Striva 1X Delivers A ‘Letter’ About Pain And Betrayal

Dancehall youngblood Striva 1X is a big advocate for the rise of trap dancehall as a sub-genre .

“I see nothing wrong with trap dancehall .. the new sound is what people are listening to now. So why not make room for that sound an get it out there like the original dancehall sound,” the young Clarendon-born artist, who is also a producer, said. 

Jamaican trap-dancehall music is a sub-genre of music that has raised eyebrows because of its central focus on gun violence, obeah and the glorification of criminal lifestyles such as scamming. Some fans feel that labeling the music as “dancehall” is causing global confusion, and feel it ought to be called Jamaican drill music because it is primarily made for males and is actually UK drill-influenced.

“There is no need to create fake labels to create divisions within music…it’s still Jamaican music. This new sound can be used to convey deep emotions, pain, and even can sing party songs, violence, almost everything, this is the sound for right now, trap, drill, whatever, the streets love it,” he said. 

The name ‘trap dancehall’ was not coined until around 2017 when Montego Bay artist Rygin King, also referred to as Trap Lord, released his hit single Tuff, which was produced by Dane Ray. The origin of the sub-genre is obscure, but King is widely regarded as the man responsible for popularizing Trap in Jamaica, through Tuff. In a 2019 interview, Rygin King had described Trap Dancehall as a fusion of his favorite genres, Rap, Hip hop and Dancehall which gives a unique melody due to “longer beats and a hook”.

The young producer is experimenting with a mash-up of sounds with his latest single, Letter, which was released with emotional visuals on August 8.  

“The Letter is a song about betrayal at the hands of friends and lovers, and about the process a man has to go through to harden his heart and show no emotions to survive in a cold cold world,” the producer-artiste, whose real name is Kishawn Sterling, said.

The song has meditational vibe and features standout sure-fire lines like “fimi emotions caan show on Google Map”, and “dem loyalty de pon a shelf, easy fi sell out”.  

The song was co-produced by Bloodline Muzic and Striva’s own 1X Music Group.

Striva 1X hails from Milk River in Clarendon. He began doing music at an early age, and honed his talents while attending Kemps Hill High school. He migrated to live in the USA in 2017 and he currently resides in the state of Virginia.  

 Aside from music, he also does music and video production and graphic designing. He is very invested in the idea of using his label to produce and develop emerging dancehall artistes from his home parish of Clarendon. 

 “I believe that Clarendon has a wealth of talent, the previous generation of Freddie McGregor, the Clarendonians, Omi, Everton Blender, Levi Roots all did well, and I want to help nurture the upcoming generation,” he said.

As a music producer, he has worked with artistes such as Shaka, Kundon, Madking, Maddar and Kasha. The most popular song he has produced to date is Shaka’s Changes which has racked up over 100,000 views on YouTube. 

“As far as music is concerned, I am bringing the full package. I am also paving a way and making my own lane while doing dancehall and reggae music,” said Striva 1X.