Reggae Veteran Horace Andy Says He’s Got 30 Children With 17 Women
Reggae veteran Horace Andy, best known for his 1970s hit Skylarking, has revealed that he has fathered 30 children with 17 different women.
On a recent Entertainment Report podcast episode, the 73-year-old singer discussed the challenges of his five-decade career, including two incidents in Miami and Washington, DC, where promoters left him stranded and even threatened him with violence. These experiences, Andy explained, fueled his determination to provide for his large family.
“We have children and we have to support them and that’s why we have to come and travel,” he told host Muscle. “Work me a work, me get 20 daughters and 10 boy pitney. My youngest child is four years old. Suh mi affi work.”
Interestingly, Andy recounted that it was a woman, who helped him to escape the precarious situation in Miami.
“That’s why me love woman so,” he said with a laugh. “Is a woman come to mi rescue, me just make a call and she just drive come and park round a back and me make a escape.”
Later in the interview, the singer also revealed that none of his children are of Jamaican birth, having been born between America and England.
When asked about the number of women he fathered children with, Andy couldn’t help but throw his head back and laugh.
“Seventeen!” he replied. “You get two kids, two kids, you know. Remember, you know, some of them were young and live with them parents, we nah think about family them time.”
Despite the large number of mothers involved, Andy emphasized his commitment to his children’s well-being. “One ting…I mind them…I take care of dem…Them nah have to beg nobody nothing. Mi always deh deh fi dem,” he said.
“The last time when the tour last three months, when I reach the airport and the first one reach me, him a cry ‘daddy, mi miss you, don’t go way again’. So right know you know what happen now, because you know mother nah spend money like we.”
Horace Andy emerged from the legendary Studio One, following in the footsteps of Reggae greats like Alton Ellis, Ken Boothe, Bob Andy, and Delroy Wilson. Got To Be Sure, the song he had auditioned with, became his first release for Studio One in 1970.
The following two years were prolific, with hits like See a Man’s Face, Night Owl, Fever, and Mr. Bassie. Among these, Skylarking stands out as a crowning achievement. Initially featured on a compilation album, its popularity led to a standalone release that topped the Jamaican charts and solidified Andy’s status as a rising star.
The mid-70s saw Andy collaborate with producer Bunny ‘Striker’ Lee, resulting in classics like a re-recorded Skylarking, Just Say Who, Don’t Try To Use Me, You Are My Angel, Zion Gate, I’ve Got to Get Away, and a new version of Something on My Mind.
In 1977, Andy left Jamaica to work with top producers in the US and England.
His career reached new heights in the 1990s when he began collaborating with the Bristol trip-hop pioneers Massive Attack, contributing to all five of their albums – the only artist to do so.
The Entertainment Report interview also touched on Andy’s early life in Jamaica, his admiration for Leroy Sibbles, his influence on reggae legend Dennis Brown, and his grievances with producer Bunny Lee. Watch it below.