THE old Shaggy is back.

The two-time, Grammy-winning artiste, who is still in the throes of success with 44/876, his album with Sting, returns to his musical roots with Wah Gwaan?!, scheduled for release on May 10.

This album was being recorded and produced at the same time as his project with Sting.

“Wi still a do it with 44/876 same way. The numbers still moving. But my album which I put off from last year to do the Sting project, I just needed to get it done,” he told the Jamaica Observer on Tuesday.

“Dis a Shaggy. Dis is the first solo Shaggy album in about six years. It goes back to what Shaggy does. That music that is always against the grain,” he explained. “Mi get a little bit more personal on this album. Talk about some things of a personal nature an’ highlight some experiences that I have gone through. But it have dancehall an’ it has crossover appeal. It’s really a hybrid. I’m the ‘King of Hybrid’. I’m the guy who creates music that is always on a different edge. I’m not status quo, I don’t like cookie cutter stuff.”

Shaggy was on the set of the video shoot for Money Up, one of What Gwaan?!, in Grants Pen, Kingston.

“Dis is a song that I had. I was with Tony Kelly an’ just caught a vibe an’ came up with the song. I didn’t really want to put it out because the tune is saying, ‘Money up, Money up this evening; yuh nuh have nuh money, den how me an’ you fi reason’. I didn’t want people to get di wrong message,” he explained. “I really want the message to be like everybody, no matter what walk a life yuh deh, yuh can get yuh money up. So if you are a cane man, get your money up. And the money up is to really to make yourself better.”

The track features sound system selector-turned-recording artiste Noah Powa, who said it was a pleasure to collaborate with Shaggy.

“Wi deh a New York a perform at a Polish party and Shaggy was there a hol’ a vibes. Two days later dem figure it out dat dem have a song dat can fit Noah Powa an’ they reached out to me. We went into the studio and it was just greatness after that. Regardless of what I was doing at the time, this is another level, different fans new people, new market,” he said.

Wha Gwaan?! has 14 tracks and comes with a slate of who’s who producers including Tony Kelly, his brother Dave Kelly, Shane HoSang, Dwayne Shippey, and Martin Kierszenbaum.