Biography
Born in Jamaica, West Indies, Kelly began collaborating with Donovan Germain during the closing years of the 1980s and served as the house engineer at Penthouse studio on Slipe Road in Kingston. His introduction to Buju Banton in 1990 led to a string of co-written tracks that secured the deejay the Most Exciting Newcomer Of 1991 honor. While still based at Penthouse, Kelly launched his own Madhouse imprint, whose first release was Buju Banton’s “Big It Up,” drawn from the artist’s Penthouse debut album Mr. Mention. He earned a reputation as a forward-thinking producer by devising signature rhythms such as “Pepperseed,” “Joyride,” “Arab,” “Stink,” and “Medicine,” and he supplied beats for several leading 1990s acts, among them Beenie Man on “Old Dawg” and “Slam,” Frisco Kid on “Rubbers,” Lady Saw on “Sycamore Tree,” and the Nadine Sutherland–Terror Fabulous pairing on “Action.”
In 1997 Kelly initiated the Alias project, deliberately shunning publicity and refusing to be photographed. He assembled a collective that included Wayne Wonder, Frisco Kid, Spragga Benz, Alley Cat, Baby Cham, Textra, and Mr. Easy, operating without hierarchy; within the group Kelly handled production, songwriting, musicianship, and even deejay duties while performing under a pseudonym. Controversy arose when he crafted Beenie Man’s “Nuff Slam” jingle to advertise the condom brand “the Slam,” whose packaging displayed Carlene (The Dancehall Queen) in a provocative stance beneath the slogan “Slam Country” superimposed on the Jamaican flag, prompting protests inside Gordon House.
Entering the 2000s, Kelly’s engineering and production work encompassed sessions with Elephant Man and Akon, while he maintained ongoing ties with Buju Banton, Lady Saw, Spragga Benz, Beenie Man, and Baby Cham, most prominently contributing to the latter’s American breakthrough album Ghetto Story.
In 1997 Kelly initiated the Alias project, deliberately shunning publicity and refusing to be photographed. He assembled a collective that included Wayne Wonder, Frisco Kid, Spragga Benz, Alley Cat, Baby Cham, Textra, and Mr. Easy, operating without hierarchy; within the group Kelly handled production, songwriting, musicianship, and even deejay duties while performing under a pseudonym. Controversy arose when he crafted Beenie Man’s “Nuff Slam” jingle to advertise the condom brand “the Slam,” whose packaging displayed Carlene (The Dancehall Queen) in a provocative stance beneath the slogan “Slam Country” superimposed on the Jamaican flag, prompting protests inside Gordon House.
Entering the 2000s, Kelly’s engineering and production work encompassed sessions with Elephant Man and Akon, while he maintained ongoing ties with Buju Banton, Lady Saw, Spragga Benz, Beenie Man, and Baby Cham, most prominently contributing to the latter’s American breakthrough album Ghetto Story.