HAGUE, Trelawny – DERRICK Kerr, better known as ‘Map Head’, one of the top-flight selectors on the legendary Killamanjaro (Jaro) sound system, has been steadily carving out a niche for himself in dancehall both locally and internationally.

The genesis of the selector’s journey goes back as far as 1992 in his native Daniel Town community of Trelawny, where he spun vinyl records on the Techno Force sound system.

From those early days, his ability for selecting rhythms in sound clashes and building party vibes became obvious and this resulted in him eventually being recruited to strut his stuff on Sly, Slick and Wicked and Interceptor, two major sound systems in the parish at the time.

As his performance in the dancehall blossomed, Map Head did a short stint with the Noel ‘Papa Jaro’ Harper-owned Killamanjaro sound system between 2000 and 2003 before returning to Trelawny.

The William Knibb Memorial past student returned to the Kingston-based Killamanjaro two years ago to form part of the 45-year-old sound system’s formidable crew of selectors, which includes Freddy Cougar and Problem Sean.

“We a lock the place with Jaro. I have been to Canada since year, I went to England, just coming back from America last week and we plan to go on tour in January,” the beaming selector told the Jamaica Observer West in a recent interview.

One of his most cherished memories in the business was a tour of Antigua during his first stint with Jaro.

“My best experience was the tour of Antigua with Killamanjaro sound in 2000. It was the first time I was mixing with the senior selector, Freddy, when we played [against] Fire Links. To be honest, we went there, won the dance, brought home the trophy and from then on Papa Jaro have never had me sitting down while the sound is playing,” Map Head said proudly.

In the meantime, the Trelawny native was quick to point out that the dancehall culture is transforming and patrons nowadays are more demanding than when he started playing music.

“Back in the days, people used to come and rock and wait on songs. These patrons nowadays from you go in the dance you have to just start bring it and give it to them,” said the popular selector.

He was full of gratitude to God and his Trelawny fans who supported him over the years.

“I] couldn’t do this without God. I always try my best to be in Trelawny. If it means me haffi drive to Kingston to work… me try to be in touch with Trelawny — the place where I was born, the people who put me up,” he said.

He said he has learned a lot from several selectors, including Jeremie Lee, Captain Midnight, Pink Panther, the late Squingy of Bass Odyssey sound, Tony Matterhorn and Ricky Trooper, a legendary selector of Jaro, who moved on to form Sound Trooper.