Born in Kingston, Jamaica, as a youngster, Barrington Levy formed the Mighty Multitude with his cousin Everton Dacres. They started off playing the sound systems and cut their first single, “My Black Girl,” in 1977. All of 14, Levy broke out his own the next year and recorded his debut solo single, A Long Time Since We Don’t Have No Love.” It didn’t have much of an impact, however the teen’s appearances in the dancehalls were eagerly awaited events. It was at one of these that Levy met former singer turned producer Junjo Lawes and Mew York-based producer Hyman “Jah Life” Wright. The pair took the youth into King Tubby’s studio, accompanied by the Roots Radics, and recorded a clutch of cuts. The first fruits of this union were “Ah Yah We Deh,” quickly followed by “Looking My Love”, and “ Wedding Ring Aside.” Success was immediate, but it was the mighty “Collie Weed” that really cemented the teen’s hold of dancehall.
“Shine Eye Girl”, was a smash follow up, and the young Levy was now in great demand. A stream of singles followed “Jumpy Girl”, a lovely version of Horace Andy’s “Skylarking”, “Reggae Music”, Levy joined forces with producer Alvin Ranglin for another sting of hits—“Never Tear My Love Apart,” “Jah”, “You Made Me So Happy,” and “When You’re Young and in Love.”Levy’s rich vocals were made for duets, both with other vocalists and DJ’s , and it wasn’t long before the young star was also recording collaborative singles. Toyan was a great foil on “Call You on the Phone””, he paired with Jah Thomas on “Moonlight Lover” and “Sister Debby”, and joined forces with Trinity for “Lose Respect” and a follow-up, “I Need a Girl” in 1980. That same year, Levy made a sensational appearance at Reggae Sunsplash, then returned in 1981. During these early years, the singer seemingly spent all of his time between the recording studios and the dancehalls. Amidst the deluge of singles, four albums arrived as well between 1979 and 1980. First up was Bounty Hunter, which boosted three smash singles—“Reggae Music”, “Shine Eye Girl”, and “Looking My Love” –and a clutch of other tracks that were just about as good. In Britain, the Burning Sounds label released Shine Eye Gal, also a hits heavy package which included the title track-track, “Collie Weed”, and “Ah Yah We Deh.” It was swiftly followed by the mighty Englishman, an absolutely fabulous record which was overseen by the unbeatable studio grouping of Junjo Lawes and two of King Tubby’s protégés—Scientist and Prince Jammy. A veteran of the clubs, he brought the spontaneity of the DJ to his records while returning vocals back to the sound system scene which had been purely the realm of the Djs. Utilizing old roots rhythms revitalized by the Radics, and giving the songs a hard, but danceable edge, Lawes and Levy together helped establish a whole new dancehall sound.
1980’s Robin Hood merely affirmed that everyone in Jamaica already knew: That Levy was now the biggest star on t he island, with a talent that was unbeatable. Or more accurately, he was king of the singers, because ruling beside him was DJ Yellowman, another Lawes’ discovery, that was brought to him by Barrington Levy. Robin Hood was as big as its predecessor and was beginning to have an impact in Britain as well, where both it and Englishman had been released by the Greensleeves label. Not surprisingly, both albums heavy rhythms would provide the building blocks for the Scientist V Prince Jammy dub clash album. Unfortunately, Levy’s very popularity was now beginning to have some serious drawbacks. Even before stardom arrived, the singer had noticed with delight fans tapping his sets at the dancehalls, and these tapes were coming back to haunt him. Suddenly, the shelves were buckling under the weight of the bootlegged albums, featuring not just older pirated live material, but also unreleased outtakes and recycled older singles. In response, Levy didn’t release a new album for two years, but in the meantime, new singles more then made up for it. From 1980 came such hits as the haunting Lawes-produced “Mary Long Tongue” producer Linval Thompson’s “Too Poor,” and a string if hits cut with Karl Pitterson, including “ I Have a Problem” and “Even Tide Fire a Disaster”. And as the decade progressed, the flood hits continued. “I’m Not in Love”, “You Have It”, “Tomorrow Is Another Day”, “Robberman”, “BlackRose” “My Women”, and “Money Move” were just a small number of the hits released between 1981 and 1983, with the latter song the biggest smash of the batch. Levy even tried his hand at self-production, recording such excellent songs as “In the Dark” and “Love of Jah.” Amongst there were fabulous singles recorded for Joe Gibbs, “My Women” included. The Reggae Vibes album would bundle up Levy’s best with the producer, s well a number of cuts from fellow dancehall singer Sammy Dread.
1983 finally saw the release of Levy album “Money Move”. The latter was excellently overseen by George Phang and boasted a stupendous group of rhythms that Sly & Robbie had specifically made for the producer. In the U.K, the burning sounds label also released Hunter Man, a greatest-hits collection. But the hits were still coming on strong; in 1984 none were bigger then Levy and Jah Screw produced “Under Mi Sensi.” The pair would also record a new album that year, Here I come, whose title-track would the top 50 in the U.K The album itself took Britain by storm and ensured that Levy walked away with the best Vocalist Award at Britain’s Reggae Awards. It was also these songs that secured his spot in the Guinness Book of World Records, as the first reggae artist to hold both 1st and 2nd place slots in the charts. The same year, the singer also joined forces with another young singer who was tearing up the dance floors, Frankie Paul, for the intriguing sound clash set Barrington Levy meets Frankie Paul. 1985 brought Prison Oval Rock (the Volcano Jamaican label release, and not to be confused with the RAS label’s U.S. compilation of the same title), which found the singer joining forces with Lawes again, for another roots-fired set equal to its predecessors. It had been six years since Levy burst onto the scene with all the force of a nuclear weapon. Now in his early twenties, the singer’s output significantly began to slow. He did return to Reggae Sunsplash in 1987 and would remain a top attraction at the festival until 1985. He also released “Love the Life you Live” in 1988, a rather patchy effort compared to previous releases. It was to be his last new album until 1991.But Levy wasn’t a spent force yet. Before the 80’s were over, he scored tow more hits with “My Time” and “Too Experience”, both under the aegis of producer Jah Screw, and both covers of songs written by Bob Andy (ex-Paragons and also of Bob & Marcia fame).
Signing with MCA in t he U.S., Levy attempted to cross over into the North American market with 1983’s Barrington. Produced by Lee Jaffe, the Album featured a re-recorded “Under Mi Sensi”, and boasted strong songs as “Murderer” and “Vice Versa Love” and “Be Strong”, a major hit in the Caribbean and South America. However, the relationship with MCA was not a happy one and Levy quickly departed. Meanwhile, back in Britain, the singer was chalking up another hit with “Work”. In 1994, Levy was joined by Beenie man on the singles “Two Sounds” and “Murderer”. Both soon reappeared as fiery jungles remixes, with “Sensi”, in particular, mashing up the dance floors.
Under Jack Scorpio’s direction, the singer next paired with Mega Banton for “She’s Mine”. Jah Screw took these collaborations to the next logical step, and recorded an entire album and recorded and entire album of shared songs, Duets (this is its American title and it was released in the U.s. by RAS, and in the U.K., Levy’s relationship with Greensleeves continued, where the album there was titled Barrington Levy’s DJ Counteraction). From this set, “Living Dangerously” with Bounty Killer rocketed up the Jamaican charts and set pace at clubs around the world . Time Capsule came hot on its heels in 1996, a short album (a mere eight tracks plus five dubs), which more than made up for lack of quantity with quality.Over the next two years, his circle of friends was obviously growing, and 1998’s re-make of “Murderer” featured such diverse artists as rap master Snoop Doggy Dogg and Southern California punk-reggae heroes Long Beach Dub All-Stars. In 2003, his debut album Bounty Hunter was reordered and reissued as Moonlight Lover on the Burning Bush label. Two years later, the Sanctuary label collected his recordings with Henry Lawes and Alvin Ranglin for “Love Your Brother man: The Early Tear”. Numerous compilations have continued to appear featuring much of the singer’s greatest work.He was also featured in 2000 on rapper on Shyne’s debut album “Bad Boyz”, with two singles “Bad Boyz” which was number 1 on the hip-hop charts, and “Bonnie and Shynz.
