Tarrus Riley facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tarrus Riley
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Riley at the Summerjam Festival 2013
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Omar Riley |
| Born | 26 April 1979 The Bronx, New York, United States |
| Origin | Kingston, Jamaica |
| Genres | Reggae |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments |
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| Years active | 2005–present |
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| Associated acts | Major Lazer, DJ Snake, Ellie Goulding |
Tarrus Riley (born Omar Riley on April 26, 1979) is a famous reggae singer. He was born in the Bronx, New York, in the United States, but grew up in Jamaica. Tarrus is also part of the Rastafari movement.
About Tarrus Riley
Tarrus Riley was born in New York, USA. He moved to Jamaica when he was young. His father, Jimmy Riley, was also a well-known reggae singer. Tarrus started recording music when he was a teenager. His first album, Challenges, came out in 2004.
Tarrus Riley has won many awards for his music. He has been named Best Singer, Male Vocalist, and Cultural Artiste. His songs have also won "Song of the Year." Some of these awards come from the Youth View Awards and the Reggae Academy Awards. In 2009, his song "She's Royal" won an award for being the "Most Admired Song in the Past 15 Years" in Jamaica.
In 2009, Tarrus released his third album, Contagious. This album included popular songs like "Start Anew" and "Good Girl Gone Bad." In 2010, his song "Protect the People" became a big hit in Jamaica and other Caribbean countries. He also released "Shaka Zulu Pickney" in 2011, which was about Black History. The music video for this song was very popular.
Tarrus Riley cares about teaching young people about Black History. He even started the Tarrus Riley Freedom Writers Competition. This competition was held on a radio station in Jamaica.
He has performed on many stages around the world. People in the Caribbean, North America, and Europe have praised his live shows. He often tours Europe each year, playing at major reggae festivals. He has also performed at big events like the Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival and Reggae Sumfest.
In 2012, Tarrus released an acoustic album called Mecoustic. He toured Europe with his band, Blak Soil, to support this album.
In 2014, he released the album Love Situation. He worked with saxophonist Dean Fraser on this album. Tarrus said it was a tribute to the "rocksteady era" of music. This album was his first to reach number one on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart.
Tarrus Riley has also worked with other famous artists. In 2015, he was featured on the song "Powerful" by Major Lazer, along with Ellie Goulding. In 2020, he worked with producer Rvssian and artist Shenseea on the song "Lighter." This song became one of his biggest hits in Jamaica and the Caribbean.
Awards and Nominations
Tarrus Riley has received many awards and nominations for his music:
- 2007: Jamaica Observer Artiste of the Year
- 2008: Excellence in Music and Entertainment (EME) Awards – Male Vocalist of Year Award, Song of The Year ("She's Royal")
- 2008: Reggae Academy Awards – Best Reggae Song, Most Popular Song (both for "She's Royal"), Best Solo Male Vocal Performance, Breakthrough Reggae Artiste
- 2009: Caribbean-American Heritage Awards – Reggae Runnins Caribbean Heritage Award
- 2009: MOBO Awards – Best Reggae (nominated)
- 2009: Soul Train Music Awards – Best Reggae Artist (nominated)
- 2011: EME - Excellence in Music and Entertainment (Jamaica) – Cultural Artiste of the Year and Vocalist of the Year (Male)
- 2011: Youth View Awards (YVA's) – Cultural Artiste of the Year
- 2011: UNIA Marcus Garvey Award – For Contribution of Music
- 2014: MOBO Awards – Best Reggae Act (nominated)
Albums
Here are the studio albums released by Tarrus Riley:
- Challenges (2004), VP
- Parables (2006), VP
- Contagious (2009), VP
- Mecoustic (2012), VP
- Love Situation (2014), Zojak World Wide
- Healing (2020), JukeBoxx Productions/Zojak World Wide
