A Blessed JUNO nomination
WITH two JUNO wins for Reggae Recording of the Year under his belt, St Thomas-born Blessed (real name Peter Skinner) is beaming with pride having secured his 10th nomination recently.
Herb Dream is the song that garnered his most recent JUNO nod.
“That song was inspired by the legalisation of marijuana in Canada. I didn’t expect it to be nominated but I knew it was strong enough to get nominated based on its success here to Canada,” said Blessed, who was born in Seaforth community of the parish.
“I loved growing up in Seaforth. However, we were very poor and sometimes we would go without food or money,” Blessed told the Jamaica Observer.
With several hit songs to his credit and performances on several major shows and festivals across Canada, Blessed is thankful for the change in fortune.
According to Blessed, he was in the studio cutting dubplates when he was made aware of the JUNO nomination.
“This nomination means that I have earned the respect of my peers and the stamp of approval from the Canadian music industry. I was just happy that I am again nominated because every nomination for me is special,” the singjay added.
He migrated to Canada in 1988 at 12, and has established himself as one of the recognisable voices on the Canadian reggae music scene.
In 2002, his Firehouse Crew-produced Love (African Woman) charted in the number one position in many key reggae markets, including Trinidad, Germany and Canada.
That year, he won a Urban Music Association of Canada (UMAC) award for Best Reggae Recording for the single Can’t Say No More. Blessed was nominated for a JUNO award in 2003 for Smile, and 2004 for Empty Barrels featuring Kardinal Offshall. Blessed went on to win a UMAC award for Best Reggae Recording with Empty Barrels in the same year.
The JUNO Awards, Canada’s equivalent to the US’s Grammy Awards, will be handed out on May 15 at the Budweiser Stage in Toronto, Canada. It will air on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
The other nominees in the Reggae Recording of the Year category are: Easy Now by Kairo McLean; By Any Means by Exco Levi; Josemar for Don’t Let it Get to You; and Too Ruff by Kirk Diamond and Finn.
