Smokey Hype was born in a small inner city community called Waltham Park in Kingston Jamaica, before he relocated to Spanish Town St. Catherine, where he was raised and completed all of his schooling. School was where he developed the love for music, eventually putting together a group with his friends and create a recording studio where they would learn how to make beats and records. The evolution of life separated the crew and Smokey made new friends and a brand new studio. The next step saw him registering a label – Spanish Mob Records – and operating a real business with pro equipment. During this time he establish a link with popular dancehall giants such as Bounty Killer and Movado.
2017 sees Smokey Hype building his catalog and launching his brand new EP. One of the track coming off the recording is the smash single “Selfie”. This new single speaks to Smokey’s timeless vocal and lyrical talent as well as his resilience and perseverance. The blending of dancehall with trap and EDM elements recurs in Smokey’s music and these attempts to genre-bend is done in a very tasteful manner.
“Selfie” begins and later returns to an electronic beat based section, complete with thumping bass and hi-hat rolls, but the riddim also progresses into a more traditional dancehall pattern in the middle section, resembling the clubbier basement riddims of the late 90’s and early 2000’s, before switching back to its catchy electro chorus. It’s always risky to proclaim one’s unchallenged superiority, as antler-locking assertions of genre domination invariably leads to sudden hubristic downfalls.
But with a brand new release as good as “Selfie”, and an army of talent and independent resources behind him, Smokey Hype can be proud of his achievements thus far and has every right to feel like king of the hill as he moves his career to the next level. “Selfie” needs to be played very, very loud, as it climbs and climbs steadily until Smokey bursts forth with his vocal assault. These euphoric moments are why we listen to music. It feeds the soul and sets the body in motion.
This new EP, and single release, from Smokey Hype shows great innovation, strong momentum and unrivaled promise from the artist. Since he is on his own label, Smokey is not content to sit back and let things happen. You can hear through the music that he is trying to take it to everyone with his cross-over hits that will no doubt be captivating reggae and dancehall aficionados the world over. Catch Smokey Hype on radio rotation with his latest tracks – “Selfie” and “Reminiscing”.
Follow Smokey Hype on FACEBOOK and YOUTUBE. Stream and download his music on ITUNES
