The Story Behind The Song: A Car-Washer Inspired Seanizzle’s ‘One Day’ Riddim And Title Track

Dancehall music producer Seanizzle says the popular One Day juggling riddim and its titular hit single, both crafted by him, were inspired by a man who was washing cars for a living on Red Hills Road in St. Andrew.

“This riddim was inspired by me going to a car wash one Friday evening around 4:00.  I never figet.  And there was this dude weh a wash di the vehicle an mi a hol a vibe wid him and mi si him just start talk to himself, an jus stop an a look inna di air an seh ‘Jah know, look Clarks a fi $9,600 and my pay a $6,000 a week.   Man like me would never own a Clarks’,” the producer recounted in a recent Bridge 99 FM interview.  

“An mi naw lie, dat jus resonate wid mi one different kind of way.  An mi guh a mi yard an mi still a memba it; still a meds it and mi a seh, ‘Jah know it rough out deh enuh’.  Imagine Clarks at dat time was di craze an everybody a wear Clarks and you want a Clarks and yuh caan buy it, (although you) work hard every day. Suh is like mi guh a mi bed and inna mi subconscious, it still deh deh,” he added.

According to Seanizzle, at daybreak, he took immediate action, based on the inspiration he got from the car washer’s comments.

“Mi jus wake up 6:00am, just guh inna di studio.  Mi nuh have a clue, but mi jus have a urge fi guh in deh.  An I just start build di riddim same time and while mi a build it, mi just find myself a sing seh ‘even though things ration, still want a Clarks an mi short pan di cash an’.  An right deh suh it just flow,” he explained, quoting lines from the One Day single.

In a PBC interview in February 2023, Seanizzle had said that on the Sunday morning when he went into the studio, the lyrics began popping into his head, so he immediately went into the recording booth and voiced the track, even though recording a song for himself was not his original intention.  

“Mi walk inna di studio, turn on di computer and jus start mek di riddim.  And while making di riddim, the words start to forward same time.  An mi jus run guh inna di booth with jus di strings and just record whatever came to my mind and what came was the One Day song,” he explained.

When asked how he chose the artists to sing on the beat, Seanizzle said it was not of his doing but was divinely ordained.

“I never choose the artist. A God choose the artist.   Because when I did my song on it, I never see myself doing the song as an artiste,” he said.   

The producer, whose given name is Sean Reid, went on to outline how things unfolded, including how a string of artists, whom he did not expect, had visited the studio and immediately voiced songs on the riddim, all reportedly on a single day.

“Later down that day Mr G voice his song on di riddim.  We in di studio, Fambo jus visit mi an seh him a fly out suh him a come gi mi a link before him leave.  Two-twos mi hear di man seh ‘Seanizzle, yuh a guh mek mi bun up out deh?’   Mi a seh ‘how dah voice yah sound suh familiar?’  When mi look, nuh Beenie Man; just randomly wake up an seh yow, mi energy seh fi guh check Seanizzle’,” he explained.

The One Day riddim cemented Seanizzle’s national status as a formidable producer in Dancehall, as all tracks which it spawned became national and crossover hits, among them Nah Sell Out by Khago, I’m OK by Beenie Man, the Rum and Red Bull collab featuring Beenie Man and Future Fambo; Don’t Tell Nuhbody by Twins of Twins, Wifey Walk Out by Liquid, and Seanizzle’s own motivational One Day track.  

Swaggariffic, the track by Seanizzle’s mentor Mr. G was even adapted by South American telecommunications giant, America Movil (Claro) as a jingle for its Jamaican market, providing even more radio airtime for the bouncy and memorable riddim.

For Seanizzle, the life-altering One Day beat also proved that there is no need to push aside artists who may not be “running the place” when a riddim is created in favour of those who are seemingly “hot”.

“Everything about the whole project was significant at the time. None of the artists on di riddim wasn’t at the forefront, but every song that was recorded gave me goosebumps, like  mek mi know seh something special a happen right here,” he said.

“Dah project deh start change everything.  It changed my life in every instance, you know… create many doors and the keep on leading from one door to the next,” he added.

Seanizzle also produced the Gully Creeper riddim on his Seanizzle Records label, which has also yielded several cross-over hits. 

The Pembroke Hall High School old boy made his official foray into Dancehall in 2005 with the Reverse riddim which featured Beenie Man’s Reverse The Ting, Busy Signal’s Black and White Affair, and Tony Matterhorn’s Sidung Pon It, as well as Ragga Ragga by Ninjaman and Devonte.   

A year later, he established Seanizzle Records, where he produced other riddims such as Outada, Split Personality, 47th Floor, and 90’s Don Dadda.   He has also recorded numerous songs for Dancehall singjay I-Octane, among them Gal A Gimmi Bun, Hustlers Anthem, and Suh Good.