Cleveland Laing (born 29 September 1965), better known as Lieutenant Stitchie, is a Jamaican

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 nightclubs or music festivals), mobile DJ ...

who originally worked in the

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 ...

style but switched to

gospel reggae Gospel reggae is a genre of music that originated in Jamaica, mixing reggae rhythms with Christian-themed lyrics. Several reggae artists, many of whom were previously part of the Rastafari movement, have converted to Christianity and adopted gosp ...

in 1997 after surviving a car crash, thereafter working under the shorter name Stitchie.

Biography

Dancehall career

Laing was born in

Spanish Town Spanish Town (Jamaican Patois: Spain) is the capital and the largest town in the Parishes of Jamaica, parish of St. Catherine, Jamaica, St. Catherine in the historic county of Middlesex, Jamaica, Middlesex, Jamaica. It was the Spanish and Briti ...

and worked as a biology teacher at Spanish Town School before embarking on a career in music, for a time pursuing both.Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, , p. 170Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, , p. 177-8 In the late 1970s he began his career as a singer. In the mid-1980s he began working on

sound systems 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 ...

such as the Django sound system (as DJ Ranking Noseworthy), and released his first single under the name Ranking Citrus, or Citchie for short, being known for his love of citrus fruits.VandeHoef, Diana Moes
Stitchie Biography
,

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

, retrieved 7 July 2011 He went on to work on the Stereo One sound system, where he adopted the stage name Stitchie after being credited as such via a misprinted record label. In 1986 he began working with

Prince Jammy Lloyd Woodrowe 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, sound system owner and record producer. He began hi ...

, recording the single "Wear Yuh Size", followed in 1987 with his debut album ''Great Ambition''. His style was humorous, often adopting the voices of several different characters during a song.Kenner, Rob (1995)
Boom Shots
, ''

Vibe Vibe, alternatively '' vibes,'' is short for ''vibration''. A "vibe" is an emotional reaction to the aura or energy felt to belong to a person, place or thing. Vibe may also refer to: People * DJ Vibe (born 1968), Portuguese DJ * Lasse Vibe (b ...

'', December 1995/January 1996, p. 147, retrieved 7 July 2011 His single "Natty Dread" topped the Jamaican charts for fourteen weeks. Commercial success led to a record deal 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 1988, Stitchie becoming one of the first dancehall artists, 4 years after Yellowman, to sign a deal with a major record label, releasing the albums ''The Governor'', ''Wild Jamaican Romances'', and ''Rude Boy''. He lost some of his dancehall following so returned to Kingston studios, recording hit records for producers such as Danny Browne,

Donovan Germain Donovan Germain OD (born 7 March 1952 in Jamaica) is a reggae producer, one of the most successful of the digital era. Biography Germain's entry into the music industry was via his record shop in New York City in the 1970s.Larkin, Colin (1998) "T ...

, and a return to the now King Jammy. Released from his Atlantic contract in 1994, he had chart-topping singles in Jamaica with "Bun It Down", "Hello Carol", and "Hot Like the Sun". He released the album ''Gangsta'' in 1995, now on

VP Records VP Records is an independent Caribbean-owned record label in Queens, New York. The label is known for releasing music by notable artists in reggae, dancehall and soca. VP Records has offices in New York City, Miami, London, Kingston, Tokyo, ...

, and ''Bangarang'' later that year (on

Shanachie Records Shanachie Records is an American, New Jersey–based record label, founded in 1975 by Richard Nevins and Dan Collins. The label is named for the Gaelic word '' seanchaí'' (anglicised as shanachie), an Irish storyteller. It was previously distr ...

Conversion to Christianity

Stitchie was injured in a car crash in August 1997 while driving to

Montego Bay Montego Bay () is the capital of the Parishes of Jamaica, parish of Saint James Parish, Jamaica, St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth most populous urban area in the country, after Kingston, Jamaica, Kingston, Spanish Town, and Portmore ...

to perform at the

Reggae Sumfest Reggae Sumfest is the largest music festival in Jamaica and the Caribbean, taking place each year in mid-July in Montego Bay.Johnson, Richard (2014)All Set for Sumfest, '' Jamaica Observer'', 8 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014 Sumfest started in 1 ...

festival, receiving cuts which required hospital treatment.Dawes, Mark (2003)
Stitchie Singing a new tune
", ''

Jamaica Gleaner ''The Gleaner'' is an English-language, morning daily newspaper founded by two brothers, Jacob and Joshua de Cordova on 13 September 1834 in Kingston, Jamaica. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper in the Western Hemisphere. Original ...

'', 10 June 2003, retrieved 7 July 2011 Against medical advice he went on to perform as scheduled, after which he was given a Gideon Bible by a Canadian boy. After reading the Bible in his hotel room he became a Christian and soon moved away from his dancehall songs to work in gospel reggae. Although he completed a further album in the dancehall style (''Raw Episode''), he refused to promote it, and spent a period away from music, studying the Bible. His first album in the gospel reggae style was ''To God Be the Glory'', released in 1999, with further albums following in a similar style. In 2002, he won the 'Outstanding Male Reggae Vocal Performance of the Year' award at Caribbean Gospel Music Marlin Awards. He has performed at several festivals since adopting gospel, on occasions giving Bible teachings to other performers.Evans, Teino (2004)
Stitchie blesses artistes backstage at Sumfest
", ''

'', 29 July 2004, retrieved 7 July 2011 In 2012, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Cornerstone Christian University in

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

, in recognition of his contribution to gospel reggae music. He was officially inducted into the Gospel Hall of Fame on 17 January 2016, by The Jamaica GHF president and Founder Bishop Dr. J.O Baker in Kingston, Jamaica.Brooks, Sadeke (2012)
Stitchie Does It Again
, ''

'', 3 June 2012, retrieved 3 June 2012 In 2014 his autobiography, ''The Power of Determination'', was published. In 2021, he was honoured in the National Honours and Awards on Jamaica's 59th Anniversary of Independence.

Discography

*''Great Ambition'' (1987), Jammy's *''The Governor'' (1989),

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

*''Wild Jamaican Romances'' (1991), Atlantic *''Rude Boy'' (1993), Atlantic *''Mad Cobra Meets Lt. Stitchie and Beenie Man'' (1995), VP – with

Mad Cobra Ewart Everton Brown (born 31 March 1968), better known by his stage name Mad Cobra or simply Cobra, is a Jamaican dancehall musician.Huey, Steve " Mad Cobra Biography, AllMusic, retrieved 2010-01-31Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia ...

and

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 ...

*''Gangsta'' (1995), VP *''Bangarang'' (1995), Shanachie *''Raw Episode'' (1999), Ernie B *''To God Be The Glory'' (1999), *''Ghetto Soldier'' (2000),

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 ...

*''Real Power'' (2000), *''Kingdom Ambassador'' (2004), Drum & Bass *''Real Life Story'' (2007), Drum & Bass *''Real Power'' (2007), Drum & Bass *''Serious Message'' (2010), Burnside *''Warrior'' (2015), Earlydays Records *''Masterclass'' (2019), XRAY Productions

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stitchie, Lieutenant Jamaican reggae singers Jamaican gospel singers Living people Atlantic Records artists People from Spanish Town Musicians from Saint Catherine Parish 1965 births VP Records artists