The pattern behind Glamma Kid .....
Cutting his teeth on Hackney sound Glamma Guard, the former Iyael Iyasus Tafari Constable hooked up with leading UK producers Mafia & Fluxy during the 1990s for a run of singles distinguished by their free flowing, topical lyrics and a vocal style bearing Bounty Killer's stamp. 'Fashion Magazine', 'Rebound' (with Robbie Valentine), 'Nation A Gal', 'Outertain', 'Girls Terminus', 'Mr Politician', 'Power Supply', 'Sneakers'. None are included on Glamma's newly released debut album 'Kidology', but 1997 No.1 hit Moschino' is. Voiced for Clarkey & Blakey and later given a hip hop remix, 'Moschino' defined the times with its witty commentary on everyday street fashion. This was soon to land him a deal with WEA, who followed his debut single 'Fashion 98' with the two chart hits, 'Taboo' (featuring Shola Ama) and 'Why'. Neither were representative of the Glamma Kid known by grassroots fans, but with a MOBO award for Best UK Reggae Act under his belt, Glamma wasn't complaining.
"My eyes have been opened to a whole lot of different ideas over the past couple of years, 'cause tunes like Taboo' and 'Why'... You've got to tiptoe on those tunes, but at the same time keep your feet on the ground still? You can't be too rugged for the mainstream market, so I try to turn a leaf and I've mastered that now. I had to change and make it more feasible to everyone, 'cause I've got a bigger responsibility now," he continues. "I sell more records and I've got a wider audience, so I had to break the album down and split it up between everyone: the commercial, the underground and the specialist market. I mean, there's certain tunes I would have loved to put on there, but they would've had to be remixed and so much has changed in the meantime." He defends his position with a practiced air, which is hardly surprising given the amount of envy he's received from certain sections of the reggae fraternity. He answers his critics with some venomous lyrics on opening track 'Hataz', explaining how "...every man's got to get the stress off his chest at certain times. I mean it's not always good to put a lot of personal emotions in your tracks, but I had to make people know how I feel on that tune there. I had to let out some steam in my own little way."
The hardcore Glamma may come as a shock to those who bought his three chart singles, but with Maxi Priest crooning alongside him on 'Ladies Knight', and D'Influence blending samples from Blondie's 'Rapture' and Visage's 'Fade To Grey' on new single 'Bills 2 Pay', those of nervous disposition won't be too disappointed. In contrast, ragga headz will prefer Salaam Remi's Foogazy' (with Glamma dissing those who would "drop, flop, stab, rob and kidnap" him), Bling Along' (featuring Beenie Man and Jamelia), 'Girls Barrage' and 'Pedal Pushers' (both produced by Jeremy "Zim Zimma" Harding) or 'Get Yours' from the Ruff Riders. Then there's 'Conspiracy', which he voiced at King Jammy's studio in Jamaica, and was produced by latest bashment sensations Ward 21. "They got an ill, crazy flow man!" he says, laughing, "the way they use the hip hop and the reggae together, it balances out right. But the whole group's tough, and I really enjoyed working with them. I'd been to Jammy before with Mafia & Fluxy, but I never did any work that time there. I went there and got stripes, simple. I was supposed to do a tune with Bounty Killer too, but I couldn't get it locked down in time. WORDS BY: John Masouri
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