As Jamaicans continue to battle the effects of the novel coronavirus, poverty and crime, emerging deejay Artikal is offering a word of encouragement with Mankind .

“This is a track that I hope will get a lot of attention; it speaks about everyday life that we in the ghetto face and the struggles that we have to go through as a young boy growing up. I think a lot of people can relate to this song and hope it can touch the hearts of a lot of people who get a chance to listen to it,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

Produced by Full Thousand Entertainment, it was released on August 6.

The island has entered even deeper waters with the presence of the Delta variant of the coronavirus in the island. Up to yesterday, 60,488 positive cases of COVID-19 were reported with 1,356 fatalities. In an effort to curtail the spread, Prime Minister Andrew Holness announced seven no movement days. These are: Sunday, August 22 – Tuesday, August 24; Sunday, August 29 – Tuesday, August 31; and Sunday, September 5.

In the game for the past seven years, Artikal (given name Shaquille Bennett) has released tracks he describes as “melodious and inspiring,” choosing to stick to real-life experiences and scenarios rather than fiction.

“My style I’d say is different and unique, not to be cliché but that’s how I view my style of music with a different sound and how the lyrics of the music are written. The delivery and creativity behind it are taken with utmost care and the quality is very important to me,” the 26-year-old.

The deejay is known for other tracks like Destiny, Today, Pandemic, and Persistence featuring Quada.

Artikal added that he has been on a mission to bring about positive change since the start of his career. He believes that is what makes him a cut above the rest.

“I think what makes me stand out as an artiste is probably my writing style, creativity and sound and how I approach the music overall. I’m someone who likes to tell stories through my music so that the listeners can vision what’s been said in the songs. I’m someone who likes to bring across positive messages to help inspire people and put people in a good mood while they’re listening to my music,” he said.

In the coming years, he hopes to be another international star from Jamaica.

“To be honest, I hope to see my career on a different level preferably at the international stage where all of us strive to be so I can help and contribute to grow our music and culture on a global scale because our music and culture is very contagious and powerful,” he said.