Short Ghad Says ‘Dancehall Is Back’ In Sweden

Sweden-based Jamaican dancehall artist Short Ghad is relishing his new-found role as a trailblazer on the dancehall scene in the European country.

“The dancehall scene in Sweden is growing right now because Ding Dong passed through at the club called Nefertiti in Gothenberg, and the club was sold out. Dancehall is back!” an ecstatic Short Ghad told DancehallMag.

The capacity of the Nefertiti club is over 400 patrons. 

“Afrobeats was the king in Sweden but now dancehall is back fi real, the scene is buzzing. Popcaan was in Stockholm last week at Ding Dong show on Saturday in Stockholm, so right now, it is major,” Short Ghad said. 

Short Ghad said there is a burgeoning reggae-dancehall scene called ‘Svensk-Reggae’ with artists such as Kapten Rod and Kaliffa. 

“Kaliffa does dancehall style and Afro-beat reggae same way, while Kapten Rod does reggae and dancehall and they have a growing movement, ah dem run the scene,” he said. 

Eek-a-Mouse, Norris Man and Stein (Einstein) are now based in Sweden. Clubs such as Sticky Fingers in Gothenberg.  The major dancehall promoters in Stockholm, Mike Yangsta, and Damian Siva, are the main drivers of the surge in dancehall’s popularity, organising most of the major dancehall events in Stockholm. This promotions duo ventured into music production when  they produced Chi Ching Ching’s single ‘Call the Money’ which was popular in the streets in Jamaica. 

In the meantime, Short Ghad is generating a great buzz in Europe with his debut reggae-pop album ”Feel Nice”.

“The album is a tribute to love. The inspiration for the album came from my own personal experiences, my surroundings and has a happy vibe. My vision is to create happiness and positivity, and inspire people to dream big, believe in themselves and achieve all their goals,” Short Ghad, whose real name is Conrad Dwayne Williams, said.

The 19-track album includes songs such as the lead single “Feel Nice”, the dancehall banger ‘Sekkle’ and ‘Right Type a Luv’. The album is an overall mix of classical dancehall fused with pop and R’n’B. Released on the 25th of February, the album achieved the number one spot on the pre-order list on iTunes (reggae) in Sweden. 

The single “Feel Nice” has ranked up over 128 000 streams on Spotify and over 500 000 streams on Facebook. Prior to its release, the album was trending on iTunes (Sweden) pre-order list. It was number one within the reggae genre, number two within the pop genre and number eighteen within all categories.

Short Ghad recently turned his attention towards getting his music more traction in Jamaica, and he has been amping up promotion of his Right Type a Luv single, which was released on the Short Ghad Entertainment / Axxionpack Records labels on January 2022.

“This is the song I am running with right now, I am getting a big feedback at the weekly events with this song, it is gratifying that my people are feeling my music. I am getting a lot of videos with the song playing,” he said.

Short Ghad is booked to perform on a show on October 29th in Manchester, United Kingdom.

He grew up in St Elizabeth, where he attended BB Coke High in Junction. After graduating, he became known as DJ Rizzle aka Short Ghad and started playing in clubs in the parish. He relocated to St Thomas where he built his reputation as a selector at various pool parties and events, before moving to Portmore in St Catherine. While in Portmore, he became more immersed in the behind the scenes aspect of the music industry, and became a road manager for artistes Jonnah and Jah Bouks of Angola fame.

He migrated to Sweden in 2014 and started to experiment more with the music. He honed his craft performing at bars and clubs in Stockholm, Sweden. Now he is ready to take it to the next level.

Short Ghad started his career as DJ Rizzle. Four years ago, he decided to whole heartedly focus on his passion: creating his own music. An important component in his music are the Jamaican influences that he creatively mixes with R’n’B and pop. He has been making inroads in the European market and recently performed at Öland Roots Festival in Sweden.