Jimmy is a very versatile, talented singer rapper. If that wasn t enough he writes his own lyrics and melodies. Plus recently he has helped in the area of his own musical production.
Jimmy Screech’s vocal and song writing talent was first spotted by Roots Manuva and his management team in 2005 when he was asked to perform on the ‘Awfully Deep’ Tour. Roots was taken aback by Jimmy’s rare and eclectic style and swiftly invited him on tour. This helped Jimmy to hone his talent and find his way in the Music business.
Jimmy has a rare talent, he can rap, freestyle, MC and sing. He fuses these brilliantly to produce an eclectic mix of styles. Which has come to be known as Hip Hop Dub or Reggae Rap.
Jimmy has said: ‘When I was a kid the only music I heard playing on my estate was reggae and hip hop. It used to bounce off the concrete and resonate all around, I guess that s why my sound has such deep roots in both genres... .
Growing up in southeast London, as a young child he heard artists like Tippah Irie and Poppa Levi in the open air sound systems of the 80 s. He was also exposed to American imports like RUN DMC and LL cool J, marveling at their brash style and creative fashion sense. I knew they were on to something big and I just wanted to be a part of it . His opportunity came in with Grinnin Records, an independent label ran by Sony A& R executive Andrew Asamoah and they released two singles.
Jimmy’s new single ‘Wood 4 the Treez’ has received radio play on over 50 regional stations including Aston Radio, Xpression FM, HCR 1386, Hub Radio, BBC Radio Northampton, BBC Radio Bristol, Shock FM radio, Play Radio UK, Lollipop Radio and so on. This single is currently receiving airplay on Kiss Fm’s David Rodigan radio show where it was described as ‘New and interesting … definitely one to watch for the future’…
Jimmy’s previous single ‘Attention’ from his debut album ‘In this Life’ has also received airplay on Radio 1s Mary Anne Hobbs show who along with Jo Wiley are said to be very excited about this artist. It also received airplay on Kiss FM, and Choice Fm.
Although there seems to be a lot of reggae around these days either as borrowed beats on sub prime new pop talent or as retreads of the old classics re released to cash in on the summer. Jimmy’s source of Hip Hop Dub seems to be new and fresh and theft free. In fact, he seems to be the new artist which others will borrow ideas from.
Jimmy looks and acts like an artist in total control of his talent and you only have to listen to his music to confirm that statement.
Jimmy has a wealth of experience of singing, song writing and performing live.
Jimmy has just finished the ‘Slime and Reason’ tour with Roots Manuva where he played at some of the UK’s finest venues throughout October 2008. Some of these included Shepherds Bush Empire, Brighton Concorde II and the Oxford Academy. He recently supported Finley Quaye at Koko for the start of his UK tour.
He also just finished supporting the American Rappers UGLY DUCKLING across the UK.
In 2005/6 he toured several prestigious venues in France including Club Lune (Montpellier). He has also performed in Serbia and Jamaica.