Elephant Man

Born in Seaview Gardens, in the Kingston area of Jamaica, Elephant Man, whose real name is O’Neil Bryant, established himself from the 1990s in Jamaican dancehall with a very physical deejay style based on toasting, interjections, a deep voice often pushed into falsetto, and a strong sense of dance rhythm. He first drew attention as part of the Scare Dem Crew—formed with Harry Toddler, Boom Dandimite and Nitty Kutchie at the instigation of Bounty Killer—before pursuing a solo career at the end of the decade. His discography has been built around a prominent presence on riddims and albums such as Comin’ 4 You (2000), Log On (2001), Higher Level (2001), Good 2 Go (2003), Monsters of Dancehall (2007), Let’s Get Physical (2008) and Dance & Sweep: Adventures of the Energy God (2010). Elephant Man moved between the Jamaican dancehall scene and more international circuits with tracks like Pon De River, Pon De Bank, Jook Gal and Nuh Linga, and collaborations with Seeed, Rihanna, Wyclef Jean and Kat DeLuna. He remains associated with a fast, percussive, movement-oriented dancehall crafted for both sound system and stage.