IWaata Inks Management Deal With Reynolds Entertainment Agency, Plots Caribbean and UK Tours

Atis dancehall Jason 'IWaata' Bailey ofisyalize yon nouvo chapit nan kayè karyè li, lè li siyen yon antant jesyon avèk Tameka Reynolds nan Reynolds Entertainment Agency. Li rekonèt pou yon estil ki balanse ant entansite di ak melodi ki kenbe zòrèy, e koulye a ajans lan pral sipèvize tout aspè travay pwofesyonèl li.

"Demach sa a montre yon pa anvan pou yon jesyon ki pi estriktire pandan IWaata ap devlope mak li tou de sou plan lokal ak entènasyonal," Reynolds te di, pandan l ap fè konnen ajans lan pral okipe tout laj karyè li.

Malgre katalòg li chita byen fèm nan kad dancehall modèn lan, IWaata pa kache lanmou li gen pou epòk ane 1990 ak 2000 yo, e tras enfliyans laj-an-lò sa a parèt regilyèman nan travay li. Li te kòmanse nan mizik antanke elèv nan Mona Primary School, kote li te jwe tanbou kette, e dapre byografi li, li te anrejistre premye disk ofisyèl li an 2007 nan kòmansman lekòl segondè. Li te tann jiskaske li fini lekòl an 2011 anvan li bay tèt li nèt nan mizik la, lè sa a li te demenaje pou Portmore al viv ak yon matant li epi li te kòmanse seyans nan estidyo avèk manm yon gwoup yo rele NTP.

Fanmi, espesyalman manman l, rete nan kè atis la, ki te elve ansanm avèk grann li ak yon frè. "My mom is my everything. My mother is very important inna mi life. I used to help her sell a Half-Way Tree. Those things give you the drive to go for what you want," li te di.

Diskografi li gen mòso tankou Clip Tall, Likkle London, Bad Inna Bed, Bout Yah, Cut Off Jeans ak Tun di Ada Way, dènye sa a ap pwoche sèt milyon vizyalizasyon sou YouTube. Lè li kenbe limyè a sou metye li, li gen yon repitasyon kòm youn nan vokalis dancehall ki pi fleksib yo.

Samdi ki sot pase a, 5 Questions With ... te kontre atis la pandan evènman 'Thank You' ONErpm te òganize nan The Courtyard at Ranny Williams Centre sou Hope Road, St Andrew.

1. Kilè ou te kòmanse enterese nan mizik?

"I'm from Kintyre and there was like a musical environment, a whole heap a artiste forward from roun' deh. But my interest in music really started from primary school where I used to play drums. Then, when I attended Papine High, I started write songs from first form. I used to play football and dem tings deh, 'cause yuh done know wi grow rough."

2. Nan Jamayik, nou rele dlo nan je 'eye water'. Kijan ou te jwenn non w?

"I used to have a tree in my yard and, whenever it blossomed, it irritated my eyes ... dem get red like blood so my grandfather used to say 'eye wata'. So, growing into music, I was searching for a name and I decided to take the nickname my grandfather gave me. I changed the spelling to IWaata and the rest, as they say, is history."

3. Kisa w ap fè dènyèman?

"Well, we in and out of the country. We drop a new album last year August and we drop a new EP in February, a reggae EP, and we have a song that a gwaan now. The song name Join Up, the album name Underrated and it has 18 tracks. The EP name Words Not Enough and it has seven songs. That's how it go, we always a work ... hits after hits."

4. Ou se yon gwo fanatik dancehall ane 90 yo epi ou rekonèt Aidonia kòm yon enfliyans majè nan karyè ou. Èske mizik te bon chwa a, e èske w ap pran plezi nan vwayaj sa a?

"Aidonia was my idol, that's how I get my sound because I always like how him handle beats and stage. Music is the right choice. I never choose music, it chose me. From a tender age me a beat drum and now I can play other instruments and even be my own engineer. I dwell inna the music deep. I get encouragement 1000 per cent from my family. They are musicians too, dem just never get the break that I got. Wherever I go, I represent fully for dancehall. Just like how we get invited from atONErpm directly and we haffi show up. It is important for me to represent in these spaces. A nuh carpentry we do, we do music, and this is a music function where music players come and socialise."

5. An tèm de pèfòmans an direk, kisa ou genyen sou ajenda w?

"I have a Caribbean tour and an England tour coming up this year. But, in terms of shows throughout the year, I have a huge fan base in the US, so the shows from over there are consistent."

BRAWTA — Site yon bagay ou rekonesan pou li depi kòmansman 2026.

"Well, every year me get a hit song, and this year mi get one already – Join Up. And mi haffi big up Fada God, because it coulda worse. Mi can tek care a mi family every day and every year and that is the important part ... . Also, I have a message for up-and-coming artistes: Stay focused, believe inna God and stick to the plan."