The year 1993 also saw the staging of the historic Sting musical confrontation between himself and nemesis Beenie Man.
In the build-up to the show, Bounty Killer was not amused by Beenie's acts of lyrical piracy, at a time when they were both just taking hold of the cut-throat world of dancehall.
Bounty Killer's victory at Sting confirmed him as the heir to Ninjaman's throne in the lyrical theatre of war, something he continues to prove to this day.
His battle cry "peeeeeople dead" set off a slew of slangs and phrases that instantly caught on, and to this day, has become part of the Jamaican dialect - slangs such as "boung bang," "bullet!" and "connect!"
Bounty Killer began to broaden his subject matter into streetwise social commentary, most notably on the perceptive drug-trade chronicle Down in the Ghetto.
Over the next year, Bounty Killer enjoyed one of his hottest streaks as a hitmaker in Jamaica, as he released one popular song after another: a smash duet with Sanchez called Searching, the hip-hop-flavoured chart-topper Cellular Phone, Smoke the Herb, the anti-censorship Not Another Word, the maternal tributes Mama and Miss Ivy Last Son, Action Speak Louder Than Words, Book, Book, Book, and No Argument.
defining statement
Bounty Killer left the Jammys camp in 1995 and formed his own Scare Dem Productions and Priceless Records labels.
In 1996, Bounty Killer released his defining statement, the 20-track seminal double album My Xperience. The single Hip-Hopera entered the Billboard singles chart with My Xperience spending an unprecedented six months at number one on the Reggae Billboard chart, and two months on the Billboard Top Albums chart.
While reggae artistes like Bob Marley and Shabba Ranks have had their albums cross over into rock/pop markets, My Xperience has the unique distinction of being one of the only reggae albums ever to break into and strongly influence the hip hop community.
Bounty Killer's collaborations with Busta Rhymes, the Fugees, Wu-Tung Clan and Jeru the Damaja, set the benchmark against which all other hip hop/reggae hybrid records are measured.
new generation
In 1998, Bounty Killer returned with a high-profile, guest-laden follow-up to My Xperience, titled Next Millennium, that featured the new generation of hardcore New York hip-hoppers, including Noreaga, Mobb Deep, Killah Priest, and the Cocoa Brovaz. Deadly Zone was featured on the soundtrack of Blade and made the Top Ten on the rap singles chart in America. This album again sold respectably well among R&B audiences.
In late 2001, Bounty Killer made a prominent guest appearance on No Doubt's international smash Hey Baby, appearing in the video and performing with the group during the 2002 Super Bowl and on UK flagship show Top of the Pops. He received multi-platinum discs, a Grammy and became the first Jamaican recipient of an MTV Moonman Award as just some of the accolades for this fruitful collaboration.
sprawling ambitions
Hip hop Producer Swizz Beatz approached Bounty Killer in 2002 to collaborate with him on the lead single from Ghetto Stories, Swizz's debut album as an artiste.
Bounty Killer returned to the sprawling ambitions of My Xperience for his next project, the two-volume Ghetto Dictionary set.
Issued separately and simultaneously in early 2002, Ghetto Dictionary: The Art of War and Ghetto Dictionary: The Mystery which was given four stars by Rolling Stone magazine and went on to be nominated for the 2002 Reggae Grammy. One of the tracks, Sufferah, was also included in Rolling Stones Top 10 Hip Hop songs of 2002.
After 17 glorious years in the business, Bounty Killer has seemingly done all there is to do; appearing on Multi-platinum discs, recording with the biggest names in world music, touring the world to this day, producer, promoter (Saddle to the East), Grammy Awards etc., but is perhaps best known for his legacy of being able to spot and nurture talent.
high profile names
Bounty Killer is heralded as being responsible for bringing the current crop of dancehall stars to the forefront. Elephant Man, Mavado, Busy Signal, Wayne Marshall, Baby Cham, Bling Dawg and Vybz Kartel are just a few of the high profile names to whom Bounty Killer has brought fame and fortune.
Vybz Kartel left Bounty Killer's camp and formed his own in 2006. In his recent release Chatterbox, Bounty unleashes a lyrical tirade on Vybz Kartel that has once again set dancehall fans buzzing for the five star general, leader of the Alliance, Poor People's Governor, the Warlord.
Stealing the accolades at Sumfest 2009, Bounty Killer has proved he is as relevant today as he was in 1992.
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