by Howard Campbell
SOUTH FLORIDA – As a member of Miami’s massive Latin community, singer/DJ/producer Felva is in tune with the diverse sounds that keeps party fans dancing. Those include reggaeton and dancehall.
On Starboy EP, he teams with Jamaican dancehall artist Popeye Caution and reggaeton star Jowell (best known as a member of Jowell and Randy).
The three-song project was released October 3 by Felva’s Maintain Music label.
Felva, who has Colombian and Ecuadorian heritage, is best known in Latin circles for songs like Pegao with Dominican singer Jason Cerda, Circo and Ronaldo. He has also collaborated with Jamaican music producers like Diplo of Major Lazer.
Starboy EP — which contains the songs, Asi Lo Hacemos, Jamaica, and Starboy Hot, is his most ambitious push to reach the dancehall market.
“I think one of the things I really like about making music with Popeye is the fact that Caribbean people are happy people, and they’re people that are open to all sorts of music. When I go to Jamaican parties, I hear Michael Jackson, I hear Madonna, I hear Sean Paul, Shaggy, I hear Daddy Yankee. I hear Jamaicans. They party,” he stated. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, they want their dancehall. They’re obviously true to their roots. But they party, they’re happy people, they like to dance. I think with this EP, the fact that it’s all dance-based, it’s all high-energy, it’s all things that you can move your body to, I think that’s a really easy way to capture a global audience.”
Reggaeton has a huge following in South Florida’s Spanish community as well as Latin America where the sound has its roots. The genre is strongly influenced by Jamaican dancehall music from the 1980s and early 1990s.
Jowell and Randy are one of reggaeton’s heavyweight acts. While Latin America and Spain are their strongest markets, the duo have a following in Monaco and Australia where they have performed.
Popeye Caution was born in Jamaica, but has lived in South Florida for many years. His hit songs include Bezerk.
