What Happened To the Born Jamericans?

Reggae Appreciation Society

In the early 90s Washington duo Born Jamericans burst on the scene with a unique and groundbreaking style that blended Reggae and Hip Hop with tracks like Boom Shack Attack and Yardcore. But when it seemed like they were going to truly dominate as industry they split up in the most unexpected way

Transcript

00:00Hello everybody and welcome back again to the Reggae Appreciation Society.

00:06The 1990s are regarded by many fans as the golden era of dancehall as that was the epoch

00:12that saw that art form reach its creative peak as well as an explosion of super talented

00:16DJs in their absolute prime.

00:19That generation of toasters who would literally explode out of Jamaica and set the world's

00:23airwaves ablaze with anthem after anthem making that subgenre of reggae a truly international

00:29mainstream sound.

00:30And while the island was the epicenter of this sonic revolution, the children of Jamaican

00:36immigrants in the diaspora would also play their part and create classic material for

00:41the culture.

00:42From the likes of Toronto-based Canada powerhouse Louis Rankine to the subject of this video

00:47in the incredible duo of Mr. Notch and Ed Lee Shine, more popularly known as the Born

00:52the Americans.

00:53Straight out of Washington DC, these cats would redefine and popularize the hybrid reggae and

00:59hip-hop crossover sound that became a hallmark of that decade.

01:02They didn't invent it mind you, as likes of Daddy Freddy and Shinehead had already pioneered

01:07the style, but they were the ones to truly embrace it as a niche.

01:12From a stylistic point of view, I personally rate them among the best dancehall duos of the

01:171990s.

01:18A devastating combination of a smooth sweet singer and a brilliant big voice toaster that rocked

01:23dance floors and radio stations from the Caribbean to Asia and all the way to Africa.

01:28Anybody who was around in the 1990s felt the energy of this incredible act.

01:33They had it all from the look, the talent and the enthusiasm to truly dominate the dancehall

01:38scene for years to come.

01:40But as its common knowledge, the music industry is one treacherous and unforgiving space and

01:45when it seemed like they were about to consolidate on their incredible start, these two guys were

01:49torn apart by record label politics and the dark side of the entertainment business.

01:54Let's take a look at what really happened to the Bourned Americans.

01:58Now this tale begins in Washington DC in 1992 with 17-year-old Normal Howell aka Notch.

02:04Fresh out of high school, he was the son of a Jamaican father and a Puerto Rican mother.

02:10His father had been a bassist with a band while still living in Jamaica and he was blessed with

02:15an amazing smooth voice. He modeled his singing and voice style after popular dancehall singers

02:20like pliers and pinches and was then moonlighting at a popular Jamaican nightclub in Washington

02:26called Kilimanjaro where he would at times open for big names like shabaranks and supercats

02:31whenever they were on tour and came to perform at the club. Washington had a strong Jamaican

02:37community as most immigrants who first came to America in the 70s and 80s first settled

02:42in New York before moving there. And out of these immigrants was the Payne family.

02:47The patriarch Mr. Payne owned one of the most popular record stores in DC. The owner's son

02:52named Horace Payne aka Ed Lee Shine was working at his dad's store having also just graduated

02:58from high school. And this kid was a fantastic toaster who was heavily influenced by Boogie Banton.

03:04One day, Notch came to the store to buy some 12-inch records with instrumentals. The two teens

03:10got talking and when Ed Lee Shine asked Notch why he was buying so many records, he told him

03:14that he used them to perform at the Kilimanjaro nightclub twice a week.

03:19Ed Lee Shine was also interested in music and the pair hit it off immediately and began to

03:23meet regularly in Ed Lee Shine's basement where he had his own sound system set up to freestyle

03:28over instrumentals from the record store. And in no time, they began to nurse the idea

03:33of forming a duo. And in that period, they began to write the songs that became their

03:37breakout hits like Seas and Circle and Boom Shark Attack. They chose the stage name of

03:42Born the Americans to symbolize their dual heritage as American kids with Jamaican roots.

03:48And when they began to perform at bars and nightclubs around the city, they caught on like wildfire

03:53with audiences. Notch's infectious, smooth and melodic singing was perfectly complemented

03:59by Ed Lee Shine's powerful toasting and incredible lyricism.

04:02Their fame grew quickly around the city and it wasn't long before they began to get invitations

04:07to tour with visiting Jamaican superstars like Shabarangs whenever they were in America.

