The virtual “True Blue Sound Clash” on April 10, 2021 will feature Chris Goldfinger and Johnny Ringo facing off against each other. It will be hosted by VP Records on their Facebook page (facebook.com/vprecords/) & YouTube Channel (youtube.com/vprecords).
Former BBC Radio 1 deejay Christopher Clarke, professionally known as Chris Goldfinger, grew up in Kingston and attended Jamaica College. and moved to Britain in 1988 with his parents to further his education. He had played for students at the University of the West Indies with the Soul Symphony sound system and sold mix tapes to mini-buses touring the streets of the capital. When he visited reggae clubs in London, he realized they were out of touch with what was going on in Jamaica as they used only one record deck and rappers for “toasting” instead of the twin Technics turntables that allowed for looping beats and seamless mixes.
Chris Goldfinger formed the Asha World Movement sound system and by 1993, it had beaten all of the biggest British sound systems. He became known in Jamaica as the man who was “running England.” Ultimately, Goldfinger was asked by long-time reggae presenter David Rodigan of London’s Kiss FM to stand in for him. He was then invited to participate in Tim Westwood’s Capital radio station show, and when Westwood moved to Radio 1, he told Goldfinger that the station’s controller Matthew Bannister was searching for a reggae deejay. The Jamaican defeated 40 other candidates for the job and had his own reggae dancehall show on BBC Radio 1 from 1996 to 2009, where he interviewed artists including Damian Marley, Beenie Man, Chaka Demus and Pliers, Capleton, and Barrington Levy. Since leaving, he has made appearances on the 1Xtra Dancehall Mix show and owns the Tabú Lounge in Croydon. In 2012, he joined OnTop FM and tours extensively in Zimbabwe, Gambia, and Jamaica. The Chris Goldfinger Reggae Dancehall Show is broadcasted on 18 stations globally
Neilton “Johnny Ringo” Lee was born and raised in Mona Heights, Kingston. He attended St. George’s College and has been a dancehall deejay since the 1980s. During his career he has represented sound systems that include International, Road Star International, King Earthquake, Leo tech Hi Power, Katarock Sound, and Chinese Assassin. Johnny Ringo said he, his brothers, and some friends formed a sound system during his youth in Mona Heights called Studio B. This represented his introduction to the world of music, and after a time he and his brother Bobby Chin decided to focus on reggae and dancehall.
Later on, Johnny Ringo met Trevor Levy, the owner of Road Star Int’l and played with them for one night, after which Levy was so impressed with his talent that he asked the young deejay to go on tour with them. Johnny Ringo said his time with Road Star taught him to select and manage the true dancehall sound and to compete with other sound systems. He got most of his experience playing in Jamaican parishes and becoming adept at being a sound clash selector.
As Johnny Ringo gained experience internationally, his youngest brother Peter, who lived in Florida at the time, decided to launch his own sound and began doing mixed CDs. After receiving rave reviews he started the sound system Chinese Assassin, and Johnny Ringo moved to New York to help him manage and run the sound.
Chinese Assassin has played in Jamaica, Bermuda, Belize, Amsterdam, England, Canada, The Virgin Islands, Cayman Island, The Bahamas, Costa Rica and throughout North America. They have performed with Black Chiney, Mighty Crown, Bass Odyssey, Katarock, Poison Dart, Renaissance, Code Red, Adonai and Foundation from Groningen, Holland, and Byron Lee and the Dragonaires.
Johnny Ringo says he enjoys making people dance and “delivering feel good vibes.” His goal is to help other talented young artists receive the attention they need via Chinese Assassin. He plans to continue playing and teaching music “until the day I die!” he added.
A Sound Clash is a musical competition in which crew members/deejays from opposing sound systems use their skills to compete against one another. The MC for the clash will be popular radio personality, Steven “Sir Rockwell” Warner.
The True Blue Sound Clash of 2021, which will be held on April 10, 2021, is replacing the traditional True Blue weekend soccer event usually held every year, but cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021 True Blue soccer match would have been the 17th staging of this popular South Florida event. Past True Blue 2-day weekends attracted soccer enthusiasts from Canada, the Caribbean, Europe, and the USA. The yearly fundraising event provides the schools with the funding necessary to present scholarships to Jamaica College and St. George’s College students. The event is held in honor of Dennis Ziadie, who coached players at both schools to Manning Cup victories. Nearly 2,000 soccer enthusiasts and supporters typically participate in the annual event.
VP Records, which is based in New York City, is a pioneer in the reggae and soca music industry. VP Records is the only record label that represents the entire spectrum of Caribbean music. For more information, visit the website at http://www.trueblueweekend.com or our Facebook Fan Page – http://www.facebook.com/trueblueweekend
ABOUT THE JAMAICA COLLEGE OLD BOYS ASSOCIATION OF FLORIDA The Jamaica College Old Boys Association of Florida established in 2004 as a 501(c) (3). The Jamaica College Old Boys Association of Florida is committed to uphold the traditions of excellence of Jamaica College as one of the foremost educational institution in the country of Jamaica and to support the school in the development of its students.
ABOUT THE ST. GEORGE’S COLLEGE OLD BOYS ASSOCIATION OF FLORIDA St. George’s College Old Boys Association of Florida, Inc. was incorporated in 2004 as a charitable non-profit corporation under the General Non-Profit Association Law of the State of Florida. Our objectives are: To foster the development of educational and extracurricular resources at St. George’s College; To advance education by providing scholarships to graduating students of St. George’s College for matriculation in a college or university; To provide a vehicle through which individuals and corporations may make charitable contributions to the St. George’s College alumni fund.
