‘Royal’ Grammy nod a great feeling for Jesse

Reggae artiste Jesse Royal is enthused about his first Grammy nomination for the album, ‘Royal’.

“This nomination means a lot to me. It has been a lot of hard work, for a lot of years, and who knows me knows I have really given my all to this thing called music in a ‘livicated’ fashion, ” he told Loop News following his nomination for Best Reggae Album recently.

“We never sell it short in no way, shape or form. We stay true to the craft. We respect the work of our elders, but we also strive to explore new frontiers and see what else this reggae music has to offer.

“I feel like is a responsibility when they put the baton in our hands; it is not to duplicate what was already done. So to put in this work and get this acknowledgement from one of the biggest communities, musically and internationally, is a great feeling,” he said.

He told Loop News that the nomination was a “victory for his team and his peers”.

The album ‘Royal’ is the follow-up to his Billboard chart-topping release ‘Lily of Da Valley’ four years ago. It features 14 tracks, including collaborations with Protoje, Stonebwoy, Vybz Kartel, Runkus, Samory I, and Kumar.

It was released in June via New York City-based independent label Easy Star Records.

“Royal is a lot different from my previous project, ‘Lily of Da Valley’, in the sense that there were a lot more experiences that happened over the time. It’s one of my most vulnerable projects so far, and we are proud to present ourselves in this transparent way to our audience,” Jesse Royal said.

The third single of the album, ‘Rich Forever’ featuring Vybz Kartel, preceded the release of ‘Royal’ and racked up more than 1.1 million views on Youtube. Produced by iotosh, the single was released on April 16.

“I have grown over the years. I am someone who soaks up knowledge, the lessons, the experiences, both good and bad, and we try to use them as lessons turned into blessings that can help us to manoeuvre through this space we ah operate inna,” he said.

The recording artiste added: “Jamaica is one thing, but the global space is a different thing.

“It is not just a song, is how you carry yourself, is how you reason with people, your ticket sales, that forces you to be professional and that shapes who Jesse Royal is,” he said.

Jesse Royal is known for songs such as ‘Modern Day Judas’, ‘Gimme Likkle’, and ‘LionOrder’.

Last year, Jesse Royal joined the growing line-up of Digicel brand ambassadors, including Bounty Killer, sprint king Usain Bolt, female sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and Special Olympics champion Alphanso Cunningham.