international music than local music. When I say international, I mean African as well - from Cape Verde to Senegal, Zaire, SA. You will also hear a lot of Cuban, Spanish, Portugese and Latin sounds".
In the early '90's he recorded his first song called "Baby Mize" - a hip hop love song in a small home studio "Studio Futuro" in Luanda. It was played a lot on radio and television, but not released as a commercial product, he explains.
In 93 Jamayka helped to set up a young group from Lubango, called CBSS (Cross the Bones of South Sides) - some hip hop, some r n b. He finished school in Luanda, and in 1993 commenced a one-year Electrical course, sponsored by Accord (an NGO) and followed up with a government-sponsored small business management course.
In 1997, with the deteriorating situation with the civil war, he fled to South Africa to build a new life.
He has been developing his repertoire in the studio, including some English and Xhosa lines in his music. He has been assisted by programmer / producer MC Caramel. In September 2000, he participated as a guest of the "Young Africa" project, and made his debut at the One City Festival. He has subsequently appeared at events including the United Nations "United Against Racism" concert in Durban in 2001, and in the Zulunavia project. He has also been working with the "Heal The Hood" initiative.
Jamayka's debut album "Benga", was released late in December 2002, and is currently generating radio interest in South Africa.
Contact Details:
Making Music Artist Agency
tel:+27 21 422 0118
fax: +27 21 423 4946
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Recordings : Poston, Jamayka
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2002
Benga
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click here for more about these and other recordings by : Poston, Jamayka
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