Ini Kamoze and Lila Iké on track, a ‘dream collab’

Producer Kareem ‘Remus’ Burrell is living his dream. He continues to trod in the impressive footsteps of late veteran producer Phillip ‘Fatis’ Burrell, of the renowned Xterminator label, even as he seeks to make his own mark on the music industry. With a keen appreciation for the musical creations of foundation artistes – as well as those to whom the baton has been passed – and armed with a deep knowledge of the history of reggae music, Remus is proving to be much more than just “Fatis lickle son who ah do music”.

The newest single on his own XTM Nation label is titled I Want You. It is a collaboration that he has been wanting to do for a long time and Remus is brimming with gratitude at the outcome. As the name suggests, it is a love song – actually it is a big bad “chune” featuring a legend and a youngster who is embracing greatness.

“Ini Kamoze and Lila Iké on a track is a dream collaboration for any producer in reggae music,” Remus told The Gleaner. “I’m very fortunate and appreciative of the fact that I got the opportunity to bring this record to life. To me it represents a blend of experience and fresh talent bridging that generational gap.”

Expounding on his knowledge of what Ini Kamoze means to the genre, he added, “With an artiste like Ini Kamoze, we know him for the hits like Hot Stepper, Hotter this Year, and his own The Statement album. These were profound contributions to reggae music ... not to mention the music from Ini has been sampled or interpolated from the likes of Beyoncé in the Sean Paul collab Baby Boy and Beyonce’s Hotter This Year.

“Damian Marley sampled World a Reggae on Welcome to Jamrock ... the Wings with me track produced by Sly and Robbie was interpolated and released as Rootsman Riddim and gave hits to Chronixx with Here Comes Trouble and Jesse Royal, Modern Day Judas. All of these moments were pillar moments for the reggae genre in their respective times and when you check it the root of all of this was Ini Kamoze. It’s pretty exciting to have someone like him and this fast-rising star Lila Iké on a record ... and it’s such a great record too.”

Ini Kamoze’s career started in the early 1980s and the singer rose to global acclaim in 1994 with the song which would become an anthem, Here Comes the Hotstepper and Kamoze became known as The Hotstepper. The single topped the US Billboard Hot 100 as well as record charts in Denmark and New Zealand, reaching number four on the UK Singles Chart.

Remus, through his father, shares an intimate connection with Here Comes the Hotstepper. The song was originally recorded with Fatis Burrell and later remixed by Salaam Remi. The opening line of the song, “ Out in the streets, they call it murda!” has been sampled in innumerable drum and bass and dubstep tracks. According to Kamoze’s bio, his dub version of Here Comes the Hotstepper, otherwise known as I’m Steppin’ it Hotter This Year, released in 1993, remains a dancehall anthem.

Known for songs which still sound fresh and relevant regardless of age, Ini Kamoze is effortlessly continuing that trajectory and he puts it simply yet profoundly when he says, “We not running into it [music] for the now of it.”

Full of praise for Iké, Ini Kamoze said of I Want You, “We want it to be timeless. It’s not often that yuh find someone who understands the music and interprets it the way that she has. It is even an inspiration to just listen to that because sometimes you think that is only you can do it this way ... but she can do it. We just love that. We want to transcend generations and time.”

For Lila Iké, a collaboration with Ini Kamoze is “special”.

“When I first heard that they wanted me to be a part of this song ... it felt very special because if you are a reggae music lover or if you are just in tune with Jamaican music and culture you know that Ini Kamoze is a force. I grew up hearing World a Reggae Music. He’s a legend ... he’s been in the music for so long but this song still feels like we get a brand new Ini again,” Lila Iké said.

As for the song itself, she told The Gleaner, “The words that come to mind when you feel that energy… that vibration shared with a special someone. You just know the love is burning. We all feel it. Singing these lyrics expresses it.”

I Want You is being officially released on all platforms today.

yasmine.peru@gleanerjm.com