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CHAT with Wayne Wonder
Wayne Wonder was born in July of 1972 in the rainy parish which
brought us Bling Dawg and Louie Culture, Portland.
In his early days, the world knew him as Von Wayne Charles. His
singing began as a youth who used to attend Sunday school. In those
days, singing was compulsory, not just because his mother made him
do it, but because she sang in church as well.
As a youth, Wayne and his family moved all over eastern Kingston,
living in areas such as Dunkirk, Franklin Town and Rae Town, home
of the weekly Sunday night oldies street dance. The exposure to
vintage 45s at these dances apparently gave Wayne a richer, more
soulful vocal approach to a Reggae rhythm track.
As his musical skills developed, so did other skills. He was a
footballer at Camperdown High School, and stamped his class as talented
midfielder. Wayne told THE STAR that this is the real story behind
how he got the name 'Wonder', seeing he was a 'wonder' on the field.
But Wayne's first love became even stronger. He stuck with friends
who traveled across Kingston to hang out at the popular studios
at the time, praying for the day he would get the chance to record.
As Wayne recalls, getting the break to record was like winning
the lottery. He had stressful days trying to convince producers
to record him. With persistence, his break came in the late 80s.
The first producer Wayne recorded for was the legendary creator
of dub, the late King Tubby. Wayne voiced three original songs for
Tubby, but the one that caught the public's attention was his cover
version of British heartthrob Rick Astley's 'Never Gonna Give You
Up'.
In 1988, after the death of Tubby, Wayne linked with producer
Lloyd Dennis to voice the hit 'It's Over Now' on the popular 'Cover
Me' rhythm for Dennis' Pickout label.
Wayne also recorded his debut album 'No More Chance' on the Pickout
label.'No More Chance' contained seven original tracks and several
obligatory cover versions, reflecting the view of Jamaican producers
who at the time only wanted to record singers doing American R&B
hits.
Around 1989, Wayne began collaborating with his childhood friend
Dave Kelly. At the time, Kelly was an engineer for Donovan Germaine's
Penthouse Records. Together Wayne and Dave created a steady stream
of successful Penthouse tunes including 'I'm Only Human,' 'Baby
You and I' and 'Saddest Day' (which he re-recorded in combination
with Foxy Brown on her 2001 Def Jam Records 'Broken Silence' CD).
Wayne became well known for his 1991 cover version of the late
Jamaican singer Delroy Wilson's 'I Don't Know Why' re-titled 'Movie
Star'. The same song in combination with Buju Banton (whom Wayne
brought to Penthouse Records) 'Bona Fide Love' proved to be a huge
success as well.
It was at Penthouse that Wayne achieved several of his earlier
notorious hits. He covered the works of several American R&B
artists such as Tracy Chapman's 'Fast Car', PM Dawn's 'Die Without
You' and En Vogue's 'Hold On', but in 1993 it seems Wayne was fed
up of covering. He then pledged to himself and the world that he
would only record original material.
Since that pledge, the singer's first move was to team with Dave
Kelly in the 90s to deliver some very popular dancehall classics.
Among these are tunes such as 'Joyride' , 'Bashment Gal', 'Keep
Them Coming', 'Let Your Conscience Set You Free' among others. In
2000, he took the big step and launched his own record label, Singso.
By then, Wayne had developed a sharp ear for production and this
allowed him to release singles by several artistes including Frankie
Sly, Baby Cham and Mr Easy.
In 2002 however, Wayne hooked up with musician/producer Steven
'Lenky' Marsden on the Diwali rhythm. This relationship produced
the groundbreaking tune 'No Letting Go' and was the super launch
pad for Wayne to extend himself on to the world stage. Since the
release of that tune, there has been no turning back.
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