worthy of a nomination in the Best Reggae Album category of the annual Grammy Awards. Released August 29, the 14-track set, which features collaborations with Demelo, Daddy U-Roy, and Greentone, is his first full-length project in seven years. “I believe it is very important to reintroduce the authentic sound of reggae to the world, and this album does that. Also, the mixing of the tracks by Errol Browne, Ed Robinson, the lyrical content of the songs, plus the overall quality of the project makes it worthy to be in the running for a Grammy Award,” Mr Vegas told the Jamaica Observer. 

The album made the list of albums being considered for a nomination and the nominees will be announced on November 7. The project features a stellar line-up of musicians and producers, who have contributed to past Grammy-winning and Grammy-nominated albums. “The album was produced by me. However, major contributions came from Ed Robinson, Kirkledove, Jemoim, Kemist and Andre Gillespie. In terms of musicians, I worked with Kirkledove, Dean Fraser, Bowie, Khan, Danny Bassie, and Pastor Mark Brown,” said Mr Vegas, who wrote most of the songs on the project.

Khago wrote Take My Heart, while Yung Alphan from Nigeria wrote Grateful. Said the MOBO-Award winning and Billboard-charting artiste: “The title of the album is a reflection of my exposure to reggae music and the experiences that came with it. As a young child, I ran away from home and hung out around a sound system in my community in rural St Andrew. Subsequently, I returned to Big Yard in Kingston; a place that can be described as a ghetto. I became a singer on the Small Axe Sound System that was owned by my cousin. Whenever the sound played and artistes performed, the patrons would beat on the zinc fences with excitement. Those memories are what I placed into Ghetto Reggae.” Mr Vegas shared his experiences living in the ghetto as a youngster. (Jamaica Observer)