Sophia Laing, wife of Lieutenant Stitchie, says rumours of the deejay’s death and financial status have caused his family considerable grief. She told the Jamaica Observer that the artiste, who turned 59 on September 29, continues to recover, one month after suffering a brain haemorrhage.

She was speaking on Thursday, shortly after receiving US$10,000 ($1.5 million) from fellow deejay Rodney “Bounty Killer” Pryce’s Bounty Foundation to assist with his medical expenses. The ceremony took place at PAJ Limited in Kingston.

Laing said her husband successfully underwent surgery and is responding to “familiar voices and holding his hands up”. Rumours of his demise and animosity among relatives, she stated, have made things even more difficult for his family.

“Oh my God! Oh my God! Hurt is not even the word, it crushed me. For people to be saying the things that they’ve been saying… We have a 16-year-old and when she hears all of these things, I had to say to her, ‘Sweetheart, don’t go on social media, because the ugly things they are saying about your dad, I don’t want you to be absorbing it.’ But we’ve got over that hurdle and we’re just looking to the Almighty for the best,” she said.

Accompanied by singer Richie Stephens, Bounty Killer presented the cheque to Laing. He told the gathering that his admiration for Stitchie can be traced to his childhood in Seaview Gardens when he listened to songs like Natty Dread, one of the deejay’s early hits.

Bounty Killer made special mention of Shaggy, who donated the funds. He called on other artistes to contribute not only to Stitchie’s GoFundMe page, but to other entertainers in need.

His foundation, launched in 2018, has made financial donations to deejay Tiger and singer Junior Byles, who are also facing serious health challenges.

“Everybody who come from humble beginning should always have a charity, because we know about unfortunate situations. Yuh haffi give back to di yutes an share wid yuh family,” said Bounty Killer.

Lieutenant Stitchie, whose real name is Cleve Laing, made his name as a sound system artiste in his native Spanish Town before achieving mainstream success in the mid-1980s with the humorous
Wear Yuh Size. That was followed by other radio-friendly hits such as Natty Dread and Big Broad Hips.

After recording three albums for Atlantic Records, Stitchie became a Christian in 1997 and has recorded a number of gospel albums.