Black Chiney
Encyclopedia
Black Chiney is a Jamaica
n sound system
based in Miami, Florida
. It consists of four Chinese Jamaicans mixed with African descent: Supa Dups
, Bobby Chin, Willy Chin and Walshy Killa. The Caribbean
slang "Black Chiney" refers to this racial mix.
Black Chiney often travels around the world as a sound system for nightclub
s, concerts and other party venues. The quartet also participates in sound clash
es in their native Jamaica.
at Miami's Power 96 radio station (WPOW 96.5) for two years, in his early teens. As Supa got older, he had an interest in music production. In fact, his aunt figured that he was so serious about becoming a producer, so she mortgaged her house in Miami and bought him an Akai
MPC3000. Not long after, Supa began mixing dancehall
riddim
s with hip hop
(mainly Miami bass
).
Bobby Chin (born Robert Lee) was a selector
in Kingston, Jamaica
before he migrated to the U.S.
at the age of 21. He settled in Washington, D.C.
, and was a selector for his cousin's Super Power Earthquake sound system. Eventually, Bobby Chin joined a Tampa
-based sound system called Poison Dart, of which Supa Dups was a member. Poison Dart travelled extensively throughout North America and the Caribbean.
After Supa and Chin left Poison Dart, the two began collaborating and they produced many dancehall/hip-hop mixtape
s. In 1999, Supa Dups released the first mix CD
entitled Black Chiney 1 - Enter The Dragon. This was the first time the duo used the name Black Chiney, as they did not have a nickname at the time. The mixtape sold in large numbers, and it was also big in the Caribbean. When Miami's DJ Khaled
(WEDR
99.1) heard their mixtapes, he asked them to produce more. By the time a fifth volume mixtape was released by Supa Dups, Black Chiney was still known as a mix CD, and the mixtapes proved to be popular.
In early 2001, the pair finally went public as Black Chiney. Black Chiney enjoyed much success in Jamaica as a result of the mixtapes, but in the summer of 2001, they also earned respect from the sound clashes they took part in. In sound clashes, Chin was the deejay
who battled his opponents on stage, whereas Supa would play a riddim as the selector. In 2002, at an annual event in Jamaica dubbed Fully Loaded, the reigning "king" Tony Matterhorn
lost the sound clash against Black Chiney. In a rematch later that year in Miami, Matterhorn would be defeated by Black Chiney once again.
Since Black Chiney frequently tours around the world, they experienced some burnout
. As a result, Supa and Chin recruited two new members to help them carry the load in 2003; Willy Chin and Walshy Killa. Willy Chin (born Warren Hoo) is actually the younger cousin of Supa Dups, and had about three years of prior experience as a selector. Walshy Killa (born Leighton Walsh) was mostly known for being the younger brother of Cricket
legend Courtney Walsh
, until he became a member of Black Chiney. Walshy was formerly a selector based in Brooklyn
, New York
, but now he shares duties as a selector for Black Chiney and MIXX 96.1 in Miami.
In 2004, Supa Dups produced the first riddim under the group's newly formed Black Chiney Records. It was called Kopa, and it proved to be extremely popular. Artists such as Elephant Man, Vybz Kartel
, Capleton
, Nina Sky
and Akon
used the riddim, and some of these versions became hit singles. The Kopa riddim continued to get major club play through 2005, and in 2006, Black Chiney released Higher Octane. The newest riddim by Black Chiney is the Drumline/Timeline, released in 2007.
At 2007's Fully Loaded, Black Chiney spent their entire set insulting event organizer Sharon Burke, who did not pay them for their 2002 appearance. When Burke cut the group's set short, the crowd became unhappy and, ironically, had to be placated by Tony Matterhorn before the show could continue. This incident further proves the group's extreme popularity among Jamaican dancehall fans.
