Daddy Freddy

Born 1965 in Kingston, Jamaica as Samuel Frederick Small, assumed his wife's Nicole Nelsons name with the marriage. In 1987 Daddy Freddy teamed up with Asher D and, together with producer Simon Harris, created a blueprint for the first successful amalgamation of dancehall reggae (ragga - see below) and hip hop. Their debut album "Ragamuffin Hip Hop" sold reasonably well in the UK on Music of Life, in the USA on Profile Records and throughout Europe on various labels. The new sound inspired a new interest in combining reggae with contemporary dancefloor styles and a sound that continues today was born. Freddy continued this frontier-busting style by making "Ragga House" with Simon Harris and again a new style was born, house music and ragga. This single narrowly missed the UK pop Top 40 charts. Renowned live performances have always been Freddy's hallmark, most notably at the New Music Seminar in New York and Tim Westwood's live rap shows on Capital Radio. In 1989 Freddy gained an entry into the Guinness Book of Records as the World's fastest rapper (as part of the Capital Radio Music Festival) and later beat his own record with a rap of 507 syllables per minute on BBC's 'Record Breakers' TV show where he appeared with the late great Roy Castle. Freddy also appeared on CNN, BBC's famous children's show Blue Peter and many more.