Legendary reggae singer Marcia Griffiths is amongst 5 excellent Jamaicans who can be conferred with the Order of Jamaica (OJ), the nation’s fourth highest honor, for service to the nation in varied fields.
The group leads the record of greater than 120 individuals who can be acknowledged on the 2023 Nationwide Honours and Awards Ceremony on Jamaica’s Nationwide Heroes Day, Monday, October 16.
Griffiths will obtain the distinction for her long-standing contribution to reggae music domestically and internationally.
‘The Queen of Reggae’
Generally known as “the queen of reggae,” the 73-year-old singer was notably a member of the I-Threes, a trio of backing singers (together with Rita Marley and Judy Mowatt), who supported Bob Marley & the Wailers between 1974 and 1981.
Her singing profession, nevertheless, started a decade earlier within the Nineteen Sixties, working with artists corresponding to Tony Gregory (“You’re Mine”), Bob Marley (“Oh My Darling”), Jeff Dixon (“Phrases”), and Bob Andy (“At all times Collectively”). In 1968, she had her first success as a solo artist, with “Really feel Like Leaping.” From 1970 to 1974, she labored along with Bob Andy as a duo (Bob and Marcia).
After her stint with the I-Threes following Marley’s dying in 1981, Marcia Griffiths continued to document as a solo artist.
In 1983, she launched her re-recording of the Bunny Wailer track “Electrical Boogie,” initially recorded and launched by Wailer in 1976.
Though the 1983 model grew to become a minor hit for Griffiths, the track was remixed in 1989, and it was this model that made the Electrical Slide, a line dance, a world dance craze. The track reached quantity 51 on the US Billboard Sizzling 100, making it her most profitable single. It’s presently the highest-selling single by a feminine reggae singer of all time.
Learn: The Empress of Reggae Music Marcia Griffiths
In 2014, Griffiths obtained the Jamaican Order of Distinction (Commander class).
Different OJ recipients
The opposite 4 OJ recipients are Anglican Archbishop of the West Indies, His Grace, the Most Rev. Dr. Howard Gregory for service to faith; Audley Shaw CD, MP, for sterling contribution to political administration in Jamaica; Charles Henry Johnston, CD, for excellent contribution to Jamaica’s delivery and logistics business, and Paul Barnaby Scott, CD for distinctive contribution to the enterprise business, funding and philanthropy in Jamaica and the Caribbean.
Victor Lowe, a local of Jamaica who resides in america, is amongst 27 individuals who can be conferred with the Order of Distinction (within the rank of Commander (CD).
One other 36 individuals will obtain the Order of Distinction within the Rank of Officer (OD); two civilians will obtain the Badge of Honour for Gallantry (BH(G)); 28 can be conferred with the Badge of Honour for Meritorious Service (BH(M)); and 29 will obtain the Badge of Honour for Lengthy and Devoted Service.
