When he was only six-years-old, Rickey Teetz saw his father pass away after a long illness, dying in his own bed in the family home.
The trauma of seeing a dead parent has stayed with dancehall rhyme slinger forever.

“When I was a child, I never fully understood the trauma this brought on me or my mother, life started for me then as a man, selling in the markets, doing whatever needed to be done to help my mother put food on the table,” the artiste whose real name is Ricardo McLean, remembered.

A year later, he saw the bullet-riddled body of a man who had been gunned down in his Rose Heights, Montego Bay community, further hardening his world view and resolve of survival-at-all-costs.

A few years later, his mother suffered a nervous breakdown and Teetz assumed the strain of feeding and educating his siblings. These challenges forced him to become a street hustler.

“It’s funny but it is the harsh reality of life, when you are from the ghetto, some things become normal and it makes it harder to get out of that cycle,” he shared.

These traumatic experiences colour his music leading to melancholy but inspirational songs like Poverty and Lighters Up. Now years later, he can begin to process his trauma and emerge a better human being, who contributes to local charities and spends quality time with his family on weekends.

“One positive change I made in my life was reading more and shaping better habits. The small changes layer on top of each other, and compound, if you stick with it, stick with good habits. The weight of the system works with you and you improve and if I did it, you can do it as well,” he said.

He is promoting a new single called Prime which has racked up 10,000 views on Youtube since its release.

The Mobay-based artiste has been steadily solidifying a formidable underground presence with his music which is a mix of motivational anthems, get-money hustler tracks and grimy street songs. He is best known for songs such as 1000 Block, Lighters Up and Dolla.
Rickey Teetz is booked to perform on a show called ‘Croc’s Editions’ at the Outrage Sports Bar on 25th February.