BY SIMONE J. SMITH
From the moment I met Johnoy Williams (aka, TV Boss), I knew I was meeting a man who was on a mission. Jamaican actor and comedian TV Boss, known for his roles in music videos such as: I-Octane’s “Hurt by Friends,” Stephen Marley’s “Rockstone,” featuring Capleton and Sizzla, and Busy Signal’s “Stay So,” has produced a new single for Canadian-based Dancehall artist Kalico, and guess who was invited to be a part of the experience?
That is right, the Toronto Caribbean Newspaper was right there to welcome TV Boss to Canada. He is fortunate; he came on one of the warmest days of the year, and I told him that. The night we met up, Natasha VonCastle (Director of Communications – Promotions and Radio at VP Records), Kalico, and a group of us met up to sit down and share some Canadian hospitality.
I asked him that night what brought him to Canada.
“Working with Kalico and Natasha VonCastle brought me to Canada. I had a Canadian visa because I had worked on the film, “King of the Dancehall,” with Nick Cannon. When Kalico recorded the song (we will get to this in a bit), and I heard the lyrics, I was like Yes! Now it is time to come to Canada. It was time to go. It was a project that I was personally working on, and the vibe was right.”
Kalico Di King is one of Canada’s bubbling talents who has found a way to hybridize Reggae and Dancehall with influences of Hip-Hop and R&B. Doing so has stimulated the senses of second and third generation North American-Caribbean fans. Kalico’s most notable release “Bad mind,” tells the real-life tale of a youth who ran the streets and ended up turning his life around. His newest single “Clouds,” (here is the song TV Boss was talking about) produced by the one and only TV Boss Entertainment will appear on Kalico’s EP “Neilson Rd.”
“Cloud’s” was released on Friday April 14th, 2023 through VPAL Music, just in time to celebrate 420, The International Day of Marijuana. The Jamaican-Canadian collaboration came about when the riddim was sent to Kalico, who immediately began to pen the song, and like that; Cloud’s was born.
The team spent two days shooting the video, and there were some cameos from local celebrities including the one and only Lord Fury. I knew I wanted to speak with TV Boss more, but his time here was short, so we set up time to speak later that week when he got back to New York. When we finally caught up, he shared a little more about who TV Boss was.
“I was born in Portland, Jamaica, in the country. Life was what it was for kids growing up in the country; we would do all the kiddies things. I grew up in a godly home, which meant that every Sunday we had to go to church.”
TV Boss admits that entertainment is in his DNA. He was always surrounded by entertainment.
“I used to take drama class and my work would stand out,” TV Boss tells me.
“My Walk of Fame started in 2009, when I left high school. In just a couple of weeks, I got a commercial for Jamaica’s Ministry of Health, and it got very popular in Jamaica. It ran for six years. People started to know of me from that.
After that, I attended College at the Edna Manley School of the Performing Arts from 2011 – 2012. I started to say to myself, all right, money was coming in: clothes, party life you know. This was right after high school, so my mom told me to focus on education.”
He didn’t want to hype just off of his talents, so school it was. He had a chance to perform in the Jamaican Pantomime (a Cultural Performance). It ran from November 2012 to August 2013. It is a different type of acting for him, and it also introduced him to the world of film.
In between doing the show, he was doing music and became one of the most sought-after actors for: music videos, advertisements, plays and television series.
“I moved to America in 2018. I had spent a lot of time moulding TV Boss. It was time to start working on me. The world outside of Jamaica saw my work, but it was time to get things together.
The pandemic was rough; people were losing loved ones; the whole world was shut down. It was not something we ever thought we would see in our lifetimes. It affected me a lot. Everything that I had planned was pushed back. It was bittersweet for me, I was watching loved ones die, but I also had a son during that time. I drew closer to my family, and it drew a creative process out of me.
I figured out that I have a different side to the arts that I like; now I started working on the producing side of things. People would say to me, ‘Why don’t you get into producing?’ For me it was not the right time, but when we were on lockdown, I could focus on the producing side.”
The idea for his first riddim came about in a time when there were a lot of moving pieces in his life. It was a time when he was figuring out his next move, and all the songs on the riddim answered questions that he had.
“I got a call from Munga Honourable, and he told me he was working on an album. I was so excited, so I was like, ‘All right!” When I sent it to him, he emailed me back with a song recorded on the rhythm. I was shocked that it had manifested so fast for me. I have produced music for Kalico, Trey Star, just to name a few.
I need to come back over to Canada. The trip was short, but it was worth it. Meeting you, and receiving a warm welcome, I have to come back. I knew I chose the right time to come. Everything went smoothly with the music video.
The song “Clouds,” is about smoking ganja. The song is worth your listening time. It is a beautiful work of art.”
It absolutely is, and you can see the full video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SpTQowa_Ak