Mavado
A reggae singer influenced by the likes of Bounty Killer and Cutty Ranks, David Constantine Brooks, aka Mavado, was born and raised in one of Kingston, Jamaica's more dangerous ghettos, Cassava Piece. Church and a desire to deliver a socially conscious message to the people kept Mavado out of serious trouble. Encouraged by a friend, Mavado visited Junior Reid's recording studio in Kingston, where he met his hero, Bounty Killer. The reggae star recognized the young singer's talent and introduced him to the likes of vocalist Predator and manager Julian Jones-Griffith. In 2004 Mavado released "Real McKoy," his breakthrough single recorded over the Daseca crew's Anger Management riddim. Two years later, the Red Bull and Guinness riddim and the song "Weh Dem a Do" would give him his next big hit, and the successful "Dreaming" and "Bawl Dem a Bawl" singles would follow soon after, but the momentum was almost brought to halt when his father was murdered in Switzerland.
After fighting for his father's body and its return to Jamaica, Mavado resolved a feud with fellow dancehall artist Vybz Kartel. The feud was responsible for violence between the artists' crews along with numerous diss tracks, including "Warn Dem" and "Informer" from Mavado and "Alliance Diss" and "Mafraudo" from Kartel. With all this out of the way, Mavado was able to complete his debut album, Gangster for Life, for the VP label. The 2007 release featured more hits like "Top Shotta Nah Miss" and "Dying" plus "Real McKoy with a Full Clip," a new mix of the track that, a year later, would be featured in the popular video game Grand Theft Auto 4: Liberty City. His 2008 cut "I'm on the Rock" would feature Jay-Z on its remix before being re-recorded as "We Need Barack" in support of the presidential hopeful. That same year, he continued to cross over to the world of hip-hop with an appearance on 50 Cent and G-Unit's album T.O.S.: Terminate on Sight. His 2009 album Mr. Brooks...A Better Tomorrow featured the hit single "On the Rock" while 2011 saw him launch his own label, Mansion Records, with the single "Delilah". In 2012 he appeared alongside fellow dancehall singer Popcaan on Snoop Dogg's single "Lighters Up", then in 2013, Nicki Minaj joined Mavado on his single "Give It All to Me".
© David Jeffries /TiVo
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Gangsta For Life: The Symphony Of David Brooks
Reggae - Released by VP Records on Jul 2, 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Top Shotta Is Back
Reggae - Released by Chimney Records on Dec 10, 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Not Perfect
Reggae - Released by Sponge Music Llc - Limited on Jan 13, 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mr. Brooks...A Better Tomorrow
Reggae - Released by VP Records on Mar 2, 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Box of Money
Reggae - Released by Chimney Records on Jul 12, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bubble & Brace
Dancehall - Released by Di Genius Productions on May 10, 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Never Give Up
Reggae - Released by Good Good Productions on Mar 26, 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Pain
Reggae - Released by Sponge Music - Mansions Records on Feb 24, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Give It All To Me (Explicit Version)
Reggae - Released by We The Best Music - Cash Money Records on Jan 1, 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ride All Night
Reggae - Released by Chimney Records on May 5, 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Stack It N Pack It
Reggae - Released by Romeich Entertainment on Apr 28, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Nine Lives
Dancehall - Released by Di Genius Productions on Apr 16, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Tears
Reggae - Released by Damage Musiq - Mansions Records on Mar 24, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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So Special (Single)
Reggae - Released by VP Records on Dec 9, 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Progress
Dancehall - Released by Mineral Boss Records on Mar 17, 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
No Friend
Dancehall - Released by Gutty Bling Records - Claims Records on Apr 29, 2014
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo