Kirk Diamond

Last updated

Kirk Diamond
Birth nameKirk Douglas
Born (1984-06-24) 24 June 1984 (age 39)
Spanish Town, Jamaica
Origin Brampton, Ontario, Canada
GenresReggae, Dancehall
Occupation(s)Singer-Songwriter
Instrument(s)Vocals
Years active2010–present
LabelsThe Movement Of Ahryel
Website kirkdiamondmusic.com

Kirk Douglas (born 24 June 1984), better known by his stage name Kirk Diamond is a Jamaican-Canadian Reggae and Dancehall singer-songwriter, producer and entrepreneur based in Brampton, Ontario. [1]

Contents

Early life

Diamond was born Kirk Douglas in Spanish Town, Jamaica. [2] [3] He immigrated to Canada with his family in the 1990s at the age of ten. [4] [5]

Music career

[5] In 2010 Diamond joined the Dancehall music group Don Dem. [6] Don Dem released two projects. In 2011, "Loaded Mixtape" and In 2013 "The ReMixtape". [3] In 2014 Kirk Collaborated with "T.G." a.k.a "Tommy Gunn" to release the single, Dem Nuh Real under the "Armzhouse" label in "Jamaica". [7]

In 2015, Kirk and Bob Da Builda of Don Dem were nominated for a Juno Award for the single Love Inna We Heart which was produced by France based "Galang Records". [4] In 2016 he traveled to Jamaica to collaborate with Derrick Morgan on a remake of the latter's 1960s song "Conqueror". [8]

With high anticipation for the release of Diamond's solo debut EP entitled,Greater. Kirk flew to the UK to promote the project in 2017. The final stop on the media run was to BBC Radio 1Xtra where he joined Seani B on his program. What was to be a normal interview, ended up being much more when Kirk delivered a well-received freestyle. [9] [10] [5] After returning to Canada, Kirk took on the festival circuit starting with the Grace Jerk Festival in Toronto, [11] and the Reggaefest in Calgary, Alberta. [12]

In 2018 the EP, "Greater" won the Juno Award for Reggae Recording of the Year. [13] [14] 2018 is also when Diamond would emerge as one of the most sought after performers in Canada, performing at over 72 shows including the "Love Thy Labourer festival" in Norfolk, Ontario [15] and the Jambana Festival where Kirk would open for the legendary Third World Band. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reggae</span> Music genre

Reggae is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first popular song to use the word reggae, effectively naming the genre and introducing it to a global audience. While sometimes used in a broad sense to refer to most types of popular Jamaican dance music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that was strongly influenced by traditional mento as well as by American jazz and rhythm and blues, and evolved out of the earlier genres ska and rocksteady. Reggae usually relates news, social gossip, and political commentary. It is instantly recognizable from the counterpoint between the bass and drum downbeat and the offbeat rhythm section. The immediate origins of reggae were in ska and rocksteady; from the latter, reggae took over the use of the bass as a percussion instrument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet</span> Canadian rock band

Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet are a Juno Award-winning Canadian instrumental rock band, formed in 1984. They remain best known for the track "Having an Average Weekend", of which an alternate version was used as the theme to the Canadian sketch comedy TV show The Kids in the Hall. Although commonly classified as a surf rock band they rejected the label, going so far as to release a track called "We're Not a Fucking Surf Band", although they also later released a compilation box set titled Oh, I Guess We Were a Fucking Surf Band After All.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snow (musician)</span> Canadian musician

Darrin Kenneth O'Brien, known by his stage name Snow, is a Canadian reggae musician, rapper, and singer. His 1992 single "Informer" spent seven weeks at No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elephant Man (musician)</span> Jamaican dancehall musician (born 1975)

O'Neil Bryan, better known by his stage name Elephant Man, is a Jamaican dancehall musician, having formerly been a member of the dancehall group Scare Dem Crew prior to his solo career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Super Cat</span> Jamaican deejay

William Anthony Maragh, also known as Super Cat, is a Jamaican deejay who achieved widespread popularity during the late 1980s and early 1990s dancehall movement. His nickname, "Wild Apache", was given to him by his mentor Early B. Super Cat is considered one of the greatest deejays in the history of the Jamaican dancehall scene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reggae Sumfest</span>

Reggae Sumfest is the largest music festival in Jamaica and the Caribbean, taking place each year in mid-July in Montego Bay. Sumfest started in 1993.

Derrick Morgan OD is a Jamaican musical artist who was popular in the 1960s and 1970s. He worked with Desmond Dekker, Bob Marley, and Jimmy Cliff in the rhythm and blues and ska genres, and he also performed rocksteady and skinhead reggae.

<i>Murder Love</i> 1995 studio album by Snow

Murder Love is Canadian reggae musician Snow’s second album. While his preceding album featured a wide array of musical genres fusing hip-hop, pop, and reggae, Murder Love was recorded in Jamaica and primarily featured dancehall tracks. A number of songs featured dancehall legends Ninjaman, Half Pint, White Mice, and Nadine Sutherland, and Junior Reid produced and appeared on the track "Si Wi Dem Nuh Know We". While not producing a hit in the United States, the track "Sexy Girl" reached number one in Japan and the "Anything for You" remix became the top-selling single of 1995 in Jamaica. Ultimately, Murder Love reached number one the U.S. Reggae charts and "Si We Dem Nuh Know We" was nominated for a Juno for best reggae recording. Due to his criminal record, Snow was unable to enter the United States and promote the album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boi-1da</span> Jamaican-Canadian record producer (born 1986)

