Cham (born Damian Beckett, 24 February 1979) is a Jamaican-born dancehall singer-songwriter, mostly known for his 2006 single "Ghetto Story" from his major label debut album of the same name, a song which led to multiple "story" songs by other artists in a similar vein.[1] He is currently signed to Atlantic Records, and was known as Baby Cham until 2005. He is still called Baby Cham by his Jamaican fans and fans from around the world despite the name change.
Cham | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Damian Beckett |
| Also known as | Baby Cham |
| Born | 24 February 1979 |
| Origin | Saint Andrew Parish |
| Genres | Reggae, dancehall, reggae fusion |
| Occupations | Deejay, singer-songwriter, record producer |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Labels | Atlantic, Madhouse |
| Website | www |
Biography
editOriginally from Sherlock Crescent in Saint Andrew Parish, Cham's career began in the early 1990s.[2] The Miami New Times referred to his debut album Wow... The Story, released in 2000, as "the most anticipated album in years from any reggae artist", and a Washington Post review of a live Cham concert in 2006 described him as "the man who may be the next Sean Paul – a dancehall artist who crosses over to the U.S. hip-hop market."[3][4]
Throughout his career, Cham has collaborated with many hip hop and R&B artists such as Foxy Brown, Alicia Keys, Carl Thomas, Shawn Mims, Mis-Teeq, Rihanna, Che'Nelle, Jentina, Akon, and T-Pain, Keke Palmer and many others.[citation needed]
Cham has for a long time worked with producer Dave Kelly.[2] In 2012, he recorded with his wife, O, on the singles "Wine" and "Tun Up".[2] In 2013 he released the Kelly-produced single "Fighter", featuring Damian "Junior Gong" Marley.[5]
Cham's third album, the Kelly-produced Lawless was due to be released in June 2015.[6] Featuring the single "I Am Hot", the album was recorded in Florida apart from a collaboration with Mykal Rose and Bounty Killer, which was recorded in Jamaica.[6]
Discography
editAlbums
edit| Album information |
|---|
Wow... The Story
|
Ghetto Story
|
Singles
edit| Year | Song | Chart positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Hot 100 [8] |
US R&B [9] |
US Rap [10] |
UK Singles [11] | |||
| 2000 | "The Mass" | — | — | — | — | Wow... The Story |
| "Funny Man" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Ghetto Pledge" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Boom/Can I Get A" | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006 | "Ghetto Story" | 99 | — | — | — | Ghetto Story |
| "Ghetto Story Chapter 2" (featuring Alicia Keys) | 77 | 22 | 13 | 62 | ||
| "Vitamin S" | — | 56 | — | — | ||
| "Rude Boy Pledge" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Tic Toc" | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013 | "Fighter" | — | — | — | — | My Life |
As featured artist
edit- "Shottas" T-Pain featuring Cham and Kardinal Offishall
- "This Is Why I'm Hot" (Remix) Mims featuring Junior Reid and Cham
- "The Day Before" Baby Blue Soundcrew featuring Jully Black & Cham
- "Oh No (You Can't Be Serious)" Carl Thomas featuring Cham
- "Tables Will Turn" Foxy Brown featuring Cham
- "Party Time" (Remix) Lukie D featuring Cham and Jadakiss
- "Love Is on My Mind" Shawnna featuring Cham and Sisqo
- "Run Dem" Foxy Brown featuring Cham
- "Never Never" (Remix) Brick & Lace featuring Cham
- "I Fell in Love with the DJ" Che'Nelle featuring Cham
- "Tonight" Keke Palmer featuring Cham
- "Girl I Need" Mario featuring Cham
- "Bullet" DJ Khaled featuring Cham and Rick Ross
- "That's Just Not Me" Mis-Teeq featuring Baby Cham
- "Bad Ass Strippa" (Remix) Jentina featuring Cham
References
edit- ^ Anglin-Christie, Kavelle (12 July 2006). "Cham responds to the other 'stories'". The Jamaican Online Star. Archived from the original on 24 September 2009. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
- ^ a b c Johnson, Richard (2012) "Keeping apace with Cham", Jamaica Observer, 29 June 2012, retrieved 1 July 2012
- ^ Gessling, Cheryl (21 December 2000). "Baby Cham". Miami New Times. Archived from the original on 20 March 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
- ^ Porter, Christopher (17 July 2006). "Baby Cham at Crossroads". Washington Post. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
- ^ Jackson, Kevin (2013) "Cham's a FIGHTER", Jamaica Observer, 25 October 2013. Retrieved 26 October 2013
- ^ a b Jackson, Kevin (2015) "Cham's New Album for June", Jamaica Observer, 2 April 2015. Retrieved 2 April 2015
- ^ "Cham – Billboard 200 chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
- ^ "Cham – The Hot 100 chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
- ^ "Cham – Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
- ^ "Cham – Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
- ^ "Chart Log UK (1994–2010): Chris C. – CZR". zobbel.de. Retrieved 26 January 2015.