Stephen 'Di Genius' McGregor revives mento roots with new Hill and Gully riddim

Multi-Grammy Award-winning producer Stephen 'Di Genius' McGregor is celebrating the arrival of his latest project, the Hill and Gully riddim, a contemporary reimagining of the well-known mento song and rhythm of the same name.

McGregor said the project grew out of a desire to dig deeper into the island's musical heritage. "I was just trying to tap into Jamaican culture on a deeper level, and I thought that no one really went into mento and that kind of thing. So, I wanted to see how I could merge that world with like the new people and kind of just reintroduce that part of the culture," he told The Gleaner.

The producer brought in a slate of artistes to lend fresh flavour to the rhythm, and last Friday rolled out the first cut, Slip and Slide, featuring Masicka. The track surged to the top spot on the iTunes Top 100 Reggae Songs Chart on release.

McGregor's decision to revisit a foundational sound has drawn praise, including from Boston-based broadcaster, promoter and selector Junior Rodigon. "The Hill and Gully riddim exists due to producer Stephen 'Di Genius' McGregor's knowledge of and respect for the foundation. Jamaican music has a magnificent and glorious past which is admired worldwide by millions," Rodigon posted on X. He noted that around 2015-16, a wave of younger producers began writing "their own book without any desire to add any chapters to the existing one", and added, "So while that 'new' book is still being written ... the Hill and Gully riddim is now adding another chapter to the original book ... the one that contains all the heritage and legacy."

The son of foundation reggae singer Freddie McGregor, the celebrated Captain of the Big Ship, Di Genius said anything that uplifts the country has his full backing. "Anything that says 'Jamaica' and to really represent and endorse the culture I am all in for that. Masicka's song is getting some really good traction ... all over TikTok, all over the Internet. I think this such a great way to merge the generations. I'm seeing a lot of the interactions online ... the older people know it, but for the younger generation it's new and fresh. I realise that it's bringing a lot of people together and more than anything else, that's the most important thing for me," he said.

The producer, whose nickname reflects his early talent, said he is enjoying the buzz the rhythm has generated and intends to roll out additional tracks over the coming weeks, though he insisted the project will be tightly curated. "No, no no ... I can't manage that," he said with a chuckle when asked whether the riddim would balloon to hundreds of songs. "But it's going to be some pretty good songs though. You'll see it gradually ... you'll see one song here and another one there. I have a mixture of some of the newer people and the people who I originally work with, like Aidonia and Elephant Man and there are some of the newer people like NigyBoy, Skippa, Valiant, so there's going to be a good blend."

Walking through how the project came together, McGregor said the instrumental was built some time ago, but the bulk of the recording happened after he returned to Jamaica recently. "I've been getting all of the songs recording really fast. In the past month I got all of these songs ... so it's a blessing. I'm excited. It's like a new energy and, like I said, I get to like dive back into the culture properly and share some of the skills that I learned from doing other genre and bring back home," he said.

In 2008, Di Genius and his brother Chino delivered From Mawnin' (Never Change), one of dancehall's most enduring hustler anthems. Asked whether the brothers would link up again on Hill and Gully, the producer answered, "Yeah. For sure."

He also offered an update on his father, who continues to make steady progress after suffering a stroke in 2022. "He's good. He was here in Jamaica, two weeks ago to attend the funeral for Supa Dee [sound system owner/operator]. Supa Dee ... he's like family to us ... he's by us every day, and so we had to be here to represent," he said.

Stephen McGregor wrote and recorded his first song, a dancehall track called School Done Rul, at the age of five. By age seven he had taught himself bass, guitar, keyboards and violin, before turning his focus to production and songwriting in his teens. His breakout came in 2004 while he was still a student at Ardenne High School, when he and Chino persuaded Elephant Man to deejay on the Cartoon riddim, the first of 15 artistes to feature on that track. According to his Wikipedia biography, the 'Di Genius' tag was bestowed by a local radio DJ during an on-air interview, in recognition of the talent he displayed at such a young age.