Rodney Basil Price (born 12 June 1972), known as Bounty Killer, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay. AllMusic describes him as "one of the most aggressive dancehall stars of the '90s, a street-tough rude boy with an unrepentant flair for gun talk".

Biography

Early life and career

Price moved to Kingston at an early age, along with his mother and siblings. Price started his musical career as a sound system deejay in his early teens. One of his first tunes was the "Coppershot", which Jammy was unwilling to release due to its lyrics glorifying gun culture.

In 1993, Price performed at the popular reggae festival Sting (held in Portmore, Jamaica every year on Boxing Day), whereupon he had a high-profile clash with fellow deejay Beenie Man. The rivalry continued through the 1990s, with both accusing the other of a stolen act. They settled their differences after both realized the negative effect their feud was having on the industry.

2000s

Further success followed with albums such as Ghetto Dictionary Volume I: Art of War and Ghetto Dictionary Volume II: Mystery, the latter receiving a Grammy nomination, which he lost to veteran Reggae producer Lee Scratch Perry, Bounty Killer later admitting that he felt he should have won the award, as Lee Scratch should have won that category during his glory days. would incite harassment against the gay community. He returned in 2006 after a three-year hiatus, performing uncensored lyrics at several venues without recrimination. He has since directed his focus to social commentary and party lyrics, admitting that he will not pay attention to nor attack the gay community in his music.

In 2014, Bounty Killer and long-term rival Beenie Man put aside their differences and recorded a single together, "Legendary". The two performed a well-received Verzuz battle together on Instagram during the COVID-19 pandemic quarantine on 23 May 2020.

Bounty revealed as of June 2020, he had a new album in the works with Damian Marley as the executive producer.

Personal life

Price was arrested twice at the annual Reggae Sumfest: he was arrested but not charged in a 2001 altercation with another performer, and arrested and charged in 2008 for using profanity during his performance. He was also arrested on 3 February 2009, after allegedly running seven traffic lights in Kingston, Jamaica, and charged with refusal to take a breathalyzer test and disobeying red lights.

Price was arrested by police in June 2006, and charged with assaulting the mother of his child. According to the Jamaica Star, "The complainant was allegedly punched in the face several times, dragged some distance away and her head slammed into a wall."

Foundation

In 2018, Price started a charity called the Bounty Killer Foundation with a series of donations to the Kingston Public Hospital in Jamaica which he said had treated his gun shot wound in 1986. In 2020, Price through his foundation made a cash donation to Jamaican reggae singer Junior Byles, who suffered from mental illness and cancer.

Discography

Albums

  • Roots, Reality & Culture (VP Records) (1994)
  • Jamaica’s Most Wanted (Greensleeves Records) (1994)
  • Guns Out (Greensleeves Records) (1994)
  • Face to Face (VP Records) (1994)
  • Down in the Ghetto (Greensleeves Records) (1994)
  • No Argument (Greensleeves Records) (1995)
  • My Xperience (VP Records/TVT Records) (1996)
  • Ghetto Gramma (Greensleeves Records) (1997)
  • Next Millennium (VP Records/TVT Records) (1998)
  • 5th Element (VP Records) (1999)
  • Ghetto Dictionary – The Mystery (VP Records) (2002)
  • Ghetto Dictionary – The Art of War (VP Records) (2002)
  • Nah No Mercy – The Warlord Scrolls (VP Records) (2006)

Riddim Album features

Bounty Killer has singles featured on more than 500 various riddim/rhythm album productions worldwide throughout his reggae dancehall music career spanning from the early 1990s to present day.

EPs

  • Raise Hell on Hellboy (PayDay Music Group) (2009)
  • Summertime – Bounty Killer (Feat. Patexx) (Syndicate Records) (2010)
  • Summertime – Buss Out Remix (Bounty Killer Feat. Busta Rhymes & Patexx) (Syndicate Records) (2011)

US singles

{| class="wikitable"

|-

! style="width:15px;" rowspan="2"| Year

! style="width:343px;" rowspan="2"| Title

! colspan="2"| Chart Positions

! style="width:343px;" rowspan="2"| Album

|-

! style="width:60px;"| <small>Billboard Hot 100</small>

! style="width:86px;"| <small>US R&B/Hip-Hop</small>

|-

| 1994

|"You Don't Love Me (No, No, No) (World of Respect '94 Mix)" (featuring Dawn Penn, Dennis Brown and Ken Boothe)

| style="text-align:center;"| 58

| style="text-align:center;"| 42

| Come Again

|-

| 1996

|"Change Like the Weather" (featuring Junior Reid and Busta Rhymes)

| style="text-align:center;"| 58

| style="text-align:center;"| 42

| rowspan="2"| My Xperience

|-

| 1997

|"Hip-Hopera" (feat. Fugees)

| style="text-align:center;"| 81

| style="text-align:center;"| 54

|

|-

| 1998

|"Deadly Zone" (feat. Mobb Deep and Big Noyd)

| style="text-align:center;"| 79

| style="text-align:center;"| 48

| Next Millennium and Blade soundtrack

|-

| 2001

|"Hey Baby" (No Doubt feat. Bounty Killer)

| style="text-align:center;"| 5

| style="text-align:center;"| –

| Rock Steady

|-

| 2002

|"Guilty" (Swizz Beatz feat. Bounty Killer)

| style="text-align:center;"| –

| style="text-align:center;"| 104

| Presents G.H.E.T.T.O. Stories

|-

| 2005

| "P.S.A. B.K. 2004" (feat. Jay-Z)

| style="text-align:center;"| –

| style="text-align:center;"| 75

| N/A

|-

| 2015

| "Bitch Better Have My Money (Don Corleon Dancehall Remix)" (with Rihanna and Beenie Man)

| style="text-align:center;"| –

| style="text-align:center;"| –

| N/A

|}

References

  • Greensleeves Records' Biography of Bounty Killer (copy at the Internet Archive)