Shabba Ranks, stage name of Rexton Rawlston Fernando Gordon - Sturgetown, January 17, 1966 - is a Jamaican singer. He dominated the ragga scene in the late 80s and early 90s, until Shaggy arrived. Shabba was the first dancehall artist to win a Grammy. Unlike Shaggy, Shabba always used the technique of dee jaying and not singing. His deep and hoarse tone of voice brought him much success and also imitators.
At the age of eight, his family moves to the Trenchtown ghetto in Kingston. At the age of twelve, Shabba already admired the DJs on the sound systems who rhymed over the songs. His biggest influences were artists such as Charlie Chaplin, General Echo, Brigadier Jerry, Yellowman, and especially Josey Wales.
In the early 80s, he joined Admiral Bailey's Roots Melody sound system, using the name Co-Pilot. Under this name, he recorded his first single in 1985, "Heat Under Sufferer’s Feet". Soon after, he changed his stage name to Shabba Ranks and went to work with his idol Josey Wales, who introduced him to King Jammy. Shabba records his next single, "Original Fresh", at King Jammy's studio.
In 1988, Shabba recorded the single "Needle Eye Punany", which began his notoriety for writing explicitly sexual lyrics, which were very successful throughout Jamaica. In 1989 Shabba went to work for producer and former King Jammy sound engineer Bobby Digital at his newly opened label and studio called Digital B.
At this time, Shabba reached the top of his career with many chart successes and a spectacular show, including a helicopter arrival. The hits "Wicked In Bed", "Roots and Culture", "Mama Man" and many others were from this period. His 1989 album "Holding On", produced by Gussie Clarke, had great success with songs such as "Pirate’s Anthem" (partnership with Cocoa Tea), "Twice My Age" and "Mr. Loverman".
In 1991, Shabba's success led to a record deal with Epic. His album "As Raw As Ever" reaches the top of the American R&B chart, thanks to the success of "Housecall" (partnership with Maxi Priest), and the single "The Jam" (partnership with KRS One) topping the hip-hop chart. "As Raw As Ever" won the Grammy for best reggae album.
The following year his next album, "X-tra Naked", with hits such as "Slow And Sexy", "Muscle Grip" and "Ting-A-Ling" also won the Grammy for best reggae album.
During one of his visits to Brazil, he participated as a special guest in 1994 on the album "Sobre Todas as Forças" by the band Cidade Negra. However, the often explicitly homophobic lyrics damaged their reputation outside Jamaica. In particular, an incident on the Channel 4 program The Word, where Shabba advocated the crucifixion of homosexuals, also had great repercussions. Despite a controversial point of view, homophobia is very common in the Jamaican dancehall scene where renowned artists such as Buju Banton, Beenie Man, Elephant Man and Sizzla engage in this behavior.
In 1996, the Epic record label terminated Shabba's contract, and he returned to record with King Jammy. Several compilations of Shabba's hits were released by the Sony record label after 1999, but no offers from a major label for new releases were made.