Skillibeng’s tour of the United Kingdom has gained much traction on social media, with videos circulating of the artiste’s sold-out 2500-seater London O2 Forum to a crowd raving at all his hit singles.
However, his interview with famed personality Tim Westwood on TimWestwood TV has got people talking even more. Having received much criticism for his latest projects, Skillibeng has explained the reason for his shift in delivery and highlighted a need for a wider audience outside of Jamaica and the diaspora as his main motivation.
“I slowed it down a bit because I am very lyrical but it doesn’t always work on an international scene,” he stated passionately. “I slow it down for them so they could really understand what I am saying.”
“When it comes on to the business, I had to slow down a bit, not just the music but even myself and think about how am I going to relate to it.”
Skillibeng’s most recent singles, “Sloppy“, “Gag”, “Coke“, and the much talked about “Whap Whap“, all share a contrasting difference to his earlier hits, such as “Crocodile Teeth“, “50 Bag” or even “Brik Pon Brik”. Despite being frowned upon immediately after their release, his recent singles have seemingly struck a liking with his fanbase and continue to rack up streams and radio plays.
While talking to Westwood, Skillibeng also mentioned the importance of sounding different in the industry and having his own unique style of approaching music.
“I try to be different and I try to build a whole new wave with my voice because I could do that and I’ve always heard that difference in my voice as an artiste.”
He was also very honest about his reception of criticism from fans and critics earlier on in his career and how it had affected him mentally. Skill highlighted that one of the major criticisms about him was his lack of stage presence while performing, but his response was always to let people know that it was his music that came first.
“That was one of the things I always told them, you’re not gonna see a Beenie Man, a Bounty Killer or a Sean Paul when I am performing, you’re gonna see Skillibeng,” Skilli said.
He admitted that this was predominantly the reason for his short break in doing performances for a while, as he wanted to improve his craft and increase his music catalogue in order to be ready for future events where his stage performances would be less criticized.
The live performance on Saturday was only just one of three shows Skillibeng had scheduled for his time in London. The other two were also sold out for the Jamaican artiste.
Skillibeng is expected to release his album in June of this year.
