Ammoye

Jamma. The product of Jamaica and America, Ammoye Evans personifies the blending of cultures and musical genres that melt together in her music to create a new sound and style: Jamma.Born and raised through her mid-teens in Clarendon, Jamaica, Ammoye learned the meaning of urban life early. Growing up in the hard-scrabble surroundings that have been portrayed in the music of one of her strongest influences, Bob Marley, Ammoye escaped the many negative temptations of Clarendon through music. Her early church choir solos gave her a love of entertaining, a strong independent streak and the calming knowledge that she had found her destiny in music. Ammoye soon began to absorb Jamaicas musical landscape from the rich traditions of reggae to the hip-hop laden dancehall beats that blast from Kingstons omnipresent car stereos and street-side boom boxes.After emigrating to North America and settling with her mother in Toronto (with frequent visits to her father in New York City), Ammoyes musical horizons expanded to include funk, rock and soul. She soon began writing songs that blended these genres and reflected the brash style and attitude of Americas cross-cultural melting pot. She continued to perform, both in groups and solo, in the U.S., Canada and Jamaica, and has now recorded demos of her songs.With her dancehall rap skills and rich, evocative singing voice, the youthful artist had developed a captivating stage presence. Add to that a wardrobe of singular, urban cool fashions of her own design and it was clear Ammoye was headed in a different direction than her young musical peers.However, it was not until she began working in 2003 with the production team BeezWax that Ammoye truly found her museor, in this case, muses. Made up of UK-born DJ Abacus (Esthero, Nick Holder, A:xus), the young hip-hop beats wizard Savage, and Oli Johnson, co-owner of Toronto music production house and studio The Hive (ESPNs The Playmakers), the three-pronged production team immediately understood Ammoyes varied influences and musical vision.Together Ammoye and BeezWax have written and recorded songs that draw on influences as diverse as Bob Marley, The Police, No Doubt and Sade, and infused their creations with cutting edge dancehall rhythms, gritty guitar bursts and dynamic textures. The result is a batch of songs that showcase inspired wordplay, powerful beats and unforgettable hooks. Songs that lay the foundations for a new Jamaican/American sound and style; a sound and style that bends genres and stretches forward, yet is just as at home on American radio as in the clubs of Europe and on the boom boxes of Kingston. It is a new sound and style that Ammoye is determined to bring to the world.Enter the Jamma Queen.