Badda Flex

Reggae music is reaching a new frontier and Badda Flexx is blazing the trail.<BR>
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Badda Flexx aka Skillinjah was born Kyle G. Bell December 5, 1984, in Houston Texas. Badda Flexx and had a modest beginning in Houston, sharing a one-bedroom apartment with his parents and older brother. At the age of three, the Bell family moved to Springfield, Missouri in pursuit of a better life. <BR>
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Badda Flexx was introduced to reggae music, a genre he hadn't before experienced, at age eleven. While attending his brothers soccer game he heard the teams theme music, which was a selection from Peter Tosh's Equal Rights album. Badda Flexx fell in love in the smooth vibes and pleaded with his mother to buy him the album, within a week he had learned every song. He then began to learn and embrace the Jamaican culture by studying such artists as Super Cat, Beenie Man, and Bob Marley. <BR>
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In the spring of 2000, Badda Flexx began performing in the underground dancehall circuit in Jamaica. He quickly became an underground sensation releasing a single on VP Records and even charting on the Jamaican charts. Soon after getting back to the states Badda Flexx joined a reggae band called Jah Roots from Springfield Missouri. As a member of Jah Roots he toured the country performing for mostly Midwest white audiences. Badda Flexx has since gained a fan base stretching internationally, having released singles in France, Germany, and Japan. <BR>
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In February 2006, Badda Flexx began working with New Jersey based producer, Donahue Baker. "I flew out to Missouri to see him perform and it was an incredible experience. I realized then that he was going to be a big talent in dancehall music. It was unbelievable to see white girls in the Midwest sing along with his songs being that hes a dancehall artist", says Donahue. <BR>
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Badda Flexx is definitely making a name for himself and creating a buzz in the world of dancehall music. He is currently in the studio working on his debut album, which he hopes will be picked up by a major label. His song Babylon Wipe Out on the Wipe Out riddim (produced by Danger Zone) is currently buzzing in Jamaica, getting heavy rotation on Irie FM and Hot 102. <BR>
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"My plans for the future include bringing dancehall music to both Middle America and the masses. I want to continue to open up new people to the culture, the same way artists such as Sean Paul, Beenie Man, Jr. Gong, and others have done before me", says Badda Flexx. body{ background-image:url(http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/FlyGirl60/40ef55ee.jpg); background-position:Center Center; background-attachment:fixed; background-repeat:no-repeat; } Table, Td{ background-color:transparent; } table table table{ width:100%; background-color:660000; filter:30; opacity:0.30; -moz-opacity:0.30; } table table table table{ width:auto; } body, div, p, strong, td, .text, .blacktext10, .blacktext12, a.searchlinkSmall, a.searchlinkSmall:link, a.searchlinkSmall:visited{ color:CC0000; font-size:14pt; font-weight:normal; font-style:normal; font-family:Georgia, verdana, arial, sans-serif; } .orangetext15, .lightbluetext8, .whitetext12, .nametext, .btext, .redtext, .redbtext{ color:FFCC00; font-size:12pt; font-weight:bold; font-style:normal; font-family:Verdana, verdana, arial, sans-serif; }
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By Shanique Palmer Observer TeenAge writer Tuesday, November 23, 2004 ------ <BR>
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Usually, when people envision dancehall artistes they imagine someone from the inner city communities of Kingston who has been through some struggle with poverty, violence and gangs. Upcoming dancehall deejay Baddaflexx (SkillinJah), however, is quite the opposite.<BR>
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"I just fell in love with the music," he says. It was also around this time while nurturing this new liking that he managed to get his hands on dancehall CDs from deejay Supercat, deejay Tenor Saw and a mixed CD titled Lethal Riddims. <BR>
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He latched on to dancehall music because he felt that this is what would make him different from everyone one else and stand out, especially in his small hometown. <BR>
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He was right because he definitely did stand out as no one else there really knew what dancehall was or even understood what it was about.<BR>
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Here, like popular 1990s DJ Snow, Baddaflexx (SkillinJah) has confronted us with this unusual phenomenon in dancehall - a white man deejaying in patois. He is even often compared with successful rapper Eminem for being a skilful white lyricist participating in an area where black people are overwhelmingly dominant. <BR>
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He says that at first it was very difficult getting into the business: "People will look at you and not take you seriously but once you prove that you do possess the skills, people will recognise you no matter what colour you are. It is all about the talent and the dancehall lovers know talent when they hear it." <BR>
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Baddaflexx (SkillinJah) has been in Jamaica for about seven years pursuing his music career. In 1999, he started performing and since then has created a buzz in New York and Miami. In his Sting Miami debut performance, Baddaflexx was so well received by the crowd that despite the time constraint the crowd demanded an encore. <BR>
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He has released 3 albums to date titled Cut-A-Check,Steal From Tha Rich, and Babylon Weak Heart with live back-up band Jah Roots.