WAGGY TEE: HITMAKER
SOUTH Florida-based selector/disc jock Andre “Waggy Tee” Chue-sang and his Waggy Tee Movements (sound system) have been instrumental in breaking several hit songs on mainstream radio the United States.
The list includes Fever by Vybz Kartel (which hit the Billboard R&B chart and later certified gold),
Toast by Koffee (also a hit on Billboard), Nah Mad by Munga, and Brik Pan Brik by Skillibeng.
According to Brian Greenspoon, publicist for Skip Marley, Waggy Tee was the first to premiere Marley’s
Slow Down, which scaled several Billboard charts last year.
“Waggy Tee premiered
Slow Down and played it for several weeks while the rest of the world caught on,” said Greenspoon.
Waggy Tee and his cadre of selectors that comprise Waggy Tee Movements are hosts of the weekly Bashment
Explosion Show, which airs on South Florida commercial radio station WEDR 99.1 FM more popularly known as 99
Jamz.
The show has been on the air for the past 24 years and is the longest running one of its kind on mainstream radio. It airs Friday nights from 12:00 am – 2:00 am.
“I decided to promote the music out of the love and respect for the culture. I was inspired by different sound systems in the community while growing up,” Waggy Tee told the Jamaica Observer’s Splash.
Originally Ensom City in Spanish Town, Waggy Tee (now in his mid-50s) started his sound system 10 years ago. The other members who comprise the sound are Rue “Bad Boy Rue” Ark, Patrick “Patrick Ewing” Dubois, Diego “Diego Don” Brown and Windel “Lazah” Dixon. All the members, with the exception of Dubois, are Jamaicans.
He describes the sound as a versatile one.
“We can play at any event or function. The versatility is one of the things that has kept us going for the past 10 years,” he said.
A few years ago, the Miami-based Waggy Tee Movements won a sound clash against City Heat, a sound from Fort Lauderdale.
For the 10th anniversary, the sound is looking to keep the momentum going, despite the novel coronavirus
pandemic.
“This is our 10th anniversary and we plan to celebrate in a big way safely and in accordance with the COVID-19 protocols,” said Diego Don.
Asked why there aren’t many Jamaican records making an impact on mainstream radio in America at present, Diego Don said, “The quality of the music has dropped and there aren’t street promotions taking place to actively promote the songs. That needs to change if we want to see more of the songs from Jamaica making an impact in mainstream America.”