Andrae Hugh Sutherland (born 19 July 1988), known professionally as Popcaan, is a Jamaican singer.
In 2008, Popcaan joined
Vybz Kartel's Gaza Music Empire. In 2010, he released his breakthrough international hit "Clarks" with Kartel, an ode to the popular shoe brand.
In 2013, Popcaan signed with
Mixpak Records
Mixpak Records is a Brooklyn-based independent record label, founded in 2009 by record producer Dre Skull. The label operates across a range of genres, from dancehall to underground club music, experimental electronic, rap and leftfield pop. ...
and released his debut studio album, ''
Where We Come From
''Where We Come From'' is the debut studio album by Jamaican dancehall artist Popcaan, released on 10 June 2014 by Mixpak Records. A prolific dancehall artist from Jamaica, Popcaan collaborated with several producers on the album: Dre Skull (who ...
''. In 2016, Popcaan signed with Canadian rapper
Drake
Drake may refer to:
Animals
* A male duck
People and fictional characters
* Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name
* Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...
's record label
OVO Sound and
Warner Records. Popcaan's international singles include "Only Man She Want", "Everything Nice", "Ova Dweet", "El Chapo", and "Family". Popcaan made his acting debut in the film ''
The Intent 2: The Come Up'' (2018).
Popcaan has collaborated with a number of international artists, most notably Drake,
Jamie xx,
Pusha T,
Giggs,
Matoma
Tom Stræte Lagergren (born 29 May 1991), professionally known as Matoma, is a Norwegian DJ and record producer.
Early life
Lagergren was born in Åsnes, Norway. He started playing the piano as a child. During that period, he won a contest t ...
,
Wale,
Gorillaz, and
Davido.
His second album for Mixpak, entitled
''Forever'', was released on 20 July 2018.
Early life
Sutherland was born in
Saint Thomas Parish, Jamaica
Saint Thomas, once known as ''Saint Thomas in the East'', is a suburban parish situated at the south eastern end of Jamaica, within the county of Surrey. It is the birthplace of the Right Honourable Paul Bogle, designated in 1969 as one of J ...
, and grew up in
Portmore. He was raised in a housing scheme, or housing project, known as Gangsta City. He describes his childhood as "rough", having to stop attending school due to the street drama surrounding his town. His stage name "Popcaan" was bestowed on him by his close friend Scumpy, who tragically lost his life to the street life of Portmore.
Career
2007–2010: Early career
In 2007, Popcaan approached
Vybz Kartel at a local jam called "My Scheme" where Kartel recruited him to his Portmore Empire music group, becoming both a producer and mentor. Besides showing Popcaan the ropes of the music game, Kartel took him on major shows like Sting and
Reggae Sumfest.
Popcaan began making music for Adidjaheim Productions with then in-house producer NotNice, the first person to voice him professionally. He got off to a strong start with "Gal Wine" on the Gal Farm
riddim, "Clarks" featuring Kartel, Popcaan, and Gaza Slim and more following up with early hits including "It Nuh Work So", "Jah Jah Protect Me", "Gangsta City", "Dream", "Gangsta City Part Second", and "Hot Grabba".
2010–2013: Growing popularity
Popcaan's breakthrough came in 2010 with "Clarks", a collaboration with
Vybz Kartel. The success of the song caused a nationwide spike in sales of the British shoe.
In 2011, Popcaan received the Excellence in Music and Entertainment (EME) Award for Best New Artist — Male and Collaboration of the Year for "Clarks", which also won Song of the Year — Dancehall.
[Kartel takes home four awards]
", '' Jamaica Observer'', 13 March 2011, retrieved 10 June 2011
At the end of January 2012, Popcaan released a new mixtape, ''Yiy Change'', the follow-up to his 2010 mixtape ''Hot Skull, Fry Yiy, Boil Brainz''. In March, "Only Man She Want" gave Popcaan his first ''
Billboard'' entry at No. 89 on the
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...
chart. The song was later officially remixed by rapper
Busta Rhymes.
Popcaan was also featured in ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' speaking on the growing impact of "Only Man She Want".
At the Youth View Awards, Popcaan won three awards: Favourite Summer Song and Local Chart-Topping Song of the Year for "Ravin", and Young, Hot and Hype Male of the Year.
Popcaan has toured the world since, in Europe, Canada, and the Caribbean and South American region. While in Canada, Popcaan connected with Canadian rapper
Drake
Drake may refer to:
Animals
* A male duck
People and fictional characters
* Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name
* Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...
, who has publicly expressed his admiration.
In 2013, Popcaan released the video for "Unruly Rave", which was shot in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, and directed by
October's Very Own label head Niko.
In 2012, Popcaan was featured on
Pusha T's song "Blocka". His voice was then sampled by
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer.
Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...
on ''
Yeezus'' in 2013.
