Ward 21 are a group of

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots reggae, roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2 ...

musicians and

producers Producer(s), The Producer(s), or co-producer(s) may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *Producer, a stakeholder of economic production * Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes t ...

from

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

, named after the psychiatric ward at the University Hospital of the West Indies in Kingston. Comprising Ward 21 are renowned producers and have created hit dancehall

riddim In Jamaican dancehall music, a riddim is the instrumental accompaniment to a song and is synonymous with the rhythm section. Jamaican music genres that use the term consist of the ''riddim'' plus the ''voicing'' (vocal part) sung by the deeja ...

s like "Badda badda", "Da Joint", "Bellyas", and "Volume" as well as hit singles like "Haters" and "Judgement Day".

History

The group formed in the late 1990s and originally had four members — Kunley McCarthy, Andre "Suku" Gray, Mark "Meandawg" Henry, and Ranaldo "Rumblood" Evans.Morgan, Simone (2013)
Back on Ward 21
, ''

Jamaica Observer The ''Jamaica Observer'' is a daily newspaper published in Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by ...

'', 1 November 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2013 They were mentored by King Jammy and acted as selectors for his

sound system Sound system may refer to: Technology media * Sound reinforcement system, a system for amplifying audio for an audience * High fidelity, a sound system intended for accurate reproduction of music in the home * Public address system, an institution ...

. After leaving Jammy they signed to New York label Natural Bridge. They had their first success with the "Bada Bada"

in 1998, which was the basis of tracks by

Beenie Man Moses Anthony Davis OD (born 22 August 1973), professionally known as Beenie Man, is a Jamaican dancehall deejay. His awards include DJ of the Year Award eight years in a row. His twelfth studio album '' Art and Life'' received a Grammy Award ...

Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890) was an English man known for his severe physical deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "The Elephant Man", and then went to live at the London Hospital, ...

and Chuck Fenda. As well as success as producers they had hits in their own right with tracks such as "Haters", "Judgement Day", and "Blood Stain". The group's first album, ''Mentally Disturbed'', was released in 2001.Aaron, Charles (2002)
Ward 21 ''Mentally Disturbed''
, ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

'', February 2002, p. 36. Retrieved 2 November 2013 In 2005, the group went on a tour through Europe, playing shows in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

The Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. They also performed at Europe's second biggest reggae festival,

Summerjam Summerjam is a European reggae festival. It takes places annually in July at the ''Fühlinger See'', which is a lake located in Cologne, Germany. The event usually attracts an audience of between 25,000 and 30,000 people. Two stages and two tents ...

, later that year.23rd SUMMERJAM Festival 2008 04 - 06. Juli 08 , REGGAE News & Festival Info , Ward 21 , SUMMERJAM ARTISTS 2005
/ref> Evans left the group in 2008. Ward 21's productions include

Capleton Clifton George Bailey III (born 13 April 1967),Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , pp. 67–69 better known by his stage name Capleton, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall musician. He is also referred to as Kin ...

's "Slew Dem" and the Wayne Marshall/

Bounty Killer Rodney Basil Price OD (born 12 June 1972), known as Bounty Killer, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay. AllMusic describes him as "one of the most aggressive dancehall stars of the '90s, a street-tough rude boy with an unrepentant fl ...

duet "When The Smoke Clears". In addition to countless singles (released mostly on King Jammy's label) and tracks on compilations, Ward 21 have released three albums on the reggae label

Greensleeves "Greensleeves" is a traditional English folk song. A broadside ballad by the name "A Newe Northen Dittye of ye Ladye Greene Sleves" was registered by Richard Jones at the London Stationers' Company in September 1580,Frank Kidson, ''English F ...

. The band had participated in 311's remix of Amber song in Supa Dups Remix. They also appear on

Major Lazer Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music and DJ trio, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Walshy Fire and Ape Drums. They were founded in 2008 by Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after three years in 2011. He was the ...

's second album ''

Free the Universe ''Free the Universe'' is the second full-length studio album released by Major Lazer. The album was released on April 16, 2013, and features appearances by Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig, Dirty Projectors' Amber Coffman, Santigold, Peaches, ...

'', on the track "Mashup the Dance". On 22 January 2014 they released their fifth album, ''Still Disturbed'', featuring contributions from

Sean Paul Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican dancehall musician. Paul's first album, ''Stage One'', was released in 2000. He gained international fame with his second album, ''Dutty Rock'', in 2002. Its single "Get Busy ...

and

Konshens Garfield Delano Spence, also known as Konshens, is a Jamaican dancehall recording artist, deejay, singer and businessman. Biography Prior to Spence's solo career, he was a member of the duo SoJah with his brother Delus . ...

.Morgan, Simone (2014)
Ward 21 launches new project
, ''

'', 24 October 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2014 The group played in Europe several times to promote the album. In February 2017, single "Mek It Bunx Up" by DeeWunn and Marcy Chin (produced by Ward 21's member, Kunley McCarthy) reached over 25 Million views on Facebook. Ruhr Reggae Summer Mülheim 2014 Ward 21 17.jpg, Andre "Suku" Gray Ruhr Reggae Summer Mülheim 2014 Ward 21 04.jpg, Kunley McCarthy Ruhr Reggae Summer Mülheim 2014 Ward 21 05.jpg, Mark "Mean Dawg" Henry

Discography

Albums

* ''Mentally Disturbed'' (2001),

* ''U Know How We Roll'' (2003), Greensleeves * ''King of the World'' (2007), Jamdown * ''Genesis'' (2009), DHF * ''Still Disturbed'' (2014), Germaica Digital

References

External links

Ward 21 Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward 21 Dancehall groups Jamaican reggae musical groups Musical groups established in 1998