Producer Khemani “Mani Khem Music” Thompson is a musician first and foremost.

His passion for music has led him on a journey that saw him mastering the art of playing keyboard, bass guitar and the drum. However, it wasn’t until 2014 that he began to compose beats.

A year later, he did his first production.

On May 10 he released his latest production, a song titled Stole My Heart recorded by reggae artiste Iba Mahr.

He is quite upbeat at the positive reaction to the song.

“So far, I’ve been seeing a lot of great responses online. Two comments that stood out to me were ‘This song is a stunning portrayal of falling deeply in love in the most poetic and heartfelt way.’ ”

Another comment was ‘Sweet like heaven…. the melodies, the message, the beat ….everything is perfectly blended in,’ ” Thompson said in an interview with the Jamaica Observer on Wednesday.

He continued: “I think it’s a great song and a great music video, and marketing is in swing right now, so I’m trying to promote it in every way I can. It’s songs like these that should be on repeat on the radio. Good music, music from the heart!”

Thompson said his label Mani Khem Music was established three years ago. Since then, he has worked with artistes such as Channing and Belando.

He shared that he and Iba Mahr grew up in the same community in Linstead, St Catherine, and they both shared a passion for music prior to Iba Mahr’s success.

“I love music. It’s my passion. My aim is to create clean music, music that can be played anywhere, and my favourite genre is reggae. From when I was a child I was always curious about the production process and how the different musical elements come together to the final outcome and with God’s help I’ll be successful,” said Thompson.

Iba Mahr commented on the new track.

“Stole My Heart is a common term being used to express the extent of one’s love for his/her partner. It’s so funny, because I know based on the depth of the conversation and also the tone being used, a lot of people might be curious if it’s a first-hand experience. But yes and no. As creatives, we draw concepts and ideas from our friends, family, and own relationships… I observe my circle. It’s not always my life, but we put it into music,” Iba Mahr explained.

Said Thompson: “Iba Mahr and I produced this song together. After he recorded we added Sherieta Lewis, who recorded background vocals, then we made adjustments to the song with keyboardist/mixing engineer Llamar ‘Riff Raff’ Brown. The song is distributed by Dubshot Records and the music video was directed by Jesse James starring Maxine Turenne. The whole production process was pure magic!”