2014–present: ''Where We Come From'', ''Forever'' and subsequent fame
In 2014, Popcaan signed to
Mixpak Records
Mixpak Records is a Brooklyn-based independent record label, founded in 2009 by record producer Dre Skull. The label operates across a range of genres, from dancehall to underground club music, experimental electronic, rap and leftfield pop. ...
for a multi-record deal. His debut studio album, ''
Where We Come From
''Where We Come From'' is the debut studio album by Jamaican dancehall artist Popcaan, released on 10 June 2014 by Mixpak Records. A prolific dancehall artist from Jamaica, Popcaan collaborated with several producers on the album: Dre Skull (who ...
'', was released on Mixpak on 10 June 2014. The project was executive produced by Dre Skull. The first single from the album, "Everything Nice", was produced by Dubbel Dutch and released on 1 October 2013.
[Jackson, Kevin (2014)]
A New Day for Popcaan
, '' Jamaica Observer'', 29 June 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014 It entered the ''Billboard'' Top Reggae Albums chart at number 2, and the video gained over 5 million views on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
.
In June 2014, Popcaan first appeared on the cover of ''
The Fader
''The Fader'' (stylized as ''FADER'') is a magazine based in New York City that was launched in 1999 by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. It was the first print publication to be released on iTunes.
It is o ...
'' in its 92nd issue. He featured on
Melissa Steel
Melissa Steel (born 6 July 1993), is an English singer from Bradford. She is best known for her debut single " Kisses for Breakfast" with Popcaan and also on Blonde's " I Loved You".
Career
Background
Melissa Steel grew up in Bradford. She at ...
's single "Kisses for Breakfast", which was a top ten hit in the UK in August 2014.
In September 2014, he was nominated for a
MOBO Award in the Best Reggae Act category, his fourth consecutive nomination.
[Jackson, Kevin (2014)]
5 For MOBO Reggae
, '' Jamaica Observer'', 24 September 2014. Retrieved 27 September 2014 He won the MOBO Award in 2015 and 2016.
In May 2015, Popcaan was featured on
Jamie xx's "
I Know There's Gonna Be (Good Times)" with American rapper
Young Thug.
In January 2016, Popcaan was featured on English
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electro ...
duo
AlunaGeorge's single "
I'm in Control". On 29 March 2016, a song entitled "
Controlla" by
Drake
Drake may refer to:
Animals
* A male duck
People and fictional characters
* Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name
* Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...
was leaked, with Popcaan being featured on it. A version without Popcaan was later featured on Drake's fourth studio album ''
Views''.
On 28 April 2016, Popcaan released the single "Ova Dweet", which gained popularity both in Jamaica and abroad.
On 2 May 2016, Popcaan was reportedly held by police after a performance in
Antigua
Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...
involving an altercation with an officer on stage.
In June 2016, Popcaan made his first UK appearance alongside Mixpak for the annual
Red Bull Culture Clash
Red Bull Culture Clash is an indoor sound clash event hosted by Red Bull.
Four crews compete in four or five rounds of genre-bending musical competition, with the winner decided by volume of crowd response. Founded in 2010, with a hiatus in 2015, ...
and won the clash over
Wiz Khalifa,
Taylor Gang, Eskimo Dance, and UKG Allstars.
In March 2017, Popcaan performed guest vocals for the
Gorillaz track "
Saturnz Barz" off of the album ''
Humanz''. The track reached number five on the
''Billboard'' Hot Rock Songs chart. He also spent time in Europe as the opening act on Drake's
Boy Meets World Tour
The Boy Meets World Tour was the fifth headlining tour by Canadian recording artist Drake, to support his album '' Views'' (2016), and his playlist ''More Life'' (2017). The European leg began on January 28, 2017, at the Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam a ...
.
Popcaan announced his second album ''
Forever
Forever or 4ever may refer to:
Film and television Films
* ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice
* ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama
* ''Forever'' (1992 film), an American ...
'' on 11 May 2018. It was preceded by the singles "Body So Good", "Wine for Me", and "Firm and Strong". The album was released on 20 July and premiered on a live stream hosted by
Boiler Room. Popcaan headlined
Reggae Sumfest the following day. ''Forever'' entered the ''Billboard'' Reggae Albums chart at number 2.
On 23 December 2018, Drake announced that Popcaan would be signed to
OVO Sound and
Warner Records. Popcaan's third album ''Vanquish'', released on 19 December 2019, was the first project produced with OVO Sound. Popcaan's fourth album, ''
Fixtape'', was released on 7 August 2020. It includes the Drake collaborations "All I Need" and "Twist & Turn" featuring
PartyNextDoor.
On 16 October 2020, Popcaan joined forces with OVO affiliate
Preme for their EP ''Link Up'', which featured Wiz Khalfia,
Davido,
Beam, and
French Montana.
Discography
Studio albums
Mixtapes
Extended plays
As lead artist
As featured artist
Other charted songs
Music videos
Filmography
* ''
The Intent 2: The Come Up'' (2018)
References
External links
Official website*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Popcaan
1988 births
Living people
Musicians from Kingston, Jamaica
Jamaican dancehall musicians
Jamaican pop singers
Jamaican reggae singers