He was booed off stage at a show celebrating the visit of Nelson Mandela. In 1993 at the very popular show Sting he accused fellow deejay Bounty Killer that the elder artist had stolen his catchphrase, "people dead". This triggered a lyrical battle which continued on the air with each artist counteracting the other's songs. Finally, in 1995, Beenie Man and Bounty Killer settled their differences on the air by actually signing a peace treaty and the two recorded an album together, Guns Out. This was followed by a single, "No Mama No Cry", a rehash of the Bob Marley classic "No Woman No Cry", speaking out against violence and inspired by the murder of Pan Head, another popular Deejay.
Partially as a result of prodding from his producers, Sly and Robbie, Beenie Man soon converted to the Rastafari movement.
In 1994, he was signed by Island Records and released the critically acclaimed album Blessed.
In 1995, Beenie Man released a remix of Barrington Levy's "Under Mi Sensi" in the United Kingdom, and collaborated with Dennis Brown and Triston Palma to release Three Against War and Lt. Stitchie on Mad Cobra Meets Lt. Stitchie & Beenie Man. He took another step up the ladder in 1996, releasing the seminal Maestro, produced by Patrick Roberts and shot him to UK fame. During the period from the mid to late '90s, Beenie Man dominated the Jamaican charts to the extent that he perhaps had a good claim to the crown of "Dancehall King", a title only bestowed previously on Yellowman in the early 1980s.
In 1998, Beenie Man signed to Virgin Records to release albums in the United States. His first American offering was The Doctor (1998). In 2000, Beenie Man teamed up with Arturo Sandoval and Wyclef Jean (The Fugees) to release The Art & Life. During the late 1990s, Beenie Man began his conquest of America with the hits, "Romie", "Who Am I" and "Girls Dem Sugar", which featured American R&B singer, Mya.
In 2002, he had a sizeable hit with a duet with Janet Jackson called "Feel It Boy", but his biggest break in America came in early 2004 with the release of a remix of "Dude", featuring guest vocals by fellow Jamaican Ms. Thing, as well as rhymes by Shawnna.
Romie
Beenie Man Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Boy, yuh know mi?
And 'bout it's your mother grow mi
(No)
Gimmie some bass mek mi sing something first
Mi guh so
Oh nah-nah, nah-nah, nah-nah
Oh nah-nah, nah-nah, nah-nah
Oh nah-nah, nah-nah, nah-nah
It's all about Romie and him big fat sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim sey dem know mi
And dem argument throw mi, throw mi, throw mi
Di bwoy dey name Romie and him whoring sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim say them know mi
And dem argument throw mi, throw mi, throw mi
But mi wonder Romie, how him fi know mi?
A Waterhouse mi born, an Craig Town mi guh live
Where Aunt Sita grow mi
Owe di bwoy owe mi, him argument throw mi
Him gal waan blow mi, true, she hear say mi bloomy
Mi hear Nayomi, have 15 Aunty
Mi check it out deep down to the grandma want mi
So a grudge di bwoy grudge mi
Di bwoy badmind me
Dats why mi argument drop pon all
Ro ohh mie - and him big fat sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim sey dem know mi
An' dem argument throw mi, throw mi, throw mi
Da bwoy dey name Romie and big fat sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim say them know mi
An' dem argument, but, but, hol' now
Mi hear say Miss Nayomi
One big fat gal fron inna di 1920
If looks was a whole, she live a door 'cause she plenty
An' from a gal plenty her love life h'empty, empty, empty
People look yah, Nayomi a whore an har puppa a preacher
Mi get fi understand di gal a witchcraft worker
She obeah her mother and guh tek di stepfather
Dats why the DJ a utter say
Oh nah-nah, nah-nah, nah-nah
Oh nah-nah, nah-nah, nah-nah
Oh nah-nah, nah-nah, nah-nah
Oh nah-nah-nah, nah-nah, nah-nah
Romie and him big fat sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim sey dem know mi
An dem argument throw mi, throw mi, throw mi
Da bwoy dey name Romie and him whoring sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim say dem know mi
An dem argument throw mi, throw mi, throw mi
True, mi girlfriend hyper, her life brighter
Nayomi tun spider
Nayomi tun snake on da grass, she a viper
Gal tun sniper, big time infama
She all a tell Peter seh him gal and Lorna
Gone guh catch man somewhere dung ah Manchester
Warn di yute mother him guh charge fi murda
Gal jus hear yah, gwaan an leave yah
Dats why the DJ ah sing say
Romie and him big fat sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim sey dem know mi
An' dem argument throw mi, dash mi, catch mi, catch mi, dash mi
Romie and him big fat sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim say them know mi
An' dem argument throw mi, again
But mi wonder Romie, how him fi know mi?
