ABC’s The Little Mermaid Live! is swimming to the small screen tonight at 8 pm and is bringing the star power! Auli’i Cravalho, Queen Latifah, and John Stamos are just a few of the famous names who will bring some of our favorite characters to life! Joining them as Sebastian is Shaggy, a singer whose name might sound familiar, but whose tunes definitely will jog your memory. Before the show tonight, here are five things you need to know about the artist.
1) He’s a Grammy winner. Shaggy has won two Grammys during his career. He won the 1995 Grammy for Best Reggae Album for Bombastic and won the same award again 2018 for his album 44/876. Among his two wins, he also has received seven nominations, courtesy of the Recording Academy. He also took home two Billboard music awards in 2001 for Top Male Artist and Male Albums Artist of the Year.
2) He was very popular in the 90’s. Shaggy rose to fame with a slew of songs that released in the mid-90’s and early 2000s. Some of his hits included “Bombastic” from 1995, “It Wasn’t Me” from 2000 and “Angel” from the same year! His tracks are super catchy and influenced by his heritage.
3) Shaggy was born and raised in Jamaica. The singer was born in Kingston, Jamaica on Oct. 22, 1968 and earned his nickname after the Scooby-Doo character. While he did spend most of his young life in Jamaica, at 18, he moved to Flatbush — an area of Brooklyn, NY — to join his mother. Shaggy’s music is heavily influenced by the reggae genre of his home, with fusions of pop.
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4) He’s collaborated with a famous rocker. Shaggy’s music seems like the exact opposite to the artist with whom he previously collaborated. The singer worked with English rocker Sting on the album 44/876 in 2018. The album featured 12 songs recorded between the two artists and went on to win the Grammy for Best Reggae Album in 2018.
5) Shaggy is a philanthropist. The singer has a foundation known as Shaggy and Friends — or The Shaggy Make A Difference Foundation (SMADF). The organization benefits the Bustamante Hospital for Children in Kingston, Jamaica. In 2016, Shaggy and a group of volunteers brought Christmas presents to the hospital for all the children to enjoy.