Natural Black
Encyclopedia
Natural Black, born Mortimer Softley on March 16, 1975 in Georgetown, Guyana
, is a reggae
singer from Guyana
.
and Beres Hammond
. Some producers released material and others didn't but of the singles that came out all suffered for lack of promotion. His fortunes however began to change when in 2000 he met Roger Grant, a young producer just starting his label Organic Records. This association resulted in two singles, "With Feeling" and "Bad Mind" which captured the audiences attention and brought him his first taste of success. Both songs charted followed by In The Streetz' "Never Leave You Lonely" which peaked at number three on the Star charts. Grant became his manager and capitalised on the popularity of the singles by booking him on major shows like Sting, Reggae Sumfest
and Rebel Salute. His promising career was further bolstered with frequent touring in France, Switzerland, and Sweden among other territories. Around this fertile period he also saw the release of his first album Spiritual Food on French label Patate followed by World War on Lionroots. His manager migrated to the US in 2004 and Natural Black scored in 2006 for producer Don Corleon with the chart topping "Far From Reality". The artist continues to record prolifically but has not being able to consistently maintain a high public profile. His career it seems his stuck in the stages of potential and the Guyanese hope is yet to truly conquer his adopted homeland.
A widely acclaimed conscious Rastafari movement
artist, Natural Black has fans in the Caribbean
, Europe
, the United States
and Latin America
and is currently signed to Vision Sound Studios of Guyana. He possesses a distinctively smooth and mellow voice, and parlays a style of his own. He is solidly in the forefront of the newroots and culture movement. He is a regular among the top record producers and show promoters. Over the years he's recorded with Organic, King Jammys, 5th Element, Rootsdown, In The Streetz, Lustre Kings, Addis, 321 Strong, Firehouse, Harmony House, Digital B, Lion Paw, Big Yard, Kickin', Young Blood, No Doubt and Maximum Sound,amongst others. He is closely associated with fellow deejays Norris Man and Perfect
and often voice tunes in joint sessions over the same riddims with them.
Natural Black tours extensively and has performed to sold out audiences in Switzerland, Germany, Holland, Austria, France, Italy and Slovenia. He has performed on most of the major Reggae shows and festivals such as Uppsala Reggae Festival
, Reggae Sumfest, Sting, Rebel Salute, East Fest and others. P.G. Music's Marlon McCubbin produced his 1995 album Far From Reality (Greensleeves) - easily Natural's biggest success thus far.
In 2007 he was sentenced to a $2000 fine and 120 hours of community service after pleading guilty to charges of disorderly conduct, indecent language, resisting arrest and being armed with an offensive weapon (a ratchet knife), after being arrested at Norman Manley International Airport
. He was arrested again in October that year on suspicion of stealing a car, although he was released after spending seven days in custody.
World War (2003) (Organic/Lionroots)
Georgetown, Guyana
Georgetown, estimated population 239,227 , is the capital and largest city of Guyana, located in the Demerara-Mahaica region. It is situated on the Atlantic Ocean coast at the mouth of the Demerara River and it was nicknamed 'Garden City of the Caribbean.' Georgetown is located at . The city serves...
, is a reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
singer from Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
.
Biography
Mortimer Softley moved to Jamaica in 1995 to pursue his dream of being a reggae singer. In Guyana he hailed from Linden in the community of All Boy Town and was nicknamed Black and White because of his love for dressing in that colour code. In Jamaica the musicians he hung around would rename him Natural Black. On his arrival into the island he worked as a welder and coffee picker while recording in his spare time for various producers. He made the rounds voicing for the likes of Anthony Red Rose, Gordon Lee, Jack Scorpio, Freddie McGregorFreddie McGregor
Freddie McGregor has been variously a singer, musician and producer. According to Allmusic he is one of reggae's most durable and soulful singers, with a steady career that started in the 1960s, when he was just seven years old.-Biography:In 1963 he joined with Ernest Wilson and Peter Austin to...
and Beres Hammond
Beres Hammond
Beres Hammond is a reggae singer known in particular for his romantic lovers rock and soulful voice...
