ONTARIO-BASED singer Kirk Diamond does not hold any ill feelings for Jamaican producers who ignored him early in his career. Diamond, who migrated from Spanish Town to Canada over 20 years ago, won the Reggae Recording of the Year category at the Juno Awards on Saturday night.

He won for Greater, a song from his EP of the same name.

“The producers in Jamaica that I have recorded for, they were only focusing on the hardcore deejays, so it was like hard to even get a good quality mix for my songs and no push at all,” said Diamond in an interview with the Jamaica Observer yesterday.

The Juno is Canada’s equivalent of the Grammy Awards. It took place at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

Light by Ammoye, How Up Slow Down by Blessed, Neva Judge by Eyesus and Love How You Whine by Kreesha Turner and K’Coneil were the other nominees for Reggae Recording of the Year.

It was the second nomination for Diamond. He was nominated in 2015 for Love Inna We Heart featuring Bob Da Builda.

“Since my first nomination to now, I have tried to learn more about the music industry. I learnt from other independent artistes, artistes signed to major labels and even music industry executives. Along the journey, I have remained humble. My mother always keeps me in check,” he said.

Diamond, who once aspired to become an electrician, got into music by chance 10 years ago.

“Musically, I feel I bridge the gap between the old and new school. With influences from other genres that I’m a fan of such as hip hop, jazz and soul. I started doing music professionally in 2008 and I believe I have evolved since then due to my life experiences. Having a child, reading a lot more, and looking at life differently from I did back then, allows me to deliver a more mature content,” he stated.

Named among the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s (CBC) Ten Reggae Artistes You Need to Hear in 2017, Diamond is gearing up for the release of three new songs — Once Upon A Time, Masks and Loyalty featuring Natural Fyah.