Profiles
Profile:Lil Rick
By pyramidentertainment.com
Feb 21, 2008, 7:06

Best known for his “wuk up” performance, a Bajan term used to describe his enviable pelvic gyration; Lil Rick has undisputedly earned himself the infamous title, “Hypa Dawg.” Guaranteeing his fans, non-stop hype from the moment he enters the stage, they watch in awe as he commands crowds of screaming fans to attempt his well-choreographed movements.

Since the release of well known tracks “Bumper Inspector” and “Hard Wine” in 1997, which marked his entrance onto the soca scene, he has released hit after hit and copped several titles throughout Barbados’ Crop Over festival. In 1998, he won the Party Monarch Title with “Down Behind the Truck”, in 2002 and 2003 he won both the Party Monarch and Road March Titles with hit singles “Hypa Dawg” and “Mash Up & Buy Back” respectively.

Throughout the years, Lil Rick has collaborated with several Barbadian artistes, soca diva Alison Hinds, Edwin Yearwood, Keann and Madd. He has also done several compilations with regional soca stars, Machel Montano and Iwer George from Trinidad and Jamaican dancehall artiste Lexxus.

In 2005, his album ‘Spontaneous’ was one of the most anticipated releases for the Crop Over festival demonstrating his prowess as a songwriter. He shocked fans with his rendition of the romantic ragga soca “Be My Girl” and his collaboration with Edwin Yearwood on the track “Friends” dispelled any rumours that there was any rivalry with his equally loved complement.

Together with the immensely popular “Do Fuh Do” which won him the Ragga Soca Monarch title in 2005 and the soca chart topping “Til Morning Come” which features on the Madness Rhythm, Spontaneous was one of the most heavily rotated albums in 2005.

Lil Rick’s fan base extends beyond the soca arena into the deejay and dancehall culture. Fans are guaranteed to find him deejaying across the island every weekend throughout the entire year irrespective of his involvement in the Crop Over festival.

Before entering the soca arena, Rick was the reigning dub king in Barbados. All he needed was a catchy beat with a dominant bass line and he would chant a rhyme over it, much to the delight of his audience. At the age of 16, he had honed and fine-tuned his chanting act to the point where he was opening for enormously successful reggae acts like Beenie Man. After a particularly impressive performance opening for reggae superstars Buju Banton and Mad Cobra it was his collaboration with well known producer Peter Coppin which produced a string of hits and propelled him into the soca arena and established him as a lyrical force in the music industry.

With four albums to his name - Challenge (1997), We Surviving (1999), More Hype (2003) and Spontaneous (2005) the majority of the music from this devoted father of four can be found on compilations executive produced by Monstapiece Entertainment.

In January 2006, Lil Rick was nominated in four categories for the 1st Annual Barbados Music Awards: Songwriter of the Year, Male Artiste of the Year, Best Selling Male Artiste of the Year and Entertainer of the Year. He was also awarded the Cornerstone award for his stellar contribution to the development of the Barbados music industry. He has maintained the Guinness ambassadorship for over 5 years and is presently the host of the most listened to radio show - the Guinness Rush Hour, every Saturday on HOTT 95.3 FM.

Also in 2006, Lil Rick was chosen from amongst Barbados’ leading entertainers to perform at the launch of MTV Tempo in Barbados captivating audiences across the world with his impressive waistline movements.

With the recent launch of the Hypa Dawg clothing line, Rick has once again demonstrated why he earned the name Chihuahua Business Man. Whether in the dub, on stage or off stage, his career continues to expand and evolve Lil Rick a.k.a. The Hypa Dawg a.k.a Chihuahua Business Man remains the most popular entertainer Barbados has ever seen.

Crop Over 2007 earned Lil Rick his fourth Party Monarch title with his infectious track “Caan Wait”.

His three songs released for Crop Over 2007; “Conch”; “Girls Gone Wild” and “Caan Wait”, are still receiving heavy rotation on the local airwaves and are now making their way to dominating the regional airwaves. These tracks are all featured on the Return of the Monsta album.

Lil Rick recently shot his “Girls Gone Wild” and “Caan Wait” music videos, which were directed by the international film director, Jay Will of Jay Will Films.