Singer Lenn Hammond is really not trying to be witty, but he is promoting what he calls 'raw soul'.

Lenn Hammond

"Raw soul?" we question with knitted brows (when you say this phrase aloud and the words roll off the tongue, then what you hear is not quite what you are trying to say.)

"Yes," he says, with a straight face and repeating it slowly, as if to a child, "raw soul."

Okay Lenn, we get the drift. Raw soul, he explains, is all about being true to yourself and keeping it real. "It's about the tangibles, instead of singing about the moon and the stars, we sing about hibiscus and crotons," he said in defence of 'raw soul'.

A singer and song writer, Lenn Hammond is one of those artistes who whenever he graces a stage one wonders why he isn't seen more often. His most recent performance was at A St Mary Mi Come from and he gave one that really entertained the crowd.

Raw Soul is also the name of Lenn's upcoming album and Lenn is quite excited about the prospect of putting out new products for his fans. His 2001 debut, Lenn Hammond, won the 2001 Juno Award in Canada, the country to which he emigrated in 1989

"We are now getting some singles ready to go on the air and on the streets," he explained, adding that he wanted to have recognisable products out before dropping his album. The release date for Raw Soul, has therefore not yet been set.

Hailing from Port Maria, St Mary, Jamaica, Lenn stems from a family of balladeers including his father, Winston 'Boyo' Hammond, uncle, Beres Hammond, and cousin, Courtney John (formerly Yogie). Inspired largely by his father and his uncle, Lenn has been a performer from an early age.

For over a decade, Lenn has recorded for some of the best producers and production teams in the business. He has an impressive repertoire, from Marcia Griffiths to Sizzla, Anthony B to Mr Easy, just to name a few of the artistes he has either written for or produced.

He is currently working with Jah Birth New, which is led by musician/producer Delroy 'Worm' Nevin and Uprising.

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