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Yvonne Curtis (born Yvonne McIntosh) is a singer of Jamaican descent. She has lived in the United Kingdom since the early 1960s. She became the lead singer of The Serenaders and often travels back and forth from the Caribbean Islands performing as a reggae and soca artist.
A local recording producer needed a backing vocalist for his musical project and a contest was held in Stockwell, South London. Having been advised to enter, the young Curtis came second in the contest to her best friend. The producer took them both on asking them to conduct vocals session works.
During the mid-1970s, Curtis joined a local band called the Okendoes and Chalis but she found no real success. After many different small projects in 1975 and no real commercial success, she began working with a record label called Third World Music under Shelly Barrett aka Count Shelly who released Curtis's first song titled "What's Your Name" which was an instant success. Things began moving and she soon left Third World Records to sign with London's Empire Records, a subsidiary of Jamaica's Channel One Studios, with whom she released another self-penned hit song called "Convenient Woman".
After two years she left Empire Records to release her own single called "No Charge" on World Sounds Records, before joining a successful reggae band called The Serenaders who were signed to Brown's Music Records. The first release by this band was a single titled "Only for Lovers". Soon after came "Sweet Loving" which was another successful hit song written by Curtis. The song did extremely well and caused a huge demand for her tours and performances globally. During 1994 she travelled to Germany, Nicaragua and Brazil, creating a fan base and performed on ''Warehouse Showcase'' on London's Carlton Television. In 1998 she appeared with
DiscogsReggae in New York, Interview45katEmpire RecordsCount ShellyDigital Jukebox Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Yvonne Living people Jamaican reggae singers 21st-century Jamaican women singers 20th-century Jamaican women singers Jamaican emigrants to the United Kingdom 20th-century Black British women singers Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Black British women singers Reggae Soca musicians Soca music
History
Born and raised in Jamaica, the young gospel singer Curtis left St. Ann's, Jamaica in the 1960s as a teenager for a better life and education in England. She continued her musical career from her new home in Highbury and Islington, London. Whilst studying in college in the 1970s, Curtis sang in many local bands before she decided it was time to seriously pursue her singing career.1970s–1990s
A local recording producer needed a backing vocalist for his musical project and a contest was held in Stockwell, South London. Having been advised to enter, the young Curtis came second in the contest to her best friend. The producer took them both on asking them to conduct vocals session works.
During the mid-1970s, Curtis joined a local band called the Okendoes and Chalis but she found no real success. After many different small projects in 1975 and no real commercial success, she began working with a record label called Third World Music under Shelly Barrett aka Count Shelly who released Curtis's first song titled "What's Your Name" which was an instant success. Things began moving and she soon left Third World Records to sign with London's Empire Records, a subsidiary of Jamaica's Channel One Studios, with whom she released another self-penned hit song called "Convenient Woman".
After two years she left Empire Records to release her own single called "No Charge" on World Sounds Records, before joining a successful reggae band called The Serenaders who were signed to Brown's Music Records. The first release by this band was a single titled "Only for Lovers". Soon after came "Sweet Loving" which was another successful hit song written by Curtis. The song did extremely well and caused a huge demand for her tours and performances globally. During 1994 she travelled to Germany, Nicaragua and Brazil, creating a fan base and performed on ''Warehouse Showcase'' on London's Carlton Television. In 1998 she appeared with Pete Campbell
Peter Dyckman Campbell (born February 28, 1934) is a fictional character on AMC's television series ''Mad Men''. He is portrayed by Vincent Kartheiser.
Kartheiser has won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble ...
on '' The Big Breakfast'' on Channel 4 and featured in songs by the Reggae Boys. During this time, she was constantly writing and recording songs under Brown's Music & World Sounds Records both as a solo artist and under the band named 'Wavet' which included further performances at the Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
in London.
2000s
In the year 2000, the Serenaders fell apart upon the death of three of its members and Curtis went back to World Sound Records to continue recording her new songs. In 2013, on a joint venture with Browns Records, she released an album entitled 'Lets Unite in Love' which was distributed VP Records in the US. The album was an instant success and caused a notable demand for Curtis' music worldwide. In 2015, Curtis met record producer and label ownerMark Duffus
Mark Duffus, also known as Sure Shot and Blak Prophetz, is a British rapper and producer from the West Midlands in England where he formed the group Blak Prophetz in the early 1980s.
History
Since 1979, Duffus has been a rapper, songwriter, reco ...
and joined Digital Jukebox Records
Digital Jukebox Records began as a British hip hop record label under the name of FJ/Fatt Jointz Recordings in the early 1990s which has been an underground source for the success of some recording artists ever since. Label head Mark Duffus had ...
in 2015. The first release was a three CD compilation of her greatest hits, followed by a crossover version of the Christmas medley ‘When a Child is Born’ & ‘Mary's Boy Child’. John Nolan, a journalist and reviewer for 'Reggae in New York' spoke very highly of the album's success in the United States, stating, ''"Often the most talented artists go for decades without the commercial recognition they deserve. Despite her lack of commercial success Curtis is a driving force in reggae music with an evolving sound that has spanned the entire reggae spectrum. Since 1978 she has released 11 albums, as well as numerous compilations and singles."''.
