Jamaican dancehall artist Sean Paul has done it again. This past May, Paul released his eighth studio album “Scorcha” which earned him another Grammy nomination for “Best Reggae Album”. Born Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques, and now bearing the title of OD, having received the Order of Distinction Officer class from the Jamaican government on October 21, 2019, he first entered the scene in 1996 with his debut single “Baby Girl” produced by Jeremy Harding. That single’s success, led to other hits “Nah Get No Bly (One More Try)”, “Deport Them”, “Excite Me”, “Infiltrate,” and “Hackle Mi.”
Sean’s first studio album “Stage One” was released in 2000 and set the stage for what was to follow, “Dutty Rock”, the album that went triple platinum (album sales exceeded 3 million copies) and earned Sean Paul his Grammy award for “Best Reggae Album” and cemented him as a dominant force in the dancehall arena. He also set a record as the first dancehall artist to ever received a “Best New Artist” nomination at the Grammy’s.
For more than 2 decades, Sean Paul has produced chart-topping hits, performed across the globe, raised millions for charitable causes, including his own personal initiatives, a 2016 donation of $1 million JMD to the Bustamante Hospital for Children and the launch of the Sean Paul Foundation in 2020, which aids the less fortunate and provided donations of groceries to impoverished families and tablet computers to primary schools for students.
In addition to his Grammy award win, Sean has earned several Grammy and Billboard Music award nominations and is the recipient of an American Music award, MOBO awards, Soul Train awards, MTV Music awards, ASCAP Rhythm and Soul Music awards, a Source award and a BET award. He is the only Jamaican artiste to have won an American Music award (2006) for Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist.
Collaboration is key to Sean’s success; he has multiple Hot 100 No. 1 singles with other artists including, “Baby Boy” with Beyonce and “Cheap Thrills,” with Sia. He’s embraced the idea on two of his most recent projects, 2018’s Mad Love: The Prequel, and 2021’s Live N Livin. The former finds him paired with pop stars from around the world, like Dua Lipa and Becky G, while the latter is a celebration of his Jamaican heritage and dancehall roots on which Sean trades the lyrics with Buju Banton and Mavado.
He’s also worked with stars in the worlds of Latin music, EDM, and Afropop. In 2014, his relationship with Spanish-speaking audiences spiked after an alignment with Puerto Rican Reggaeton artist Farruko on their single Passion Whine, and global recording sensation Enrique Iglesias who collaborated with Sean for the Bailando remix. The latter peaked at No. 1 in 33 countries and its music video generated over 261 million views on YouTube.
Here are just a few of Sean Paul’s achievements:
- Over 1 Billion Views On YouTube
- Over 118,359,000 Spotify Monthly Listeners
- 8 Grammy Award Nominations, Grammy Award Recipient for Best Reggae Album
- Two Time Soul Train Music Award Winner
- American Music Award Winner
- MTV Europe Music Award Winner Multiple Billboard Music Award Nominations
- 2019 Awarded by Prime Minister of Jamaica Order of Distinction
- Collaborated with Beyonce, Rihanna, Sia, Idris Elba, Dua Lipa, and many more
- Topped Billboard Hot 100 Charts & Billboard Reggae Charts
- Appearances on US National TV such as; Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Wendy Williams, The Late Late Show With James Corden
- Released “Live N Livin” in 2021
- Released “Scorcha” in 2022
Sources: allseanpaul.com, Billboard & Grammy