Barrington Levy continues to tour extensively, selling out shows all over the world. He is currently working in an album which will be titled “Its About Time” and he has said it will be his last. This album will feature artist like Damion Marley, Buji Banton, Beres Hammond, Heavy D and a lot more surprises. He expresses love and appreciation to all his fans across the world, and looks forward to seeing you in future events.
Levy's son Krishane is also a musician, and is signed to Atlantic Records.
Bad Boy
Barrington Levy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now tell me who want to fuck with us?
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
I bang - and let your fuckin brains hang, snitches
Fuck all them able bitches with riches
who carry 22's, up in they hosiery
A black teller when my father bust and unloaded me
Think he just finished sniffin a ki, and dippin the D's
Letting the condom pop, nigga I was born in the drop
Coke boil in the pot, shake the Feds
and bust shots at them street cops
Fuck yo' point is? My point is double fours at your fuckin jaws
Pointed, hollow point shit
Four-point-six, need I say more?
Or do you get the point bitch? C'mon
What type of nigga slang and bang in the streets? (Bad Boyz)
What type of nigga stay in the Trump for weeks? (Bad Boyz)
What type of nigga fly Bentley Coupes? (Bad Boyz)
Aim for the sky, cop the shit then shoot ..
(Shyne)
Minks draggin on the floor - bangin on your whore
Suckin the croissant just examine it for flaws
Pour the Cristal on the way to trial, RICO law
got a nigga head hurtin squirtin til they pull the curtain
Let the money drip dry, hundred dollar bills
wipe the tears from my eyes, no love
Fuck y'all niggaz, hope you die a slow death
as I coke-test and see the lawyers talk of protest
Can't fuck with you weak rap niggaz, witcha gay raps
Runnin 'round talkin this and talkin that
See me in the streets, tried to give me dap
Andrew Cunanan ass niggaz
My two cannons blast niggaz, ass niggaz
Got me fucked up in the game, get your shirt stained
Keep your five mics nigga, give me the 'caine
Do the shit to clean my money dummies, gleamed the wrist out
Cop the pist-al, nigga, talk shit now, uh
What type of nigga slang and bang in the streets? (Bad Boyz)
What type of nigga stay in the Trump for weeks? (Bad Boyz)
What type of nigga fly Bentley Coupes? (Bad Boyz)
Aim for the sky, cop the shit then shoot ..
(Shyne)
Bling bling, it's a Bad Boy thing
Bullets heat-seekin, streep sweepin, with an evil grin
Watch you die, one love, one life, one Shyne
Y'all niggaz ain't sayin nothin, like a mime
Every line, I live it, I write it with a pencil so niggaz die
of lead poison if they bite it, hate it but recite it
It's a G thang, me and Puff in St. Bart's set it off
Bitches walkin topless with G-strings, menage'
Bust shots at your crew, another charge
As the gulf stream fly through the fog
Make ya popular
Pockets filled with more high notes than the opera
Franklins on top of the - Jacksons
My nigga Ty leave you tired
Bad Boy, repsect it or die, coward
What type of nigga slang and bang in the streets? (Bad Boyz)
What type of nigga stay in the Trump for weeks? (Bad Boyz)
What type of nigga fly Bentley Coupes? (Bad Boyz)
Aim for the sky, cop the shit then shoot ..
What type of nigga slang and bang in the streets? (Bad Boyz)
What type of nigga stay in the Trump for weeks? (Bad Boyz)
What type of nigga fly Bentley Coupes? (Bad Boyz)
Aim for the sky, cop the shit then shoot ..
