Sean Paul with the real name Sean Paul Henriques and born on January 8, 1973 is a Jamaican reggae singer. A winner of 2004 Grammy Award, Sean Paul actually belongs to Sephardic-Jewish, Ras Zubri, Portuguese, African and Chinese lineage. In 1997, Paul under the aegis of his Sweet Angel Production, together with Spanner Banner came up with the Jamaican chart-topper, "Ladies Man". The self-confidence he gained from this hit inspired him to hold some sessions with Jeremy Harding, the producer of Beenie Man's crossover hit, "Who Am I". Harding released the dancehall favorite "Baby Girl" and the more successful "Infiltrate" was what that followed.
Though sometimes compared to Junior Cat, Sean Paul's style bears close similarities to well-reputed DJ Spragga Benz. Aware of these comparisons, he developed a unique style widely acknowledged as "uptown". A series of hits followed like the "Deport Them", and the "Strategy". In 1998 many hit making albums emerged which notably included numbers such as "Work With It", "Hot Gal Today", "Report To Me" "Woman Yuh Hot", and "Faded".
The furor raised by the dancehall crew in Jamaica entailed most principal DJs teaming with many upcoming vocalists. Paul too was a party to this. Paul continued to bring out dancehall hits as a soloist; for this he associated with the Dutty Cup Crew, as well. During the winter of 1998, he did the recording of a version of the "Unda Wata" rhythm as "Ladies Man". The Unda Wata video showed a megamix of the tune with Buju Banton, Buccaneer, Machel, Beenie Man, and General Degree along with the singer. The highly successful promo with the all-star line-up was filmed at the Asylum Club in Kingston amidst tight security.
By 1999, Paul's career had gained a firm standing, when he embarked on a hectic tour programme to Europe, Japan and the United States. Collaborating with Mr. Vegas and American rapper DMX, Paul contributed to the soundtrack of Hype Williams' Belly. The hit remix of "Hot Gal Today" and the album release, Stage One, took Paul to the heights of fame in the USA.
In 2002, Paul’s "Gimme the Light" was a mainstream US Top 10 hit. With "Get Busy" in the following year he was even more successful. It steadily climbed the charts and reached the # 1 position in May. Racking up a sale of more than 1 million copies, Dutty Rock entered the US Top 10.
Paul became a familiar figure in the radio and TV broadcasting scene during the summer. He appeared on highly impressive hit singles namely Beyoncé Knowles ("Baby Boy") and Blu Cantrell ("Breathe"). His February 2005 Promo only album featured a new version of Paul's "Punkie" track from the ‘Dutty Rock’ album. "We Be Burning", a new song by Paul figured in April 2005's Promo Only Caribbean Series album. Of late, Paul has also joined with Nina Sky for his song "Touch My Body". ‘The Trinity’ is Sean Paul's album release for the year 2005. Interestingly, there is a flipside to his career; he also plays water polo for Jamaica so well.
