Lescott Kevin Lyttle Coombs (born 14 September 1976)
is a
Vincentian soca singer. He is best known for his 2003
hit single "
Turn Me On," which peaked at number four on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100.
Career
Lyttle was encouraged by his family to pursue music at the young age and has been performing at local events in his teens. Prior to his musical career, Lyttle had subsisted on day jobs, such as
customs officer and radio
disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...
. Investing his savings of
EC$1,500,
Lyttle recorded "
Turn Me On" as a soca ballad in
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in 2001, and the song subsequently became a radio hit throughout the
Caribbean
The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
.
Lyttle signed with
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...
in 2003 and a remixed version of "Turn Me On" was officially released as a single in the UK at the end of the year, with
dancehall pop artist
Spragga Benz's guest vocals. The song reached number two in the UK, spending seven weeks in the Top 10 of the
UK Singles Chart. It eventually became a worldwide hit in 2004, reaching number 4 in the United States, number 3 in Australia and placing within Top 5 in many European countries.
The debut self-titled album ''
Kevin Lyttle'' followed in July 2004, charting within Top 10 in the US, where it was certified Gold, and meeting with a minor success in Europe. The second single, "
Last Drop", was released in markets outside the US, but didn't manage to repeat the success of "Turn Me On", becoming only a minor hit in Europe. "Drive Me Crazy" was released as the third single in autumn 2004, followed by a promotional only single "I Got It". Both songs were commercial failures. In 2005, Lyttle released a new song in Jamaica only, "Jimmy Johnny".
In 2007, along with
Byron Lee and
Arrow
An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...
, he performed at the
Cricket World Cup opening ceremony in
Greenfield Stadium,
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 ...
. The same year Kevin Lyttle founded his own record label, Tarakon Records. Lyttle's second album, ''
Fyah'', was released by Tarakon and
Universal Records
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...
in 2008, featuring a duet version of "Turn Me On" recorded with
Alison Hinds
Alison Amanda Hinds (born June 1 1970) is a British-born Bajan soca singer based in Barbados. She is often referred to as the Bajan " Queen of Soca" as a result of her impact on the genre.
Biography
Alison Hinds was born on 1 June 1970 in Lo ...
and contributions from other artists. The title song was released as the first single and both the single and the album were unsuccessful in terms of commercial performance.
Lyttle released "Anywhere", a collaboration single with
Flo Rida
Tramar Lacel Dillard (born September 16, 1979), known professionally as Flo Rida ( ), is an American rapper and singer. His 2007 debut and breakout single "Low (Flo Rida song), Low" was number one for 10 weeks in the United States and broke the ...
in 2011, followed by "Nobody Like U", accompanied by a remix contest. The music video featured model
Tania Marie Caringi.
His third studio album, ''I Love Carnival'', was released in 2012, promoted by "Wine and Go Down" and the title song. 2013 saw the release of his new single, "Bounce", followed by "Feel So Good", a collaboration with
Shaggy, in 2014.
In 2016, American electronic group
Cheat Codes sampled Lyttle's "Turn Me On" in a remix entitled "
Let Me Hold You (Turn Me On)". The following year, American singer
Chris Brown
Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. A Pop music, pop and hip-hop-influenced contemporary R&B, R&B musician who works in a variety of genres, he has been called the "Honorific nic ...
also sampled "Turn Me On" to make his song "
Questions
A question is an utterance which serves as a request for information. Questions are sometimes distinguished from interrogatives, which are the grammar, grammatical forms, typically used to express them. Rhetorical questions, for instance, are i ...
" in 2017.
Personal life
Born Lescott Kevin Lyttle Coombs in
Kingstown,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
Lyttle now lives in
Miami
Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
,
Florida
Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
. He is married to Dr. Jacqueline James, with whom he has a son.
Discography
Studio albums
Extended plays
Singles
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lyttle, Kevin
1976 births
Atlantic Records artists
Living people
People from Kingstown
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines emigrants to the United States
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines musicians
Soca musicians
Musicians from Miami