It’s been 20 years since he arrived on the musical radar but for Grenadian-born dancehall/soca artiste Tallpree, it’s the uniqueness and fresh sound that he brings that have kept him in the game all these years.

Tallpree, born Wilt Cambridge, got some attention as a dancehall artiste when he recorded the track Old Woman Alone. Formerly known as Mr Evilus, he made a name for himself by opening shows for Jamaican dancehall and reggae acts whenever they performed on the island. Super Cat, Maxi Priest, Barrington Levy, Beenie Man, Bounty Killer and Buju Banton are just some of the acts with whom Tallpree has shared the stage.

These days, Tallpree is revelling with delight at his recent stint in the number one spot on the soca charts in Trinidad and Tobago. He knocked Shurwayne Winchester’s Murdah from the top spot with his bouncy hit Wicked Jab.

In 1997 he made his soca debut with the tune Ram-e-Deh. Following his success he went on to compete in Spice Mas. He would later place third in the Trinidad and Tobago Mas.

The song, The Grave, The Jail and the Hospital won him the Road March title in Grenada in 2000. But it was in 2003 that he was finally crowned Soca Monarch in Grenada for the smash hit Carnival Madness.

Since then he has continued to release singles including Jennifer, Invasion on the Rags, From De Heart and Miss Antisocial.

Tripple Bounce rhythm hits the right notes with Hope and Pray

The Tripple Bounce rhythm which was produced by radio jock ZJ Chrome has been heating up the airwaves for months now.

Chief among the tracks are efforts by Vybz Kartel (Bicycle), Bugle (Anything Goes), Mavado (Hope and Pray), Mr Vegas (Gallis) and Nuh Behaviour by Voicemail and Ovamars. So far all of the aforementioned have dented various charts, with the exception of the Voicemail tune.

The biggest hit from the rhythm project so far has been Mavado’s Hope and Pray which is currently the number one song on the Media Guide Reggae Specialty Chart, out of the US. The chart is compiled based on radio play at college radio stations across the US that are monitored electronically.

Sade returns with new album in 2010

The sixth studio album from R&B band Sade, led by vocalist Sade Adu, will be released on February 8, 2010.

This is the band’s first opus featuring all new material since Lovers Rock was released in 2000. The new album is titled Soldier of Love.

Some of Sade’s biggest selling albums include Lovers Rock which sold more than three million copies; Love Deluxe which sold 3.5 million copies; and 1985’s debut, Diamond Life which sold nearly 17 million units.

BITS AND PIECES

* Flexx from the group TOK recently completed a video shoot for the single Hustle For Mine. The song features newcomer Torch and it was produced by Mario ‘Mad Scientist’ Lawerence. The video was directed by Wayne Benjamin of Fabricated Projex.

* Alicia Keys will release her new album, The Element of Freedom, on December 15. The track list, which was recently released, sees the singer collaborating with rapper Drake and Beyonce.

* Shaggy’s latest single Long Time, featured on the Big Yard label’s Street Bullies rhythm project takes the number one spot on Germany’s reggae chart.

* A day after its release on Monday, American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert’s For Your Entertainment album, released by Sony Music, soared to number four on Apple’s iTunes album chart. Who says controversy doesn’t sell?

* The number one spot in the UK this week belongs to the X-Factor 2009 finalists, whose rendition of Michael Jackson’s You Are Not Alone soared to the summit.

DID YOU KNOW?

Did you know that Whitney Houston’s current chart hit Million Dollar Bill (which recently topped Billboard’s Dance Music Club Play chart), contains samples from a 1977 recording from one of disco music’s most revered stars? The samples are taken from Loleatta Holloway’s 1977 recording We’re Getting Stronger (The Longer We Stay Together), taken from her Salsoul Records debut album Loleatta.

Holloway who is best known for the hits Dreamin’, Love Sensation, Hit and Run and the mellow R&B hit Worn Out Broken Heart, has seen her work sampled by many artistes over the years. Love Sensation was sampled in the Black Box 1989 hit Ride on Time as well as Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch’s Good Vibrations.