Song of the day – April 28
In keeping with my anguished obsession with young go-getters (also known as “envy”, in plain English ), today’s Song of the day, Bad Boys, is brought to you by Laden (aka the more pedestrian “Jim Laden”), a Jamaican dancehall sensation not much older than 23. (On this topic, had everyone but me realized that T-Pain was only something ridiculous like 24 years old? I rather embarrassingly lost an argument on this subject last week. I’ve seen the guy live. I’d convinced myself he was at least 35. Sigh.)
But back to our Song of the day. The performer part of the equation is Laden, this tall, skinny youth who was raised by his mother in the rural area of Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica. Depending on where you hang, it’s quite possible you’ve heard other songs of his, such as Really Like You, or Working Hard. Compared to other dancehall singjays (Serani, Demarco, Mr. Vegas), Laden comes off as particularly upright and sincere. He often sings about wanting to make it, in these happy major-chord melodies that almost recall children’s ditties (see Time to Shine.)
Shockingly, Laden is far from being the youngest player on that joint. As it turns out, Bad Boys was produced by Stephen “di genius” McGregor, of Big Ship Productions. McGregor, the son of reggae legend Freddy McGregor, is one of Jamaica’s rising superproducers. In recent years he’s become one of the most sought-after beatmakers in Jamaica, producing canvases for singers such as Mavado, Sean Paul and Vybz Kartel. It appears Laden is now part of McGregor’s roster of protégés, this “super-producer”, in the words of The FADER‘s Ghetto Palm columnist Eddie STATS Houghton, “who in any sane universe would be too young to have protégés of his own.” And how. “Di genius” is 18 years old.
PS. There is no official Bad Boys video yet, but as strange as it sounds, this Western movie footage works a charm.