2020s
Curtis travels back and forth between Jamaica and London. She has found her home withDigital Jukebox Records
Digital Jukebox Records began as a British hip hop record label under the name of FJ/Fatt Jointz Recordings in the early 1990s which has been an underground source for the success of some recording artists ever since. Label head Mark Duffus had ...
and is continuing to release and write new songs with her producers. During a radio interview in Gloucester by presenter Perry Jay for the ''Reggae Time Show'', Jay described the show as absolutely fantastic stating how the crowds would continuously sing her songs back to her in appreciation."''
In a May 2020 interview by Yasmine Peru for '' The Gleaner'', she spoke of the success of her global hit song "Sweet Sensation" and how she was initially introduced to UK music executive Mark Duffus
Mark Duffus, also known as Sure Shot and Blak Prophetz, is a British rapper and producer from the West Midlands in England where he formed the group Blak Prophetz in the early 1980s.
History
Since 1979, Duffus has been a rapper, songwriter, reco ...
owner of Digital Jukebox Records in 2015. Yvonne was a regular act on the mid 1980s weekly Carlton Television
Carlton Television (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV franchise holder for London and the surrounding counties from 9.25am every Monday to 5.15pm every Friday. The company is now managed with London Weekend Televi ...
show ''The Warehouse'', presented by British comedian Miles Crawford, where she was and still is considered one of the hardest-working Jamaican female reggae vocalists in the business. Through her challenges on the road to recognition and her upcoming documentary, ''Untold Reggae'', which traces her life from her roots in Steer Town, Saint Ann Parish to the present, Yvonne is very excited about her future and return to performing in South America.
In the following month she was interviewed by Jerade James for ''Future Topic'' magazine and Black British Musicians, reminising her performance at London's Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
for Barbados independence during the mid 1990s, along with other reputable Soca music artists like the Mighty Gabby
Anthony Carter (born 30 March 1948), better known as Mighty Gabby or simply Gabby, is a Barbadian calypsonian and folk singer, and a Cultural Ambassador for the island of Barbados.
Career
Born in Emmerton, Carter was given the nickname "Gabby ...
& Grynner.
In October 2022, Yvonne was featured in the Black History Month special edition of ''Vogue'' magazine for her continuing hard work in reggae music since the 1960s, speaking of her life living in Jamaica and London through the past decades. Yvonne is one of the very few original globally recognised female vocalists of the reggae genre to have been ever selected to be featured in ''Vogue'' magazine. She is currently mentored and managed by Mark Duffus and regularly performs at the nationwide UK Reggae Land festival on a yearly basis where she has been considered to be ''The hardest working woman in Reggae'' by Lorna Edwards of Reflector magazine.
Discography
Albums
*1986 ''In the Country'', Brown Records *1992 ''Yvonne Cutis & Wavet – Socca'', Brown Records *1995 ''Best of Yvonne Curtis'', Brown Records *1997 ''Yvonne Says Hello'', World Sound *2000 ''Move On'', Brown Records *2000 ''Yvonne Curtis 2000'', World Sound *2002 ''Just as I Am-Gospel'', World Sound *2004 ''Eternal Love'', World Sound *2004 ''Walls of Tears'', World Sound *2006 ''Table for Two'', World Sound *2013 ''Let's Unite in Love'', Brown Records *2014 ''Greatest Hits'', Digital Jukebox RecordsSingles
*1978 "What's Your Name", Third World *1979 "Convenient Woman" b/w "Rather Go Blind", Empire Records *(N/A) "No Charge", BB Records *(N/A) "Only for Lovers", Brown Music *1983 "Road March-Socca", Brown Music *1985 "Sweet Loving", Brown Music *1986 "Bob Marley Medley", Brown Music *1987 "Harder They Come, Brown Music *1990 "Welcome Home", Brown Music *1993 "This Is a Letter", Brown Music *1999 "Don't Let Me Down", Jet Star *(N/A) "Troubled in Mind", Brown Music *2015 ''Christmas Carols'', Digital Jukebox Records *2017 "Far Away (From Your Heart)", Digital Jukebox Records *2018 "Dedicated to You", Digital Jukebox Records *2019 "Son of a Preacher Man", Digital Jukebox Records *2020 "Sweet Sensation" (remastered), Digital Jukebox Records *2022 "People Get Ready", Digital Jukebox Records *2022 "Open The Door To Your Heart" (remixed), Digital Jukebox RecordsSee also
* List of Jamaicans * List of reggae musiciansReferences
External links
*Discogs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Yvonne Living people Jamaican reggae singers 21st-century Jamaican women singers 20th-century Jamaican women singers Jamaican emigrants to the United Kingdom 20th-century Black British women singers Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Black British women singers Reggae Soca musicians Soca music