Teino Evans, Staff Reporter
Baby Cham and Alicia Keys doing a special shoot with all their supporters on the set of the video for 'Ghetto Story: Remix Part Two' in Kingston, July 2006. - photo by Kareem LaTouche
When popular international performers come to Jamaica their presence can have a positive impact on Jamaican music, as links can be further strengthened and their level of expertise and insight passed on.
In fact, there are many overseas artistes who come to Jamaica on holiday and mull over new material, or shoot music videos and record songs with local artistes.
No Doubt and Lauryn Hill are among those who have been to Jamaica on such business.
There have been negative sides to such ventures though. Lady Saw was never featured in the music video for Underneath It All, done with No Doubt, which became a major hit.
However, there have been successes. Baby Cham's Ghetto Story, which was a huge hit locally, has been propelled onto the international stage as Alicia Keys has decided to tell her version of a ghetto story.
Other remix
But, Keys' version is not the only remix to Ghetto Story because Baby Cham alsohas a version with Akon. But then, Akon is not as popular as Alicia Keys. Keys' remix has been getting huge airplay on New York's urban station Hot 97. However, Ghetto Story's heavy rotation on New York radio is not new for a Jamaican song. Every year, New York radio adds a Jamaican song to its play list, rotates it regularly while the rest of America hardly notices.
Last summer, I Wayne's Can't Satisfy Her got huge airplay in the 'Big Apple' but never became a hit in the rest of the country. But, Ghetto Story has been somewhat different. Although not exactly radio-friendly because of its violent content, Alicia Keys' addition to the song has further pushed its popularity in the United States.
Keys openly admits that it was not Cham or his record label who approached her. It was the other way around, as she loved his flow and felt that she too had a story to tell.
Keys performed in Jamaica earlier this year when the song was enjoying immense local popularity. Hence, it is not far-fetched that a collaboration could have been in the making from then.
Good for Jamaican music
According to Sharon Burke of Solid Agency, the success of this collaboration can only be good for Jamaican music.
"This can only make the music get better, because once they have one of their own on records with our artistes then they are going to listen to it more," she said.
Burke says what persons don't seem to realise, is that many of these international big names have family and other close ties with Jamaica.
"It is just showing that we are multicultural and a lot of these people have Jamaican background, they move with Jamaicans and Caribbean people. Busta Rhymes, for example, has Jamaican parents and he has Jamaicans in his management team. Biggie Small had Jamaican ties and Olivia is Jamaican," she said.