(Barrington Levy chatting patois to fade)
The lyrics to Bad Boy by Barrington Levy and Shyne tell the story of a dangerous and ruthless gangster who is unafraid to use violence to get what he wants. Shyne raps about his life on the streets, and the struggles he faced growing up. He mentions his father's drug addiction and his mother's relationship with Nicky Barnes, a notorious drug kingpin. He boasts about his criminal activities, including drug dealing and shooting at police officers. He also criticizes other rappers who he deems "weak" and "gay."
Throughout the song, Shyne emphasizes the importance of wealth and material possessions. He raps about flying in private jets, staying in expensive hotels, and driving Bentley coupes. He also talks about the luxury items he can afford, such as mink coats and bottles of Cristal champagne. Despite his wealth, he still feels the need to engage in criminal activities and violence, as a way of asserting his power and dominance.
Overall, the song paints a bleak picture of urban America, where poverty and violence are endemic, and the only way to survive is through illegal means. It's a stark reminder of the harsh realities faced by many inner-city residents, and the social and economic factors that contribute to the cycle of poverty and crime.
Line by Line Meaning
Now tell me who want to fuck with us?
Who dares to challenge and confront us?
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
A phrase indicating the inevitability of death and that we all return to the earth.
I bang - and let your fuckin brains hang, snitches
I shoot and leave your brains exposed if you are a snitch.
Fuck all them able bitches with riches
I don't care for wealthy women who believe they can do anything.
who carry 22's, up in they hosiery
Those ladies who stash guns in their hosiery.
A black teller when my father bust and unloaded me
My father must have used coke before I was born, and I develop an addiction because of that.
Think he just finished sniffin a ki, and dippin the D's
I reckon he was snorting a kilo of coke and dipping some drugs when I was conceived.
Don't hate me, hate Nicky Barnes for hittin my moms
Don't blame me, blame Nicky Barnes for impregnating my mother.
Letting the condom pop, nigga I was born in the drop
The condom ruptured, and I was born in a car.
Coke boil in the pot, shake the Feds and bust shots at them street cops
I dealt drugs at home, escaped law enforcers, and shot at street cops.
Fuck yo' point is? My point is double fours at your fuckin jaws Pointed, hollow point shit Four-point-six, need I say more?
Don't waste your time, I am loading my loaded 44's to shoot you. I have hollow-point bullets, and my firearm is a four-point-six millimeter, no further questions.
Or do you get the point bitch? C'mon
Do you understand what I mean?
What type of nigga slang and bang in the streets? (Bad Boyz)
What kind of people use slangs and commit violent crimes in the streets?
What type of nigga stay in the Trump for weeks? (Bad Boyz)
What type of person occupies the Trump Hotel for several weeks?
What type of nigga fly Bentley Coupes? (Bad Boyz)
What type of person drives Bentley Coupes?
Aim for the sky, cop the shit then shoot ..
Dream big, buy what you want, and use it to commit violent crimes.
Bling bling, it's a Bad Boy thing
Flashy jewelry, it's a Bad Boy brand
Bullets heat-seekin, streep sweepin, with an evil grin
Bullets that follow the heat and sweep the streets, all while with an evil smile.
Watch you die, one love, one life, one Shyne
Watch you (enemies) perish, love and life belong to me, Shyne, only.
Y'all niggaz ain't sayin nothin, like a mime
You guys aren't saying anything meaningful, just like a mime.
Every line, I live it, I write it with a pencil so niggaz die of lead poison if they bite it, hate it but recite it
Every lyric, I experience it, write it with a pencil, and it can lead singer to death if anyone copies it. You may hate it, but you still repeat it.
Pockets filled with more high notes than the opera Franklins on top of the - Jacksons My nigga Ty leave you tired Bad Boy, respect it or die, coward
My pockets are overflowing with high-value bills, more than the opera, even on a $100 US bill that features the portrait of Benjamin Franklin or Andrew Jackson. Ty will knock you out. In summary, respect Bad Boy, or you'll pay the price.
Contributed by Asher G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.