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Stephen 'Di Genius' McGregor
Bio
Producer Stephen McGregor has been rightfully defined in the media as a musical genius, and indeed those terms are no exaggeration. At only 18 years old, Stephen is one of Jamaica's best producers. A son of Freddie McGregor, Stephen was exposed to music since he was born and almost lives in the Big Ship studio, the McGregor's home studio where he has built over 500 riddims over the years.
Since his days at the Vaz Prep School, Stephen started writing his own material after school. He wrote his first song 'School Done Rule', a song about importance of staying in school, at the age of five and it enjoyed airplay, locally as well as abroad in 1995. At the young age of ten, the talented Stephen already played five instruments, including the piano, violin, drums, bass, guitar, which provides him with the basis for much of his work. His in depth knowledge and deep understanding and feeling for music puts him way ahead of many others in the business. In addition he also has the experience of travelling and performing all over the globe with his family. Stephen has performed in the USA, Canada, Asia, Europe and the Caribbean and knows the different tastes and preferences of music that people have in the world.
Stephen has the steering wheel of the Big Ship in his grip and he works hard alongside his brother Daniel aka Chino to manifest their visions and to ensure that the Ship is sailing with full blown sails into the future. Since taking over the rudder in 2005, when he produced the well known Cartoon Riddim, Redbull and Guiness, 12 Gauge, Stick Up, Breaking News, Ghetto Whiskey, Dark Again, After Dark, Work Out, Day Rave among many others. Stephen McGregors enormous musical talent will indeed make him soar to higher heights and we will hear a lot of great music from him and the Big Ship Camp.
Yeshemabeth 'Shema' Mcgregor
Bio
The daughter of Reggae Superstars Freddie Mcgregor and Judy Mowatt (formerly of the I-Threes). Shema, as she is affectionately
called, was born with a passion for music. At age three, Yeshemabeth started learning to play the piano and by age seven, the violin. She made her first appearance as a back-ground vocalist for her mother at age nine and she has been doing so ever since. She has also toured worldwide with her father, singing back-ground vocals and opening for him.
Shema has released four albums in Japan, the last titled 'A New State of Mind'. She has re-emerged unto the dancehall scene with singles such as 'Buss it Up' on the Stick-up Riddim, 'I Spy' on the Breaking News Riddim, 'All About Me' on the Work Out riddim and 'Convince Me' on the Ghetto Whiskey Riddim. She also did a remake of Rhianna..s 'Unfaithful' which is doing extremely well internationally as well as her reggae love song 'Caught Up' which has enjoyed airplay on local radio.
Shema is currently working on a new album to be released internationally in 2008. The album will be Reggae flavoured with a touch of R&B, Soul, Pop and also Dancehall
Freddie McGregor
Bio
One of reggae's most durable and soulful singers, McGregor has had an incredibly steady career that started all the way back in the '60s, when he was just seven years old. Since then, he's spanned nearly every stylistic shift in Jamaican music, from ska and rocksteady to Rastafarian roots reggae to lovers rock to dabblings in dancehall. Not just a singer, he wrote some of his own material, and grew into an accomplished producer as well.
McGregor was born in Clarendon and started singing backup for a local ska harmony duo called the Clarendonians. The Clarendonians recorded for producer Clement 'Coxsone' Dodd's legendary Studio One label for a time, and when they split in the mid-'60s, McGregor teamed up with ex-member Ernest 'Fitzroy' Wilson to form a new duo, Freddie and Fitzroy. They recorded several single sides, including 'Why Did You Do It'. McGregor stayed at Studio One for much of the '70s, working as a session drummer and backup singer while developing his own vocal style. He sang lead for groups like Generation Gap and Soul Syndicate, and also recorded off and on as a solo act during the '70s. During this period, he began writing some of his own material, including songs like 'Go Away Pretty Woman,' 'Tomorrow Is Like Today,' and 'What Difference Does It Make.'
In 1975, McGregor converted to Rastafarianism, which had a profound impact on his music. Still with Studio One and working with Earl Smith, he recorded the classics 'Rastaman Camp' and 'I Am a Rasta' and followed them with a string of singles. He issued his first album, Mr. McGregor, in 1977, the album was a smash hit in Jamaica, establishing McGregor as a budding star, and revitalizing Coxsone Dodd's production career. Around the same time, he started producing and arranging for other artists, most notably Judy Mowatt, Johnny Osbourne and Jennifer Lara. In 1981, McGregor scored a huge hit single with "Big Ship,", his next LP arrived in 1982, also titled Big Ship, it too was highly successful, both creatively and commercially. Signing with Ras for 1983's 'Come On Over', McGregor extended his creative hot streak to an international audience, making a name for himself in the U.K. and U.S. McGregor released 'All in the Same Boat' in 1986; it produced a major hit in 'Push Come to Shove,' which became his first U.K. chart entry. He sparked the interest of Polydor Records, and found further U.K. success with "That Girl" and a cover of the Main Ingredient's "Just Don't Want to Be Lonely," which made the U.K.
McGregor's relationship with Polydor proved short-lived, however, and he formed his own label, Big Ship, in 1989. The first release was an all-covers LP called Jamaican Classics, which was so well-received that he quickly recorded a second volume (and, eventually, a third in 1996). A slew of hits followed in the nineties, in 2000 McGregor released the acclaimed 'Signature', which restored his typical balance of roots reggae and lovers rock with touches of dancehall. He followed it two years later with a similarly well-received album, the Grammy-nominated 'Anything for You'.
Daniel 'Chino' McGregor
Bio
Chino is a young artiste that is going to blow your mind. With music running through his veins Chino is a great talent in his own right who already has a lot of experience. He sang from the age of nine in the Vaz Preparatory School's choir and ever since it was his dream to have a career in music. He has performed on countless occasions since being a child including his most memorable performance at the age of twelve at Jamaica House in front of then Prime Minister PJ Patterson.
While a student at Wolmer's High School, multi-talented Chino also gained experience as a selector for the sound system Omega Disco. Not wanting to be classified, Chino sees himself as a musical artiste since he plays instruments such as guitar, drums, piano and bass. Furthermore Chino sings, raps and deejays, he writes,co-writes and produces tracks for artistes such as Da 'Ville, TOK,Wayne Marshall,Elephant Man, Kiprich, Delly ranx and Freddie McGregor. He started his career as a rapper when he was asked by fellow artiste “Bryan” (brother of Papa San) to contribute a rap verse to the song 'Joy'. Important songs that furthered his career were two collaboration with Kiprich, 'Leggo Di Bwoy' and 'Gimmi Di Gyal'. After graduating from High School, Chino gained experience in the USA where he worked with Slip N Slide Records, home to US artistes such as Trina and Trick Daddy.
Chino's career has evolved even further since then and there are numerous tunes that have been making waves in the industry lately, such as 'Girls Dem Straight', 'Inna di Club', 'Redbull And Guiness' and 'Ghetto Whisky' both featuring Delly Ranx. More recently Chino has released hits such as 'Ruff It Up', 'Rave All Night', 'Protected' featuring Di Genius, 'She Want it Hard', 'Call We Name' and 'Style It Fi Dem.'
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