Germaine Smith, Staff ReporterIN THE past two to three years, a number of deejays have managed to land deals with two of the major record dancehall-oriented companies outside of Jamaica, VP and Greensleeves Records. This elusive 'signing' is what several of deejays dream of from the early days of their career.
'Signing', to many of them, symbolises an encouraging cash advance, stage shows outside of the country, radio interviews, elaborate photo shoots, big budget music videos and overall publicity. Management teams locally hustle and bustle with their artistes, carefully teach them the craft of dancehall, get their music on radio and played in sessions, get them booked on big stage shows, get them press interviews and so on that they can negotiate for a 'signing'.
With so much banked on landing the deal, what exactly do these record labels look for anyway?
CHOOSING ARTISTES
The Sunday Gleaner asked just that of representatives of the two previously mentioned record companies. Although they operate largely from two different countries, VP in the United States and Greensleeves in England, both bosses give similar explanations for their choice of artistes to work with.
At VP Records, the dancehall roster includes Sean Paul, Wayne Wonder and Elephant Man. There, no broadbrush formula is applied for selecting their artistes.
"We are always looking for new artistes, but we look for a combination of factors in choosing who we sign," Randy Chin of VP explained.
These, he says, begin with the level of talent of the artist and expand to their potential, to the buzz they are creating locally, to a few more.
"We talk to the industry people here (United States) and in Jamaica, we talk to the sound system people, the record stores and other people to see who is creating a good buzz," he said.
In terms of radio play, which is critical in United States and England, Chin says that it matters but not too seriously. "Obviously that's a factor, but having tunes playing regularly on radio is not absolutely necessary. If they have tunes that is fine, but it is not too serious," Chin said.
On the other side of the ocean, at Greensleeves, the list of artistes includes Vybz Kartel, Kid Kurupt and Predator among others. Artiste and Repertoire (A&R) director Christopher Cracknell says they do not have a specific formula for choosing who they sign.
"If we hear somebody and we feel something exciting we will try them. There are a variety of things that we look for before we work with them though," he explains. "To keep the business exciting you always have to get new talent. Having talent obviously is one requirement. The potential to go places is another and a general sense that we can work with these artistes is another."
In terms of radio play, similarly to VP, it is not written in stone. "It helps, but it does not detract. It is not necessarily a criteria, so if they don't have tunes playing on radio it is not detrimental," Cracknell said.
For those deejays wishing to get into the business, both bosses give general blueprints for them to follow.
Cracknell urges them to do their ground work. "The market changes all the time, but at present, the way to go is to get on the rhythms, know the producers and get on to the juggling to create a buzz," he said.
For those who are not into the headaches of dancehall, he recommends using other methods. "Not everybody will get on the juggling, but they should work on their craft in the meantime. Possibly work on an album, or many singles, but something that people can look on and see their work," Cracknell said.
GROW FIRST
In the VP camp, Chin urges aspiring deejays to hone their skills first before thinking of signing. "I think such a person should fine-tune his skills, do some tunes and learn more about the business. Hook up with a good producer who can teach them things about the business and then do some serious work," Chin said.
Added to this, he asks them to try and set their own standards rather than trying to imitate what is already out there. "Everybody is unique, so I would encourage everybody to be themselves. Find your strengths and find what makes you stand out as an artiste, what makes you different from everybody else. These are important things," he said.