Matthew Jehu Samuels, known professionally as Boi-1da is a Canadian record producer and songwriter based in Toronto, Ontario.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Money Jane</span> 2000 single by Baby Blue Soundcrew featuring Kardinal Offishall, Sean Paul, and Jully Black

"Money Jane" is a song recorded by Canadian DJ group Baby Blue Soundcrew featuring Canadian rapper Kardinal Offishall, Jamaican musician Sean Paul, and Canadian singer-songwriter Jully Black. It was released by Universal Music Canada in 2000, and was the first single from the group's debut studio compilation album Private Party Collectors Edition; a remix was included on Offishall's 2001 album Quest for Fire: Firestarter, Vol. 1. "Money Jane" is a Canadian hip hop and dancehall song with lyrics about a wealthy woman who provides financial and material support for her male companion. The song is noted for its influence on Toronto's hip hop music scene, and is credited with launching Paul's international music career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Protoje</span> Jamaican musician

Oje Ken Ollivierre, popularly known as Protoje, is a contemporary reggae singer and songwriter from Jamaica. His mother is Jamaican singer Lorna Bennett, best known for her 1972 rendition of "Breakfast in Bed". His father is a former calypso singer Mike Ollivierre from the island nation of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Popcaan</span> Jamaican singer

Andrae Hugh Sutherland, known professionally as Popcaan, is a Jamaican dancehall singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merchant (reggae artist)</span> Musical artist

Ricardo Renford Nicholson, better known by his stage name Merchant, or Musicaly Merchant, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay, writer, and producer. He uses eclectic and flamboyant lyrics.

Leroy Russell Junior, better known by his stage names Tommy Lee and Tommy Lee Sparta, is a Jamaican dancehall artist from Flankers, Montego Bay, Jamaica. Tommy Lee Sparta gained popularity as a member of Adidjahiem Records and the associated Portmore Empire crew under the leadership of Vybz Kartel. He has been a controversial figure in dancehall due to his self-described "Gothic Dancehall" style, which often features dark and Satanist-inspired subject matter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I-Octane</span> Jamaican reggae and dancehall recording artist

Byiome Muir, better known by his stage name I-Octane, is a Jamaican reggae dancehall recording artist from Clarendon Parish, Jamaica. He is known for integrating positive and socially conscious subject matter into his music, drawing inspiration from personal experiences and Rastafarian teachings.

Mikey Dangerous is a Jamaican/Canadian reggae artist. Dangerous was presented with a Juno Award for best Reggae Recording by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences for his single "Don’t Go Pretending".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spice (musician)</span> Jamaican dancehall deejay (born 1982)

Grace Latoya Hamilton, known professionally as Spice, is a Jamaican dancehall deejay and singer. Known as the Queen of Dancehall, Spice is recognised as one of the most prominent dancehall artists in the world. She is known for her aggressive flow, musical versatility and outspoken lyrics. Spice first gained recognition after performing at the annual dancehall festival Sting in 2000. She released her first single "Complain" for record producer Dave Kelly's Madhouse Records in 2003. She continued to release the singles "Right There" and "Hype", even being featured on songs with Jimmy Cliff and Beenie Man in 2004 and 2006, respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alkaline (musician)</span> Musical artist

Earlan Bartley, better known as Alkaline, is a Jamaican dancehall and reggae musician from Kingston, Jamaica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blessed (musician)</span> Musical artist

Blessed is the stage name of Peter Skinner, a Jamaican-Canadian reggae musician. He is most noted as a two-time Juno Award winner for Reggae Recording of the Year, winning at the Juno Awards of 2002 for "Love " and at the Juno Awards of 2006 for "Reggae Time".

References

  1. "Harvest party in downtown Simcoe". Monte Sonnenberg, Simcoe Reformer, September 14, 2018
  2. "Reggae & Dancehall Recording Artist Kirk Diamond “Greater” Than Ever". Jamaicans, 2016
  3. 1 2 "Don Dem", BOSS Magazine, Winter 2013–14 issue,
  4. 1 2 "Kirk Diamond wins Juno". Jamaica Observer, By Kevin Jackson, March 26, 2018
  5. 1 2 3 "Kirk Diamond’s time to shine". The Voice, May 17, 2017
  6. "Jamaican Reggae/Dancehall Group Don Dem Successful In Canada". Reggae Times, December 13, 2012 . reprinted from Tropical Fete
  7. "Canada-Based Reggae Singer Kirk Diamond, Yearns for the Big Break!". MIX 102, September 15, 2014
  8. "Derrick Morgan remakes 'Conqueror' with Kirk Diamond". Jamaica Gleaner, February 3, 2016 | Curtis Campbell
  9. "- YouTube". YouTube .
  10. "Kirk Diamond shining bright with Juno nod". Jamaica Obsrver, by Kevin Jackson. Monday, February 19, 2018
  11. " Grace Jerk Festival Takes Over Toronto With Fun For The Whole Family!". Toronto Caribbean, Noel Cunningham August 24, 2017
  12. "Calgary's Reggaefest cancelled after 14 years". Daily Hive, April 6, 2018
  13. "Junos 2018: the complete list of winners". CBC News, · March 25, 2018
  14. "Early Junos Go to Gord Downie, Grimes, Alvvays and More". Exclaim!, March 24, 2018
  15. "Harvest party in downtown Simcoe". Simcoe Reformer, Monte Sonnenberg, September 14, 2018
  16. "Jambana rocks Brampton". August 8, 2018, also "Jambama celebrates its 10th anniversary in Brampton". August 7, 2018, both by Marta Marychuk, Brampton Guardian