Frankie Sly still active

Dancehall deejay and songwriter Franklin Williams, popularly known as Frankie Sly, will be the first to admit that his career has often been defined by songs that outgrew his name, though the veteran, who turns 55 today, has been in the industry since he was a teen.

Raised in Rockfort, eastern Kingston, and educated at Wolmer’s Boys’, Sly chose music over a traditional profession, despite his father’s hopes. From early days on the sound system circuit, he carved out a path driven purely by passion.

“Me love music, music a me life. The only thing me love more than music a God,” he said. “Sometimes it’s about timing. Look pon how many songs I’ve done from wey day and a mix-up people a call me bout,” he said, referring to an online trading of barbs between Buju Banton and the wife of Wayne Wonder, Jacqueline Charles.

Having come up alongside Buju Banton and Wayne Wonder in the 1990s, Sly said he has deliberately stayed clear of recent controversies involving the two camps, noting that public disputes serve little purpose.

“I’m not here to disparage anybody,” he said. “You grow with [people], you know them good and bad, and you recognise it for what it is.”

He recalled being instrumental in an early moment that helped shape Buju Banton’s rise, insisting it was important to support, not stifle, emerging talent. “We nuh kill star, we raise star,” he said, speaking of meeting with Buju Banton while meeting with producer Winston Riley and later introducing him to Dave Kelly at Penthouse.

Still, Sly admits, there were moments of hurt. He pointed to the release of Murderer, where he felt overlooked despite his involvement. “When the Murderer 45 came out, Wayne name was on it, but my name was conveniently not on it. I was hurt. At the time, it wasn’t even about money why me did feel a way,” he said, explaining that a lack of knowledge about publishing at the time also cost him.

While he describes himself as the “inferior artiste” in that trio – with Wayne Wonder established and Buju later exploding globally – Sly has built a lasting legacy as a songwriter. His credits include Ambulance and the enduring dancehall anthem F********, a track he says remains a staple decades later.

“Of all the songs in my catalogue, that one is probably dearer to my heart because it put me on the map,” he said. “If you drop that now, 20 plus years later, the place ago buss.”

Now based in the United States for more than 20 years, Sly continues to record and perform, even as the sound of dancehall evolves. Inspired early by figures like Papa San and Early B, he credits persistence and adaptability for his longevity.

He remains active. Along with Dutty Heart, he has new music in the pipeline, including a collaboration with Lady G.

“I have a song on both the Shake it to the Max riddim and as well as [the] WYFL riddim, as I am always working, always deejaying and being actively musically. That is my legacy”

nicola.cunningham@gleanerjm.com