Musicians

Norris Man … Singing rhymes of persistence

Born in Trench Town, a place more famous internationally for squirting out reggae icons than it is for stifling concrete jungle dreams, Norris Man knows that he is the best one to tell his story. And so, with the track titled “Persistence” he broke unto the scene in ’98. It’s the track that needed no pen and paper he says. He’d been a struggling artiste from as early as 1990 and as such it was just a story waiting to be heard.

And label after label he persisted. From Penthouse, to Black Scorpio to Bobby Digital, all the while hoping to break ground. That moment would not present itself until Sting ’98. It’s one that he triumphantly recalls. During this time “Persistence” was fresh and the Norris blazed like fire. It’s certainly been a while since then and the tracks keep flowing.

This man born Christopher Campbell sights Marley as the perfect mentor and is also inspired by the musical offerings of Beres and Luciano. Locally, the name Norris Man does not appear on every other poster and he is not the one you might hear on the radio doing an interview. But like so many other Jamaican reggae acts, he has toured places like Europe and even Belize. Believe it or not, this artiste has over nine full length albums under his belt. Album titles like Unity, Persistence and Hey Woman are more likely to ring a bell with an ardent reggae listener.

Though international shores clearly hold more gain for Norris Man, he still prefers the home stage. A growing buzz surrounds many of his more recent local releases like Trade Winds, a very timely duet with Iley Dread. A true child of one drop reggae, he aims more for longevity than rhythm riding. In this vain, his efforts with the Naciamaj label were well received and stand as one of his more critically acclaimed albums. The album is full-length and live. According to Norris it’s “real slow, smooth live music from drum to bass.”

Over 9 albums is a lot for such a relatively short career but this is the best way to fight back, the singer feels. He fights back against the industry that wants to limit him to “Persistence” and he fights back against those who seek to pervert this his sacred roots reggae. In his fight he delivers versatility and that all too familiar Norris Man stamina that never seems to end.

Track by track he tells his story with the same verve that only a true chanter can sustain. As he says, “I’m deep with instruments, bringing new fields to reggae, new moods to reggae. We’re making reggae alternative.”