There is a reason Wilful Skilful named his first EP Growth. After 15 years in the music business, he believes personal and professional improvements show in his music.

Released on March 27, it has seven songs, several of which are already out.

“Growth is a powerful word that reflects your past and shapes yuh future. Things good inna my life, I might not have everything what I need but I’m on di way,” Wilful Skilful told Observer Online.

The EP contains Ambitious, a collaboration with Dasvibes, an Australia-based artiste who hails from Seaview Gardens, the Kingston community where Wilful Skilful was raised.

Ambitious is also on Dancehall Nice Again, a compilation album produced by Dasvibes. Released in 2025, it features songs by artistes from France, Spain, Africa and Latin America.

Wilful Skilful credits having a song on that cosmopolitan project for opening new doors for him.

“Is different coverage so it give mi a wider fan base. Mi get different coverage inna di Europe side, ’cause different selectors a play di song,” he said.

Wilful Skilful spent his infancy in the West Kingston community of Denham Town before moving to Seaview Gardens in the mid-1990s. The latter had a buoyant dancehall scene which produced acts like Bounty Killer, his biggest musical influence.

Call On Me, Run Up, and Mus Overcome (with Wayne Wonder) are some of the other songs on Growth.

— Howard Campbell