WHILE he works in a genre often criticised for monotony, producer/songwriter and percussionist Teetimus says he does not limit himself to a particular sound.

This has resulted in him taking on musical projects with a number of hip-hop and R&B acts. Earlier this year, he hit it big with Affairs of the Heart, a catchy song by Grammy-winning reggae/dancehall artiste Junior Gong.

The 33-year-old told the Jamaica Observer from his home in New York City, that he was not keen on the project initially.

"I was told by Baby G (producer at King Jammy's recording studio in Kingston) that Gong was going to be in town for an upcoming project and was encouraged to be a part of it. I wasn't certain at first because I'm really a homebody but I went and met with him and his team and the rest was history," he said.

Written by Junior Gong, Affairs of the Heart became an instant hit and is moving toward a spot on the Billboard magazine chart.

Teetimus says there is no secret formula for his success.

"I am always experimenting with different genres and I am never afraid to step outside of the box in order to create new and different sounding beats. I was born to do this," he said.

Teetimus, whose real name is Vican Edmond, also commands the respect of A-listers in hip-hop and R&B.

He has worked on rapper Busta Rhymes' 2002 album, It Ain't Safe No More and singer Trey Songz' latest album, Chapter V, which was released last month.

He is the man behind Mr Vegas' Bruk it Dung and Get to the Point by Sizzla.

Teetimus says he grew up in a musical home in Mandeville, where his parents were gospel singers. Using scraps of metal, he made his first drum set.

"I moved to Riverton Meadows in Kingston where I made several more drums as the access to scrap metal was greater," a laughing Teetimus recalled.

Moving to Washington Gardens, he said he was further influenced to take on music as a career by a Rastafarian musician named Scott.

"Scott owned and operated a small recording studio in the area. My mother at first didn't like the idea of me being around a Rastafarian but that didn't prevent him from taking me under his wings," he added.

As his drumming skills improved, Teetimus said his interest in music was stimulated and he learned to play other instruments including the keyboard, bass and acoustic guitar.

His breakthrough came in 1999 when he created the Sugar and Water 'riddim' which featured artistes like Sizzla, Elephant Man, Mr Vegas and Kiprich.

Although he has done several solo projects, he is a partner of the Kingston-based Truck Back Records team. Teetimus, along with brothers Steve, Andrew and Adrian Locke, have been hauling beats from the back of a 1997 Mitsubishi Fuso Fighter for several years.

True to its automobile roots, Truckback Records has released riddims such as the Gearbox and the Dashboard.