How Did Beenie Man Ever Forgive Bounty Killer For This One?
Bounty Killer is undeniably one of Dancehall’s most lyrical giants, and producer Skatta Burrell found some of his fighting words aimed at Beenie Man in the Sting archives.
“How did @kingbeenieman ever forgive Bounty for this one?” Burrell captioned a recent Instagram clip of the scathing diss delivered by Bounty to a roiling crowd in the early morning hours. Beenie Man sent a snarky reply in Burrell’s comments, acknowledging that the Warlord’s jabs inadvertently had adverse effects.
Both Dancehall icons were on a high in 1996. The wide appeal of Bounty Killer’s My Xperience LP pushed his rugged, rudebwoy image to new markets, selling over 100,000 units in the United States. A string of assists (including the hottest act at the time, the Fugees) and mainstream hits such as Fed Up, Benz & Bimma, Mi Nature, and Living Dangerously would earn the project a spot on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart.
Meanwhile, Beenie’s Maestro album featuring Romie, Blackboard, and Girls Dem Sugar among others was a compelling crossover attempt. Produced by his then manager, Patrick Roberts of Shocking Vibes, the project preceded his 1997 Virgin record deal which would take his career to King Of The Dancehall levels. Both rivals had clout, but only one could rule, and Bounty brought the Boxing Day show to a close with a blow-by-blow of the year that was.
“Tru me ah go bout mi ways/ Nah boost nuh clash fi last months and days/ Link up wit Fugees and create waves/ And Busta Rhymes weh di whole worl’ a praise/ My Xperiene album is a tornade/ Mi hit Billboard ah dat cock up dem ears”, Bounty began.
The deejay then took things into the Deadly Zone, raining down some below-the-belt lines about Beenie’s then-girlfriend, Dancehall Queen Carlene.
“Patrick Roberts warn him, him won’t behave/ Mi wonda if di bwoy eva check all him age/ Look like him waan die inna him young days/ A nuh me Carlene tun inna masquerade/ Put yuh innna draws and bore yuh two ears/ Put yuh inna lipstick an yuh hair braid,” he spit acapella.
While fans in the comments were busy highlighting the thrills of Dancehall in its heyday, The Doctor entered the chat to end Skatta’s curiosity. “U really waah know” Beenie shot back with a couple of laughing emojis, but Burrell, who was one step ahead replied, “I think I already know “D” answer.”
It seems Bounty’s annihilation from the archives may have ricocheted into recent history.
Beenie Man sent tongues wagging when he married his arch-rival’s ex-girlfriend D’Angel back in 2006, just months after the two ended their seven-year relationship. Despite his stone-cold cadence on and off stage, Bounty, during an interview with Dancehall Queen Spice last December, confessed to feeling “hurt” and “vex” by the move. D’Angel responded a week later and said she didn’t mean to hurt him.
It’s a side of the Killer we rarely see, and even Spice was taken aback by his openness.
As the Sting clip makes clear, Bounty usually reserves his honesty for timeless, hard-hitting ghetto anthems and seething clash rhymes reeled off in his gruff baritone.
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Following their VERZUZ clash last year, both Beenie Man and Bounty Killer are set to drop new albums in 2021: Simma and Kings of Kingston.