“So Many Artists Have Gone Away From The Traditional Sound”

With his new Summer In Kingston album now available, Shaggy recently talked to SOHH about his decision to make a comeback during the hottest season of the year.

For Shaggy, making his triumphant return with new music over the summer was a no-brainer.

“The thing is this, I’m doing reggae, man,” Shaggy told SOHH when asked about making his music comeback this summer. “Reggae’s that summer music. Reggae’s that feel good music. As soon as the summertime comes around and you hear some reggae, you know it’s summer. You know it’s a good time. You know it’s feel good time. I’m the sun and fun man. I was born in Jamaica, raised in Jamaica, live in Jamaica, make music from Jamaica, so that’s what it is.” (SOHH)

The reggae-dancehall veteran also weighed in on the state of his genre’s music.

“There’s a lot of things going on as far as reggae’s concerned and dancehall,” Shaggy added. “A lot has changed. I always try to find a way to reinvent myself. I think this is the perfect reinvention. It’s almost taking me back but this time with a twist. So many artists have gone away from the traditional sound of reggae so all I’m doing is altering the traditional reggae sound. I’m giving it that real Shaggy. The tone of my voice is a real distinct sound so that actually adds to it.” (SOHH)

Last weekend, Shaggy performed a special hometown show in Jamaica.

On Saturday, “Mr. Boombastic” took his melodic reggae sounds back to the island that made him famous, performing a free show in front of his fellow Jamaicans with the assistance of a few other notable reggae stars. The concert, called “Shaggy and Friends,” came on the heels of the release of his 10th studio album, Summer in Kingston. (MTV)

Recently, Shaggy talked to SOHH and gave some reasons why fans should support his new Summer In Kingston album.

“Reason number one. It’s called Summer In Kingston. Now who don’t want Summer In Kingston? You know what I’m saying? The vibe is different. I’m a different person right now and when you listen to a track like “Sugarcane,” it feels very tongue-in-cheek. All of my songs have that tongue-in-cheek feel to them where there’s a little bit of humor to it. “Sugarcane” feels like summer, a good time. That’s what I was trying to accomplish on this record. I wanted to bring back that good time feeling.” (5 Reasons Why)

Check out Shaggy’s “Sugarcane” music video below: