Twiggi’s ‘Too Late’ endures after nearly 30 years
Too Late, Twiggi’s 1994 song on Penthouse Records’ big Champion rhythm, has been sampled by German hip hop trio KitschKrieg, for their song Baby, which features British rapper ARZ.
Baby is done to a Garage beat, with ARZ rapping to Twiggi’s original vocals in the background. The song was released in March and fared well in German club circles.
Twiggi reacted to the KitschKrieg/ARZ song in an interview with the Jamaica Observer.
“I am not surprised that it (Too Late) has endured as it’s a well-written song performed on one of the biggest dancehall riddims, not to mention it is produced by one of the biggest producers and brand out of Jamaica,” she said.
The Florida-based artiste was associated with producer Donovan Germain’s Penthouse Records in the 1990s. Champion was driven by the title song, done by Buju Banton, the label’s flagship act, as well as Moving up The Line by Spragga Benz.
Champion was one of the most popular ‘riddims’ of that era in which Penthouse was a dominant force. Twiggi (real name Marie Gittens) scored other hits for the label including Where Did The Love Go and Want It, a collaboration with Buju Banton.
She disclosed that Too Late enjoyed a resurgence in Africa some years ago. Her music being sampled is a big compliment.
“One will never know if their song will hit again as it’s an unpredictable market, and that rarely happens but what I know for sure is, whenever I go about recording a song I do it with longevity in mind. And in the case of Too Late, it seems to be paying off over and over again,” she said.
Howard Campbell