Da'Ville
Background information
Birth nameOrville Thomas
Born (1976-01-24) 24 January 1976
OriginKingston, Jamaica
GenresReggae
Occupation(s)singer
LabelsPenthouse (2001–2004), Fashozy, VP
Websitedavilleofficial.com

Orville Thomas, better known by his stage name Da'Ville, is a Jamaican reggae singer.

Biography

Orville Thomas is the first child of Jah Thomas and Cleopatra Wright.[1] He was raised primarily by his grandmother Ms. Feama who instilled in him the principles of education and religion. She was a strict disciplinarian, who ensured that Da'Ville attended church and sang in the church choir. As a teenager, he continued to sing in the St. Peter Claver Church choir and performed in local school functions.

When highly successful groups emerged on the scene, Da'Ville became inspired to create a group of his own. After several unsuccessful attempts he continued to develop his craft until he graduated from high school. Upon graduation from Norman Manley Comprehensive High School, Da'Ville worked in a factory and as a store clerk. Shortly after, he was introduced to a newly formed group which later became ARP (A Raw Perspective).[2]

After working with former group members of ARP, in 2001 he signed with Penthouse Records as a solo artist under the management of Donovan Germain.[1][3] He recorded the hit singles "Cruzin", and "All My Life", the latter of which was recorded with then label mate, Marcia Griffiths. The single "All My Life" was nominated for the 2001 Reggae Soca Awards.

Da'Ville continued to record hit singles for producers such as: J.Brown, Fire Links, Stephen McGregor, Don Corleon, Preston Anfoy, Wee-Pow (Stone Love), Beres Hammond, Robert Livingston (Big Yard Music), and many more.

Aside from Da'Ville's vocal abilities, he is a songwriter, composer and producer. His early 2005 chart topping single "In Heaven", was produced by himself, O.Thomas and N.Palmer for Nap Musiq.

In January 2005 Da'Ville was introduced to Dj CurlyLocks of Federation Sound in Philadelphia. Together they started working on his breakout mix cd "A Moment With Da'Ville" which set the pace for Da'Ville's debut album In Heaven in 2005 produced and co-produced by O. Thomas, J. Brown and R.(Shams) Browne, for Fashozy Records, was released in Japan by Avex Entertainment Group. The album charted within the 2005 top ten best selling reggae albums for Japan Tower Records and led to numerous tours throughout Japan, Jamaica and the Caribbean Islands. As a result, in 2006, Avex released his second album Can't Get Over You, produced by O. Thomas and J. Brown for Fashozy Records. The albums included three successful singles – "In Heaven", produced by O. Thomas and N. Palmer for Nap Musiq, "Can't Get Over You", and "On My Mind", produced by O. Thomas and J. Brown for Fashozy Records.

In 2006, the singles "Can't Get Over You", "On My Mind", and "This Time I Promise" were all chart toppers.[4][5] The single "Can't Get Over You", which was a top ten hit in Jamaica, was number one on the reggae chart in Aruba and number two in New York, and was included on the VP album 2006 Reggae Gold. "On My Mind", held the top position on several charts including Jamaica (5 weeks), New York (3 weeks), Florida, Europe and Africa.[6] After a performance in New York City in early October, he was profiled in The New York Times. In December he was honoured with Stone Love's 'Singer of the Year' award 2006.[7]

In Spring 2007, after an extensive European tour, Da'Ville made several appearances in North America. He performed at The Best of The Best Concert in Florida, the 26th International Reggae & World Music Awards held at the Apollo Theatre where he was nominated in several categories and won Most Improved Entertainer for 2006. In addition, Da'Ville made a special guest appearance at Madison Square Garden and he also performed at Irie Jamboree V before leaving for yet another Japan and Caribbean tour.

One of his biggest hit singles, "Always on My Mind", was remixed with dancehall artiste Sean Paul.[7]

Da'Ville's latest album, Krazy Love, was released in May 2012, preceded by the mixtape Vitamin D.[1]

Thomas became a born-again Christian and relocated to Florida.[8] His first album in ten years is due to be released in 2022, with the first single taken from it, "Happy", released in February that year.[8]

Albums

  • In Heaven (2005)
  1. Mamas Portrait
  2. In Heaven
  3. Gallis
  4. Bring It On (Hey Baby)
  5. These Wounds
  6. Crazy
  7. Weh She Want
  8. Jump Off
  9. Out of My Head
  10. My Grade
  11. Love Will Show Me the Way
  12. All My Life
  13. This Is the Feeling
  14. She
  15. One for Me
  16. Chill
  • Can't Get Over You (2006)
  1. Intro
  2. Have You Ever
  3. On My Mind
  4. Can't Get Over You
  5. This Time I Promise
  6. Crying Over You
  7. Will You Be Mine?
  8. Baby I Wish
  9. Got To Love You More
  10. Tell Me Again
  11. Always By Your Side
  12. Cruizin
  13. Don't Say Goodnight
  14. Smoking
  15. No New Friends
  16. Thuggist
  17. Keep Holding On
  18. In Heaven (Accapella)
  19. In Heaven (Version)
  20. Outro
  • On My Mind (2007)
  1. Always on My Mind (Reprise) – Da'Ville, Sean Paul,
  2. Can't Get Over You
  3. All My Life – Da'Ville, Marcia Griffiths
  4. I'm in Love with You
  5. And So I Will Wait for You
  6. This Time I Promise
  7. Give Thanks for What You've Got
  8. My Grade
  9. Give It Up for My Baby
  10. Yesterday
  11. Have You Ever Been in Love?
  12. My Heart
  13. Dancehall Lovers Rock
  14. Always on My Mind
  • Ichiban (2009)
  1. ICHIBAN feat FIREBALL
  2. HOLD ME NOW
  3. MISSING YOU RIGHT NOW
  4. BLESSINGS A MULTIPLY feat DEMARCO
  5. NEVER GONNA CRY
  6. PERFECT
  7. AS I AM
  8. GAL YOU GONE
  9. FOREVER feat SHAGGY
  10. TURNING ME ON
  11. EYES
  12. YESTERDAY
  13. JUST ANOTHER DAY (THE VOICES)
  14. AWAY (BONUS TRACK)
  • Single Ready To Mingle (2011) Produced by Sherman de Vries & Scarecrow Beats
  • Krazy Love (2012)

References

  1. 1 2 3 Morgan, Simone (2012) "Singer Da’Ville returns with new album", Jamaica Observer, 29 June 2012, retrieved 30 June 2012
  2. ↑ "Da'Ville... Can't get over Archived 24 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Star, 14 July 2005, retrieved 19 February 2011
  3. ↑ "Reggae, Soca blend: ARP artist goes solo Archived 6 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Gleaner, retrieved 19 February 2011
  4. ↑ Evans, Teino (2006) "Da'Ville highlights his favourite songs Archived 24 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Star, 23 October 2006, retrieved 19 February 2011
  5. ↑ Evans, Teino (2007) "Roots reggae enjoys growth spurt Archived 6 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Gleaner, 5 August 2007, retrieved 19 February 2011
  6. ↑ "Da'Ville on everybody's mind Archived 24 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Star, 4 October 2006, retrieved 19 February 2011
  7. 1 2 "Da'Ville For Red Stripe Reggae Sumfest – July 15 thru 21st in Montego Bay, Jamaica Archived 20 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaicans.com, 22 June 2007, retrieved 19 February 2011
  8. 1 2 Jackson, Kevin (2022) "Da'Ville is a happy man", Jamaica Observer, 19 February 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2022
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.