04:12They were fantastic acts but had difficulties getting a record deal from all the big labels

04:17like Epic or MCA despite good reviews from the touring circuit. These labels were skeptical

04:24of signing on American kids to do reggae whether or not they had Jamaican roots as they felt

04:29audiences wouldn't take them seriously. But eventually, they began to discuss with an

04:34independent label called Delicious Vinyl that offered them a one-song deal. And the arrangement

04:39is that the label would finance the production of one song and a music video. And if it sold

04:44up to 100,000 copies in 60 days, they would be signed up on a full album deal. And of course

04:50the pair grabbed it in a heartbeat. The song they chose was Boomshack Attack and upon release

04:56became a breakout hit that sold more than 100,000 copies in 28 days. The label immediately put

05:02them in the studio to recall the 11 songs that made up their debut album Kids from Foreign.

05:07The album would spawn smash hits like its lead single Boomshack Attack which reached

05:12number 15 on the billboard rap charts. As well as certified club and party anthems like

05:17Season Seko that took the album to number 2 on the billboard reggae charts in July 1994.

05:23Only narrowly beaten to the top spot by Patra's monster hit album in Queen of the Pack. An incredible

05:29feat for the then newcomers in what was a period of huge mega stars like Bujubanton, Shabarangs,

05:36and Supercat who were all then rocking the global charts. Their impact was phenomenal to say the

05:41least. They were simply awesome, charming, talented, and fresh and were in crazy demand for shows

05:47everywhere. They began to tour non-stop playing shows all across America, Europe, and Asia as opening

05:54acts for huge stars like Bojubanton, Gregory Isaacs, and other reggae royalty over the next two years.

06:00They became global superstars and were amazed while on tour of Japan when tens of thousands of fans

06:06sang along to their music word for word. They were immensely popular worldwide including all over

06:12the Caribbean. But incredibly they weren't very popular in Jamaica as their instrumentals were based

06:18on classic Studio One rhythms with a Rocksteady or Rootsy feel as opposed to the then more popular

06:23hard-driving dancehall rhythms being crafted by producers like Bobby Digital and Steely & Cleavy.

06:29By late 1996, they went to work on the second album Yardcore that came out in early 1997 to critical

06:37acclaim and great reviews. This album had wonderful tracks like my personal favorite entitled track

06:42Yardcore and the irresistible Send My Love. In summary, a slick infectious compilation that once again

06:49showcased the sublime talents of Notch and Idly Shine. The album was a decent commercial hit but failed

06:56to really take off as it ran into roadblocks set up by industry gatekeepers who began to demand payments

07:02for their music to get airplay on radio and television. Their label and Delicious Vinyl being

07:08a small outfit with a small budget wasn't prepared to do all that and that lack of promotion kept the

07:13album from truly taking off. This proved to be a big disappointment to the guys and over time began to

07:19strain their relationship and it soon got worse as that label found Notch's good looks and smooth

07:25singing potentially more marketable as the sound and trends were changing and they felt very soon

07:30there'd be less demand for Idly Shine's more rough-edged rugged persona. They began to put ideas

07:36in Notch's head telling him he would do better on his own as a solo act and in no time cracks in their

07:42relationship would soon appear. Despite the album not selling so well, they were still in heavy demand for

07:47shows around the globe and would play major concerts practically everywhere. But by 1998 their label

07:53decided Notch to renew their contract and after more friction in their relationship Notch would quit

07:58the duo to pursue his solo career. He would go on to do his own thing and scored one of the biggest

08:03songs of 2001 in the fabulous Notin I Go On So. I rocked that song for years and had no idea it was him.

08:11I can't play a sample of this song due to copyright restrictions but I left a link to it in this video

08:16description section below. Notch also explored his Puerto Rican heritage and was part of the massive

08:21reggaeton wave of the early 2000s and even put out a reggaeton album in 2007. Idly Shine on the other

08:28hand would lean more toward the behind the scenes role. After the breakup he would tour with rapper

08:33Madlion for a while and became a songwriter for Warner Records. All in all, the breakup of the borned

08:40Americans was a sad thing as that pair had been such a delightful duo. However, the massive nostalgia

08:46from their fans have seen them do several reunion shows over the years and you can never tell what

08:51could happen and if these two guys may go into the studio to record some new music for the fans.

08:57They were in my opinion among the most outstanding acts of the 90s and it's really a crying shame that

09:02they became yet another statistic in the long list of marvelous groups torn apart by music industry

09:08politics and intrigues. But such they say is life. So there you have it.

09:13Thank you for watching this video today. Please leave a like, subscribe and until next time, ciao, bless.

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