. Some producers released material and others didn't but of the singles that came out all suffered for lack of promotion. His fortunes however began to change when in 2000 he met Roger Grant, a young producer just starting his label Organic Records. This association resulted in two singles, "With Feeling" and "Bad Mind" which captured the audiences attention and brought him his first taste of success. Both songs charted followed by In The Streetz' "Never Leave You Lonely" which peaked at number three on the Star charts. Grant became his manager and capitalised on the popularity of the singles by booking him on major shows like Sting, Reggae Sumfest
Reggae Sumfest
Reggae Sumfest is the largest concert festival in Jamaica, taking place each year in mid-July in Montego Bay. Sumfest, started in 1993, is officially sponsored by Red Stripe....
and Rebel Salute. His promising career was further bolstered with frequent touring in France, Switzerland, and Sweden among other territories. Around this fertile period he also saw the release of his first album Spiritual Food on French label Patate followed by World War on Lionroots. His manager migrated to the US in 2004 and Natural Black scored in 2006 for producer Don Corleon with the chart topping "Far From Reality". The artist continues to record prolifically but has not being able to consistently maintain a high public profile. His career it seems his stuck in the stages of potential and the Guyanese hope is yet to truly conquer his adopted homeland.
A widely acclaimed conscious Rastafari movement
Rastafari movement
The Rastafari movement or Rasta is a new religious movement that arose in the 1930s in Jamaica, which at the time was a country with a predominantly Christian culture where 98% of the people were the black descendants of slaves. Its adherents worship Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia , as God...
artist, Natural Black has fans in 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...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
and is currently signed to Vision Sound Studios of Guyana. He possesses a distinctively smooth and mellow voice, and parlays a style of his own. He is solidly in the forefront of the newroots and culture movement. He is a regular among the top record producers and show promoters. Over the years he's recorded with Organic, King Jammys, 5th Element, Rootsdown, In The Streetz, Lustre Kings, Addis, 321 Strong, Firehouse, Harmony House, Digital B, Lion Paw, Big Yard, Kickin', Young Blood, No Doubt and Maximum Sound,amongst others. He is closely associated with fellow deejays Norris Man and Perfect
Perfect (musician)
Perfect is a reggae singer.-Biography:The third child in a family of four children, Rose grew up in the cool hills of Bamboo, which is south of St. Anns Bay and east of Browns Town, in the parish of St. Ann...
and often voice tunes in joint sessions over the same riddims with them.
Natural Black tours extensively and has performed to sold out audiences in Switzerland, Germany, Holland, Austria, France, Italy and Slovenia. He has performed on most of the major Reggae shows and festivals such as Uppsala Reggae Festival
Uppsala Reggae Festival
Uppsala Reggae Festival is the largest reggae festival in Sweden.It was first held in 2001, but the name was used as early as 1995. Uppsala Reggae Festival attracts attendees of all ages from all over northern Europe...
, Reggae Sumfest, Sting, Rebel Salute, East Fest and others. P.G. Music's Marlon McCubbin produced his 1995 album Far From Reality (Greensleeves) - easily Natural's biggest success thus far.
In 2007 he was sentenced to a $2000 fine and 120 hours of community service after pleading guilty to charges of disorderly conduct, indecent language, resisting arrest and being armed with an offensive weapon (a ratchet knife), after being arrested at Norman Manley International Airport
Norman Manley International Airport
-Cargo :The following Cargo/Courier serve Norman Manley International Airport:-Accidents and incidents:*On 17 July 1960, the captain of a Vickers Viscount of Cubana de Aviación hijacked the aircraft on a flight from José Martí International Airport, Havana to Miami International Airport, Florida...
. He was arrested again in October that year on suspicion of stealing a car, although he was released after spending seven days in custody.
Discography
Spiritual Food (2003) (Organic/Patate)World War (2003) (Organic/Lionroots)
- Far From Reality (2006), GreensleevesGreensleeves RecordsGreensleeves Records & Publishing is a record label specialising in dancehall and reggae music. The company was founded by Chris Cracknell and Chris Sedgwick and started as a small record store in West Ealing, London, in November 1975 and is based in Britain....
- Jah Guide (2007), Greensleeves
- Cool Nuh Black (2007), Vizion
- Love Gonna Conquer Evil (2007), Cousins
- Naturally Black (2008)
- Guardian Angel (2009)