Shaggy: Not about me

Article by SDB Media

THERE ARE BUT A HANDFUL of people who can truthfully boast of their relevance in the entertainment industry over the course of decades.

One of those people is Jamaican dancehall star Shaggy. In Barbados as one of the headliners of the annual CHUM 104.5 FM Breakfast In Barbados concert, Shaggy, real name Orville Burrell, credited his longevity on “keeping up with the times”. In addition, he said making financially sound decisions and not indulging also helped.

“It is about reinventing yourself and keeping your ear to music. Every generation changes so it is trying to be relevant within that generation,” he advised.

In an interview with WEEKEND BUZZ, the It Wasn’t Me singer said since taking the world by storm with his music in the early 1990s much in his life has changed. He is now a husband, father and a man more focused not only on his music but also on the impression he could leave on this earth.

That was why one of his main endeavours was philanthropy. Since 2009 Shaggy has held The Shaggy And Friends concert to raise funds for the Bustamante Hospital for Children.

“I think you as a person or people in general should just get in the mood of giving back and being that person [for] yuh heart, yuh conscience. I have fame right now and fame for me in the early days mean different from fame now. Fame in the early days was about me getting the perks of being famous – I got chicks, liquor, weed, money, cars . . . . Now I am past all of that. It is about using fame to build awareness and build hospitals and help people and bring awareness to serious situations– that’s what it is all about.

“This year Shaggy And Friends [raised] and gave US$500 000 to the Bustamante Hospital for Children. At the end of the day I am very fortunate to be where I am so I do whatever I can,” he added.

Shaggy’s hits include Boombastic, Strength Of A Woman, Angel, In The Summertime, Oh Carolina and Church Heathen. He is currently signed to Sony Records and expressed excitement about his latest single That Girl and about his upcoming album. (SDB Media)