Shaggy is a Jamaican-American reggae fusion musician. He is internationally successful, due to singles like "Boombastic" and "It Wasn't Me".
Shaggy Biography
Orville Richard Burrell, known professionally as Shaggy, is a Jamaican-American reggae fusion musician. He is known for the worldwide hits Oh Carolina, Boombastic, It Wasn’t Me and Angel. Overall, the artist released 12 studio albums.
Early Life & Breakthrough
Shaggy was born in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1968. As a child, he took singing lessons and practised on the streets with friends. He served in the United States Marine Corps during Persian Gulf War. In 1993 Shaggy began making music professionally and released the iconic single, Oh Carolina, a dancehall re-make of a ska hit. In 1995, he released Boombastic, from the album of the same name, which was used in a Levi’s commercial. The album brought Shaggy a Grammy award and reached Platinum.
The 2000s & 2010s
In 2000, Shaggy released his most successful album to date, Hot Shot. The 6x Platinum record spawned 2 immensely acclaimed singles, It Wasn’t Me and Angel. The album, as well as the two singles, reached number 1 in numerous countries. While the next albums failed to rise up to the expectations settled by Hot Shot, in 2002 Shaggy gained, even more, recognition with the hit Hey Sexy Lady. In 2005, his singles Wild2Nite, with Olivia, and Ultimatum, with Natasha Watkins, also gained international popularity.
Furthermore, Shaggy increased the number of concerts. In 2007, he received the Jamaican Order of Distinction with the rank of Commander. One year later, he released the album Intoxication, which received a Grammy nomination. It generated another quite popular single, What’s Love, featuring Akon. In 2010, the reggae artist collaborated with Balkan group Sahara and Bob Sinclair, on the song I Wanna, another high-seller. Moreover, he released For Your Eyez Only, topping the reggae charts once again. Since then, Shaggy ceaselessly collaborated with numerous artists such as Ever and Kylie Minogue.
Photo source: Discogs
