Dancehall Icon Demarco Announces Debut Album

Guest features on Melody include Sean Paul, Shaggy, Sarkodie, Stephen Marley and Ky-mani Marley, with Demarco handling production on all but four tracks. Beatmaker Will K. produced “Mover,” with Demarco and Konshens bringing spicy, bilingual pickup lines and dancefloor callouts over a flute-driven fusion of dancehall and urbano.. 

Melody, named after both Demarco’s newborn child and the melodic sensibilities that color the album, arrives more than 10 years after Demarco first burst onto the dancehall circuit with his breakthrough single, “Fallen Soldiers.” The somber, reflective track kicked off an iconic run of dancehall classics from Demarco including “Duppy Know Who Fi Frighten,” “She Can’t Wait,” and the Rihanna-endorsed “I Love My Life” and “Puppy Tail.”

Beyond the genre, Demarco has teamed with Akon and Runtown on the cross-continental afrobeats smash “No Wahala,” collaborated with Busta Rhymes, Giggs and Jim Jones, and is widely reported to be among the songwriters on Rihanna’s long-rumored dancehall album. Behind the scenes, he’s produced some of modern dancehall’s iconic riddims — instrumental beats used by reggae producers to record multiple singles, each by different vocalists— as well as Charly Black’s “Gyal You a Party Animal,” the most recent dancehall track to be certified Gold by the RIAA, and the first single by a Jamaican artist certified Diamond in Latin America. Adding video director to his well-rounded résumé, he’s helmed clips for Spice, Vybz Kartel and Shaggy, among others. 

Demarco is the latest Caribbean music star to partner with Ineffable Records, joining Konshens, Kes and Turbulence among acts releasing albums through the imprint. Launched in 2019, Ineffable Records is the label arm of Ineffable Music Group, a multifaceted, Oakland-based music company which owns and operates venues and festivals across the USA and manages and releases music from artists like Stick Figure and Collie Buddz.

“Demarco is your favorite artist’s favorite artist,” says Ineffable Music Group co-founder Igor Katz. “He is responsible for helping create some of the biggest dancehall records of all time for others, and we feel like it’s time to spotlight his music on an album.“ 

With a track record as deep as Demarco’s, it’s hard to believe that he’s never issued an album before. But he believes when fans hear the project, they will find it was well worth the wait. “A lot of people don't know this side of Demarco,” he says of the album which, partystarters like “Mover” notwithstanding, showcases a deeper, more romantic side to Demarco. “These songs are timeless music. When you sing about love and relationships — the real things that people go through — there’s no time limit on that.”