DESPITE its drawback, producer Khalfani sees the COVID-19 restrictions as necessary and uses them as inspiration. His latest project is Ding Dong’s Curfew .

“We understand that the country is in crisis mode right now. So we all have to wear our masks and practice social distancing to keep the virus in check so we can get back to our normal lives soon and reopen the entertainment sector,” Khalfani told Jamaica Observer.

He is upbeat about Ding Dong’s latest single.

“The streets are buzzing with the Curfew song. When Ding Dong say: ‘Lock down the place like BroGad’, the forward big from that line alone, and the energy of the dance complements the rhythm. People ah feel the song,” said the producer, whose real name is Khalfani P McKenzie.

“The dancer Coote Boss has a bad Curfew dance to go with the song, and when everybody start circle the dance with the move, ah no nothing normal. When the place open back, ah crazy thing ah go gwaan, Ding Dong is very confident with this song; everybody love the Curfew,” he continued.

‘BroGad’ refers Prime Minister Andrew Holness.

Curfew was released on August 24 on the Khalfani Records label. Ding Dong posted a clip of himself and Coote Boss dancing to the single that has registered over 168,000 views on Instagram.

“We are working on doing the visuals soon, but the lockdowns and no-movement days are making it hard logistically to get everything we need done in the allotted time,” Khalfani explained.

The song is the lead single from a larger project that includes heavyweight artistes such as Teejay, Ding Dong, Shenseea, Jafrass, Tommy Lee Sparta, Jah Vinci, I Waata, and Christopher Martin.

“I have high hopes for Curfew rhythm and hope that it will allow all dancehall lovers to continue to party and hold a vibes responsibly,” he said.

Khalfani is also the producer of Ding Dong’s COVID-19 anthem Inside Inside.

In a bid to reduce the surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalisation, Prime Minister Holness had announced seven no-movement days on Sunday, August 22; Monday, August 23; Tuesday, August 24; Sunday, August 29; Monday, August 30; Tuesday, August 31; and Sunday, September 5.

On Wednesday, Holness extended the no-movement days for six additional days: Sunday, September 5; Monday, September 6; Tuesday, September 7; Sunday, September 12; Monday, September 13; and Tuesday, September 14.

“I fully support whatever plans the government has to get the financial and entertainment sectors to fully open up again,” he said.

A graduate of Calabar High School, he grew up in the Whitehall Avenue area off Red Hills Road in St Andrew. He got involved in music because of his passion for sounds. He began playing the recorder at the age of five, and by the time he was eight, he was playing drums in church. He continued to hone his craft building rhythms as a teenager.

He produced his first single, Khago’s Love Me Like This which was released in 2012, and since that time, he has scored major hits such as Teejay’s Unfaithful Games, and the popular The Fling rhythm.