Chaka Demus & Pliers are a Jamaican

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use the ...

duo Duo may refer to: Places *Duo, West Virginia, an unincorporated community and coal town in Greenbrier County, West Virginia *Duo, Tampere, a shopping centre in Hervanta, Tampere, Finland *DUO, a twin-tower development in Singapore Arts, entertai ...

made up of

deejay A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobil ...

Chaka Demus John Taylor (born 16 April 1963), better known as Chaka Demus, is a Jamaican reggae musician and deejay, best known as part of the duo Chaka Demus & Pliers. Biography Early years Born in West Kingston, Taylor was a regular attendee at K ...

(born John Taylor) and singer

Pliers Pliers are a hand tool used to hold objects firmly, possibly developed from tongs used to handle hot metal in Bronze Age Europe. They are also useful for bending and physically compressing a wide range of materials. Generally, pliers consi ...

(born Everton Bonner), known for their hits " Tease Me" and "

Murder She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The seri ...

". As a duo, they enjoyed more commercial success with mainstream pop fans after their collaboration began in the early 1990s than either had in their previous solo careers.

Career

Both artists were established musicians when they teamed up in 1991 after performing together in Miami, both having worked as solo artists, and Pliers as a duo with

Pinchers Delroy Thompson (born 12 April 1965), better known by his stage name Pinchers, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall artist. He released one album as a teenager in Jamaica for Blue Trac Records, before moving to the UK in 1985. In his career si ...

.Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae &Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , pp. 94–96 Their early hits together included "Gal Wine", recorded for producer Ossie Hibbert. They went on to work with a string of producers, including

Ranking Joe Ranking Joe Little Joe (born Joseph Jackson, 1 July 1959, Kingston, Jamaica) is a reggae deejay who rose to prominence in the 1970s and had continuing success in the 1980s. Biography Jackson was initially inspired towards a musical career by ...

Jah Screw Paul Love, better known as Jah Screw (born in Greenwich Farm, Jamaica, 9 February 1955)
, Greensleev ...

Prince Jammy Lloyd James (born 26 October 1947),Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter: "Reggae: The Rough Guide", 1997, Rough Guides, better known as Prince Jammy or King Jammy, is a Jamaican dub mixer and record producer. He began his musical career as a dub ma ...

, and

Mafia & Fluxy Mafia & Fluxy are a British reggae rhythm section and production team, consisting of the brothers Leroy (bass) and David Heywood (drums), whose careers began with London reggae band The Instigators in 1977. They backed Jamaican artists on UK to ...

, with several of their most successful single tracks included on their debut album ''Gal Wine'' (1992). They appeared at

Reggae Sunsplash Reggae Sunsplash is a reggae music festival first staged in 1978 in the northern part of Jamaica. In 1985 it expanded with the addition of an international touring festival. The festival ran annually until 1996, with a final event in 1998, befo ...

in 1992, and the following year broke through to international success with " Tease Me", which was in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

for three months in 1993, peaking at No. 3 in July.Hamilton, Davina (2015)
Chaka Demus & Pliers: Reggae's pioneering pair
, ''The Voice'', 30 May 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2016 They followed this with a cover of

Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.

's " She Don't Let Nobody" and a cover (with collaboration of Jack Radics) of the Top Notes' "

Twist and Shout "Twist and Shout" is a 1961 song written by Phil Medley and Bert Berns (later credited as "Bert Russell"). It was originally recorded by the Top Notes, but it did not become a hit in the record charts until it was reworked by the Isley Brother ...

", which topped the UK Singles Chart in early 1994, the duo becoming the first Jamaican act to top the chart in 8 years, and the first to have three consecutive

top five ''Top Five'' is a 2014 American comedy film written and directed by Chris Rock. Produced by Scott Rudin and Eli Bush, the film stars Rock, Rosario Dawson, and Gabrielle Union, and follows New York City comedian and film star Andre Allen (Rock), w ...