A Waterhouse mi born, an Craig Town mi guh live
Where Aunt Sita grow mi
Owe di bwoy owe mi, - argument throw mi
Him gal waan blow mi, true, she hear say mi bloomy
Mi hear Nayomi, have 15 Aunty
Mi check it out deep down to the grandma want mi
So a grudge he pass grudge mi
Di punk badmind me
Dats why mi argument drop pon' all
Romie, Romie, Ro-Ro-Ro-Ro, dey, dey, dey
Romie and him big fat sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim sey dem know mi
And dem argument throw mi, throw mi, throw mi
Da bwoy dey name Romie and him whoring sista Nayomi
Di two a dem claim say them know mi
And dem argument, dem argument
Oye, Miss Nayomi,
One big fat gal fron inna di 1920
In Beenie Man's song "Romie," he addresses a situation where a man named Romie and his sister Nayomi are claiming to know the artist. However, Beenie Man wonders how Romie could know him since he was born in Waterhouse and lived in Craig Town, where he was raised by Aunt Sita. Romie's sister Nayomi is described as an overweight woman who engages in promiscuous behavior and spreads rumors about others. The artist notes that Nayomi is manipulative and practices witchcraft with her mother. Beenie Man ends the song stating that he realizes the root of Romie's hostility towards him is due to jealousy and bad-mindedness.
"Romie" is a dancehall classic that showcases the signature style of Beenie Man, who is known for his witty lyrics and clever wordplay. The song was co-produced by Patrick Roberts and Dave Kelly under the Penthouse Records label. The song was released on the "Murder She Wrote" Riddim and was part of Beenie Man's critically acclaimed album "Many Moods of Moses." The song was a significant commercial success upon its release and topped the Jamaican charts for several weeks.
Line by Line Meaning
Everyday yuh been going around and telling story
You've been spreading rumors about me every day
Boy, yuh know mi?
Do you really know me?
And 'bout it's your mother grow mi
And claiming that your mother raised me
(No)
But that's not true
Gimmie some bass mek mi sing something first
Let me sing something first, give me some bass
Oh nah-nah, nah-nah, nah-nah
Singing a tune
It's all about Romie and him big fat sista Nayomi
This song is all about Romie and his sister Nayomi
Di two a dem claim sey dem know mi
Both of them claim that they know me
And dem argument throw mi, throw mi, throw mi
And their argument is throwing me off
But mi wonder Romie, how him fi know mi?
But I wonder, how does Romie know me?
A Waterhouse mi born, an Craig Town mi guh live
I was born in Waterhouse and lived in Craig Town
Where Aunt Sita grow mi
Where my Aunt Sita raised me
Owe di bwoy owe mi, him argument throw mi
The guy owes me money and his arguing is throwing me off
Him gal waan blow mi, true, she hear say mi bloomy
His girlfriend wants to sleep with me because she heard I'm well endowed
Mi hear Nayomi, have 15 Aunty
I heard Nayomi has 15 aunts
Mi check it out deep down to the grandma want mi
I investigated it thoroughly and even her grandmother desires me
So a grudge di bwoy grudge mi
So the guy has a grudge against me
Di bwoy badmind me
The guy is jealous of me
Dats why mi argument drop pon all
That's why I'm done arguing with everyone
Mi hear say Miss Nayomi
I heard that Miss Nayomi
One big fat gal fron inna di 1920
Is an extremely overweight woman from the 1920s
If looks was a whole, she live a door 'cause she plenty
If we're judging based on appearance, she's living at the door because she's huge
An' from a gal plenty her love life h'empty, empty, empty
And because she's so large, her love life is nonexistent
People look yah, Nayomi a whore an har puppa a preacher
Listen up, Nayomi is a prostitute and her father is a preacher
Mi get fi understand di gal a witchcraft worker
I've come to understand that the girl practices witchcraft
She obeah her mother and guh tek di stepfather
She practices obeah on her mother's husband
Dats why the DJ a utter say
That's why the DJ is saying
True, mi girlfriend hyper, her life brighter
It's true, my girlfriend is lively and her life is brighter
Nayomi tun spider
Nayomi has transformed into a spider
Nayomi tun snake on da grass, she a viper
Nayomi has turned into a snake in the grass, she's a viper
Gal tun sniper, big time infama
The girl has become a sniper, a big-time informer
She all a tell Peter seh him gal and Lorna
She's even telling Peter that his girl and Lorna
Gone guh catch man somewhere dung ah Manchester
Went to catch a man somewhere down in Manchester
Warn di yute mother him guh charge fi murda
Warn the young man's mother, they'll charge him with murder
Gal jus hear yah, gwaan an leave yah
Girl, just go and leave me alone
Oye, Miss Nayomi,
Hey, Miss Nayomi,
Dem argument throw mi, dash mi, catch mi, catch mi, dash mi
Your arguing is confusing me, causing me to alternate between falling and catching myself
Romie, Romie, Ro-Ro-Ro-Ro, dey, dey, dey
Repeating Romie's name
An' dem argument throw mi, again
And their argument is throwing me off again
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Moses Anthony Davis, Stephen John Marsden, Andrew Thomas
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind