May 7th, 2008
GLORY DAYS
Krista Henry, Staff Reporter
Before the widespread return to ‘cultural’ lyrics in the 1990s, Admiral Tibet was the most consistently conscious singer of his age and widely regarded as the first cultural singer of the deejay-dominated period.
Born Kennel Allen in the parish of St Mary, as a young child growing up, he always had a keen interest in music. He started performing on sound systems in and around his vicinity at a tender age.
In 1985, Tibet did his first recording for producer Sherman Clacher, entitled Babylon War, giving him recognition locally and internationally. Another single, Leave People Business, was an instant hit, followed by Serious Time, which was later remixed with two-time Grammy winner Shabba Ranks and the Don Gorgon Ninjaman.
The track featured then rivals Ninjaman and Shabba Ranks and was employed to signal reconciliation between the two deejays in the early ’90s.
Tibet’s lyrics, delivered with a convincing, vulnerable quality, are as true today as they were when first delivered. Admiral Tibet has toured extensively in the United States, Europe, Japan and the Caribbean.
The Sunday Gleaner caught up with the artiste recently.
Sunday Gleaner: How did you get the name?
Admiral Tibet: I was going primary school and my cousin, both of us were sitting together looking into an atlas, and saw the name ‘Tibet’. My cousin took it as a mockery and seh ‘Tibet! Tibet!’ and it stuck - that was in the 1970s.
Admiral came on in the 1980s when a friend of mine asked me ’bout my stage name. Him seh Tibet kinda lonely and others have long names, so I’m the ‘Admiral’.
Did you always want to do music?
Well, definitely, from I realise miself and start have sense, mi realise that mi love music.
Did you ever get any formal training?
Tags: love, lyrics, tender