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n sound system
Sound system (DJ)
A sound system is a group of DJs and engineers contributing and working together as one, playing and producing music.-Origin:The sound system concept originated in the 1950s in Kingston, Jamaica. DJs would load up a truck with a generator, turntables, and huge speakers to set up street parties...
based in Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
. It consists of four Chinese Jamaicans mixed with African descent: Supa Dups
Supa Dups
-Biography:Dwayne Chin-Quee , better known as Supa Dups, is a Jamaican record producer, a drummer, and DJ/selector based in Miami, Florida. He is a member of the Black Chiney sound system and part of the duo D.A. & the Supa Dups with Chester French lead vocalist D.A. Wallach...
, Bobby Chin, Willy Chin and Walshy Killa. The Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
slang "Black Chiney" refers to this racial mix.
Black Chiney often travels around the world as a sound system for nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
s, concerts and other party venues. The quartet also participates in sound clash
Sound clash
A Sound clash is a musical competition where crew members from opposing reggae sound systems pit their skills against each other. Sound clashes take place in a variety of venues, both indoors and outdoors...
es in their native Jamaica.
History
Before Black Chiney came to prominence, founding member Supa Dups (born Dwayne Chin-Quee) was a DJDisc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
at Miami's Power 96 radio station (WPOW 96.5) for two years, in his early teens. As Supa got older, he had an interest in music production. In fact, his aunt figured that he was so serious about becoming a producer, so she mortgaged her house in Miami and bought him an Akai
Akai
Akai is a consumer electronics brand, founded by Saburo Akai as , a Japanese manufacturer in 1929. It is now headquartered in Singapore as a subsidiary of Grande Holdings, a Hong Kong-based conglomerate, which also owns the formerly Japanese brands Nakamichi and Sansui. The Akai brand is now used...
MPC3000. Not long after, Supa began mixing dancehall
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 style, which had dominated much of the 1970s. In the mid-1980s, digital instrumentation became more prevalent, changing the sound considerably,...
riddim
Riddim
Riddim is the Jamaican Patois pronunciation of the English word "rhythm," but in dancehall/reggae parlance it refers to the instrumental accompaniment to a song. Thus, a dancehall song consists of the riddim plus the "voicing" sung by the deejay. The resulting song structure may be taken for...
s with hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
(mainly Miami bass
Miami bass
Miami bass , is a type of hip hop music, that became popular in the 1980s and 1990s. Its roots are directly linked to the Electro-funk sound of the early 1980s, pioneered by Afrika Bambataa & The Soulsonic Force and later on by UK-based musician Paul Hardcastle...
).
Bobby Chin (born Robert Lee) was a selector
Selector (disc jockey)
Selector is the term originally used for a reggae/dancehall disc jockey ....
in Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
before he migrated to the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
at the age of 21. He settled in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and was a selector for his cousin's Super Power Earthquake sound system. Eventually, Bobby Chin joined a Tampa
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
-based sound system called Poison Dart, of which Supa Dups was a member. Poison Dart travelled extensively throughout North America and the Caribbean.
After Supa and Chin left Poison Dart, the two began collaborating and they produced many dancehall/hip-hop mixtape
Mixtape
A Mix Tape or Mixed Tape is a compilation of songs recorded in a specific order, traditionally onto an audio Compact Cassette.A Mix Tape, which usually reflects the musical tastes of its compiler, can range from a casually selected list of favorite songs, to a conceptual mix of songs linked by a...
s. In 1999, Supa Dups released the first mix CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
entitled Black Chiney 1 - Enter The Dragon. This was the first time the duo used the name Black Chiney, as they did not have a nickname at the time. The mixtape sold in large numbers, and it was also big in the Caribbean. When Miami's DJ Khaled
DJ Khaled
Khaled bin Abdul Khaled , better known by his stage name DJ Khaled, is an American record producer, radio personality, DJ, and record label executive. He is a radio host for the Miami-based urban music radio station WEDR and the DJ for the hip hop group Terror Squad. In 2006, Khaled released his...
(WEDR
WEDR
WEDR is an urban-formatted radio station serving the South Florida region and licensed to Miami, Florida. WEDR has an unusually wide music selection for a mainstream urban-formatted radio station that ranges from typical hip-hop and R&B to reggaeton. This is because South Florida is a very...
