It’s a family affair with the McGregor reggae clan spearheaded by veteran singer Freddie McGregor, whose offspring have risen to fame - continuing the legacy of the ‘Big Ship” name.
Named after Freddie’s 1981 massive hit, “Big Ship” the family’s musical base is situated on a plush Havendale, St Andrew slope and is the creative mecca for Freddie and his children: 18 year old world renown producer, Stephen McGregor – also known as ‘Di Genius’; 29 year old outstanding songstress Yeshemabeth ‘Shema’ McGregor and Daniel, the popular rapper known as ‘Chino’.
All three children are making waves on the Jamaican and international reggae music scenes; and Stephen, who produces both siblings, is conquering global musical settings with innovative urban/classical productions.
And it is no wonder, as their upbringing by Freddie, who successfully followed a childhood dream of owning his own studio – nurtured the musical McGregors’ innate talent and powerful passion for the art form.
Chino’s poetic fluidity drives his almost abstract style while Shema seems almost cloned from her mother, Judy Mowatt – of Bob Marley’s I Threes – with physical and vocal exquisiteness. Both have been blessed with having Stephen in the family as he has propelled their careers with his huge abilities.
New York’s Hot 97 jock, Bobby Konders recently spoke highly of Stephen saying, “Jamaica has a lot of great producers, but people view him [Stephen] as the new kid carrying the flavor; so young but with a proven track record. He took many different influences from hip-hop and reggae and made them into his own sound. Stephen’s that dude, and he’s a winner.”
While Stephen’s thematically linked rhythms appear on a VP Records compilation, his unique rhythm tracks have extensive life; as is breathed into them by the more than a dozen artists who normally sing over them.
The ‘whiz kid’ fell in love with the studio at a very young age and by 7 years old, had taught himself to play keyboards, bass, guitar and violin. An undisputed exceptional child, Stephen’s abilities surfaced at age 5, when he wrote and released his first song, “School Done Rule.” Since then he has chosen the producer’s hat as the one to wear, and has been very successful in his work with artists like Sean Paul and Vybz Kartel.
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