General Levy

Born in Park Royal in west London and raised between Harlesden and Wembley, General Levy, whose real name is Paul Scott Levy, belongs to the tradition of British ragga and dancehall deejays while holding a lasting place in the history of English jungle. Of Trinidadian descent, General Levy began writing at a very young age and built his first sound system as a teenager, before appearing with London scenes and collectives such as Third Dimension, Java One Love, Java and Tippertone. His early recordings circulated in the underground dancehall scene, after which Fashion Records released the albums The Wickeder General (1992) and Wickedness Increase (1993), where his rapid flow, clipped phrasing and talent for toasting unfold over reggae and ragga productions. In 1994, General Levy’s collaboration with M-Beat on “Incredible” strikingly linked the dancehall voice to the energy of jungle and drum and bass. Thereafter, General Levy alternated between solo projects and collaborations — notably with Top Cat on Rumble in the Jungle Volume One (1994), as well as Joe Ariwa, Danny Byrd, Sticky, Chase & Status, Fedde Le Grand and Spragga Benz — while continuing a discography that also includes New Breed (1999) and Spirit & Faith (2008).