99.1) heard their mixtapes, he asked them to produce more. By the time a fifth volume mixtape was released by Supa Dups, Black Chiney was still known as a mix CD, and the mixtapes proved to be popular.
In early 2001, the pair finally went public as Black Chiney. Black Chiney enjoyed much success in Jamaica as a result of the mixtapes, but in the summer of 2001, they also earned respect from the sound clashes they took part in. In sound clashes, Chin was the deejay
Deejay
A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and toasts to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with disc jockeys from other music genres like hip-hop, where they select and play music. Dancehall/reggae DJs who select riddims to play are called selectors...
who battled his opponents on stage, whereas Supa would play a riddim as the selector. In 2002, at an annual event in Jamaica dubbed Fully Loaded, the reigning "king" Tony Matterhorn
Tony Matterhorn
-Tony Matterhorn Bio:Tony Matterhorn His feisty attitude has kept him at or near the top of the sound system game for many years. Tony Matterhorn has now found new territory as a dancehall deejay with a handful of hits pounding the dancehall both locally and overseas.Dubbed 'Mr...
lost the sound clash against Black Chiney. In a rematch later that year in Miami, Matterhorn would be defeated by Black Chiney once again.
Since Black Chiney frequently tours around the world, they experienced some burnout
Burnout (psychology)
Burnout is a psychological term for the experience of long-term exhaustion and diminished interest. Research indicates general practitioners have the highest proportion of burnout cases; according to a recent Dutch study in Psychological Reports, no less than 40% of these experienced high levels of...
. As a result, Supa and Chin recruited two new members to help them carry the load in 2003; Willy Chin and Walshy Killa. Willy Chin (born Warren Hoo) is actually the younger cousin of Supa Dups, and had about three years of prior experience as a selector. Walshy Killa (born Leighton Walsh) was mostly known for being the younger brother of Cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
legend Courtney Walsh
Courtney Walsh
Courtney Andrew Walsh is a former international cricketer who represented the West Indies from 1984 to 2001, captaining the West Indies in 22 Test matches...
, until he became a member of Black Chiney. Walshy was formerly a selector based in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, but now he shares duties as a selector for Black Chiney and MIXX 96.1 in Miami.
In 2004, Supa Dups produced the first riddim under the group's newly formed Black Chiney Records. It was called Kopa, and it proved to be extremely popular. Artists such as Elephant Man, Vybz Kartel
Vybz Kartel
Adidja Palmer , better known as Vybz Kartel, is a Jamaican dancehall artist, songwriter and businessman. He has many nicknames, including Addi Teacher and Gaza Emperor.-Biography:...
, Capleton
Capleton
Capleton is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall artist. He is also referred to as King Shango, King David, The Fireman and The Prophet. His record label is called David House Productions...
, Nina Sky
Nina Sky
Nina Sky is an American musical duo composed of identical twins Nicole and Natalie Albino .-Early life and career:Albino's parents moved to New York from Puerto Rico and were divorced when the girls were younger...
and Akon
Akon
Aliaune Damala Badara Thiam, better known as simply Akon , is a Senegalese American R&B recording artist and songwriter.According to Forbes, Akon grossed $21 million in 2010, $20 million in 2009 and $12 million in 2008. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of "Locked Up", the first...
used the riddim, and some of these versions became hit singles. The Kopa riddim continued to get major club play through 2005, and in 2006, Black Chiney released Higher Octane. The newest riddim by Black Chiney is the Drumline/Timeline, released in 2007.
At 2007's Fully Loaded, Black Chiney spent their entire set insulting event organizer Sharon Burke, who did not pay them for their 2002 appearance. When Burke cut the group's set short, the crowd became unhappy and, ironically, had to be placated by Tony Matterhorn before the show could continue. This incident further proves the group's extreme popularity among Jamaican dancehall fans.
Riddims
- Kopa RiddimKopa RiddimRiddim Driven: Kopa, also known as Kopa Riddim, is an album produced by Black Chiney that was released on May 10, 2005, as part of VP Records' Riddim Driven series....
(2004) - Higher Octane Riddim (2006)
- Drumline/Timeline Riddim (2007)
- Doctor Bird Riddim (2008)