Chaka Demus

In the 1990s Chaka Demus emerged as one of Jamaica’s most celebrated DJs, his cheerful personality and raspy delivery earning him a string of local successes both alone and alongside fellow artists, yet it was his collaboration with the honey-voiced Pliers that delivered the toaster a run of worldwide chart triumphs. Born John Taylor in West Kingston in 1965, he followed the typical path of the island’s loquacious talents by entering the sound-system circuit as a teenager, first with Jammy’s and later with Supreme. He initially performed as Nicodemus Jr. in tribute to the acclaimed 1980s DJ Nicodemus, but by the mid-1980s, when he began cutting records, he had adopted the fresh name Chaka Demus. His earliest singles appeared on Jammy’s, starting with the 1985 release “Increase Your Knowledge.” Though none became major hits, they signaled strong promise that was quickly noted by established peers; Yellowman contributed to the admiring “Everybody Loves Chaka,” Scotty joined him on “Bring It to Me,” and Admiral Bailey teamed with him for “One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer.” In 1987 Demus moved to the Penthouse label for the single “Chaka on the Move,” returned briefly to Jammy’s the following year to record the album Rough & Rugged with rising toaster Shabba Ranks, and also issued his solo debut, the somewhat boastful Everybody Loves the Chaka, on Scorpio. His next album, The Original Chaka, arrived in 1989 on Witty. Around this period he began working with producer Bobby Digital, releasing several singles; Digital also collected earlier tracks by both Demus and Shabba Ranks for the 1989 compilation Best Baby Father. A well-received appearance at Reggae Sunsplash marked the start of the new decade, yet despite a growing list of modest chart entries Demus had not yet reached the uppermost tier of Jamaican toasters. In 1991 he traveled to Miami for shows with singer Pliers, an artist in a similar position; the pair had already met at Penthouse, and sharing a stage revealed a clear musical chemistry. Back in Jamaica they entered the studio with producer Ossie Hibbert and recorded the lighthearted “Gal Wine,” whose relaxed rhythm and easy interplay between Pliers’s sweet vocals and Demus’s playful chuckles quickly became an island favorite. The duo then worked with nearly every prominent producer, including Jah Screw on “Bad Mind,” Mafia & Fluxy on “Winning Machine,” as well as Digital and Jammy’s, generating a series of standout singles. By 1992 they had assembled enough hits for the album Gal Wine Wine Wine, and another Reggae Sunsplash performance brought additional acclaim. Demus’s rapid-fire version of the soca classic “Workie Workie” appeared on MCA’s Reggae Sunsplash Live album in 1993. That same year the pair recorded with Sly & Robbie, who were exploring bhangra rhythms; the first result, “Tease Me,” topped Jamaican charts and introduced Chaka Demus & Pliers to international audiences when it reached the British Top Five. The follow-up “She Don’t Let Nobody,” blending R&B and bhangra elements, also climbed the U.K. chart, and in early 1994 their exuberant cover of the Isley Brothers’ “Twist & Shout” hit number one on both sides of the Atlantic. In Jamaica the duo continued with “The Boom” and “Mr. Mention,” but British momentum proved harder to sustain; of the three 1994 singles, “I Wanna Be Your Man” and a re-recorded “Gal Wine” only grazed the Top 20, while “Murder She Wrote” peaked at number 27. In the United States, however, their signing to Island Records proved fruitful: the striking “Murder She Wrote,” driven by bhangra rhythm and featuring the Taxi Gang and Jack Radics, placed Chaka Demus & Pliers firmly in the American mainstream. Although the track itself dated back nearly a decade—Pliers having recorded an earlier version in the mid-1980s that itself reworked the Maytals’ 1960s hit “Bam Bam”—this new arrangement became a major success. All of these hits and more were collected on the influential album All She Wrote. Two years passed before the duo returned with For Every Kinda People in 1996, an album that inevitably invited comparison with its predecessor; nevertheless the title track yielded another hit single, and a cover of the Police’s “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” repeated that success in 1997. Demus also released the solo single “Come Ya Mi Darlin’ Come” that year, and in 1998 Chaka Demus & Pliers performed again at Reggae Sunsplash. After a period of quiet they resurfaced in 2001 with the RAS album Help Them Lord, followed by Trouble and War in 2003, Back Against the Wall in 2005, and So Proud in 2008, while continuing to tour and appear at festivals worldwide.