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album s ...

on the chart.Harris, Craig
Chaka Demus & Pliers Biography
,

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

. Retrieved 25 April 2016 They had further UK hits with "I Wanna Be Your Man" (No. 19) and "Gal Wine" (No. 20), with six hit singles in all taken from their album, '' Tease Me''.Campbell, Howard (2012)
Chaka Demus and Pliers — murder they wrote
, ''

Jamaica Observer ''Jamaica Observer'' is a daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety ...

'', 11 July 2012, retrieved 2012-07-12 The re-release of ''Tease Me'' also charted at number one on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...

in 1994, going on to receive gold certification, selling more than 500,000 copies. In 1996, they signed to

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, an ...

and released the album ''For Every Kinda People''.Oumano. Elena (1996)
''For Every Kinda People''
, ''

Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down production ...

'', November 1996, p. 144. Retrieved 25 April 2016 They performed at Sunsplash again in 2004 and 2008, and released the album ''Help Them Lord'' in 2001. In 2007, Chaka Demus & Pliers recorded "Need Your Lovin", which was released on

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from viny ...

on Explorer Records. This song was a hit on the Jamaican chart. On 18 November 2007, Chaka Demus & Pliers performed "Murder She Wrote" alongside

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Colu ...

at the

2007 American Music Awards The 35th Annual American Music Awards took place on November 18, 2007 at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. Performers Winners and nominees Winners are highlighted in boldface. ...

. In the summer of 2008, they performed at the annual Detroit Caribbean Festival. Their latest album ''So Proud'' was released on 6 October 2008. In July 2013, Chaka Demus & Pliers performed at the

BET Awards The BET Awards is an American award show that was established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network to celebrate black entertainers and other minorities in music, film, sports and philanthropy. The awards, which are presented annua ...

show in the reggae segment alongside

Dawn Penn Dawn Penn (born 11 January 1952) is a Jamaican reggae singer. She first had a short career during the rocksteady era, between 1967 and 1969, but is most known for her single "You Don't Love Me (No, No, No)" which became a worldwide hit in 1994. ...

Beenie Man Anthony Moses Davis (born 22 August 1973), better known by his stage name Beenie Man, is a Jamaican Dancehall deejay. Biography Davis was born in the Waterhouse district of Kingston in 1973.Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Musi ...

and

Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890), often erroneously called John Merrick, was an English man known for having severe deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "the Elephant Man" and then wen ...

Discography

Albums

*''Gal Wine Wine Wine'' (1992),

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 Stationer's Company in September 1580,Frank Kidson, ''English Fo ...

*''Bad Mind'' (1992), Pow Wow *''Ruff This Year'' (1992), RAS *'' Tease Me'' (1993), Mango (also released as ''All She Wrote'') – UK #1 ( BPI: Platinum), NZ #6, AUS #45, US Reggae Albums #7 *''For Every Kinda People'' (1996),

Island An island or isle is a piece of subcontinental land completely surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island in a river or a lake island may be ...

– US Reggae Albums #14 *''Consciousness A Lick'' (1995), Melodie *''Dangerous'' (2000), Fuel 2000 *''Help Them Lord'' (2001), RAS *''Trouble and War'' (2003), Prestige *''Back Against the Wall'' (2005), Explorer *''Back Off the Wall'', Nocturne *''So Proud'' (2008), AGR/Universal ;Compilations: *''Gold'' (1992), Charm *''Chaka Demus & Pliers'' (1992), Charm *''Unstoppable 1986-1992'' (1996), Emporio *''Murder She Wrote'' (2000), Spectrum *''Dancehall Dons'' (2001), Recall *''Ultimate Collection'' (2002), Hip O *''Dancehall Classics'' (2004), Rhythm Club *''Run the City'' (2006), Dynamic *''On Top of the World'' (2008), Dynamic

Singles

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaka Demus and Pliers Jamaican reggae musical groups Jamaican musical duos Reggae duos Island Records artists Trojan Records artists