Throwback Thursdays: DJ Autograph on Carrot Jarrett x Sean Paul’s “Nice Time” (+ Video Mix)

Words by DJ Autograph

After some stellar contributions recently, we now have DJ Autograph holding down a monthly slot here on Throwback Thursdays. To celebrate, we had him cook up a bonus dancehall video mix, which you can watch here after the jump. New Yorkers, make sure to check him tonight at Brand New Machine NYC at Happy Ending in Chinatown, where he’ll be holding down the decks alongside our own Eddie STATS.

During my teenage years in Jamaica, I was heavily involved in sports and many other extracurricular activities, including my budding DJ career. With all of that taking up my time, it was unusual if I was home before 7 p.m. during the weekday. Consequently my mom thought it was a waste of money to pay for cable since I was never home and she didn’t watch TV except for the news. On my rare free weekends, I was stuck toggling between our two local stations CVM and JBC (now know as TVJ). Fortunately, both stations had their own hour-long music video programs that showcased both local and international music videos.

On one of those rare Saturdays, circa 1994, I watched a very well-done (for the time period, at least) and interesting video by two local artists covering Bob Marley’s “Nice Time.” The black-and-white video begins with a man with his back toward the camera throwing a handful of stones; in the background you can hear Bob’s voice from what sounds like a concert performance. After a chorus from two female singers, the dreadlocked singer is revealed to be Irvin “Carrot” Jarrett, formerly of Third World, Inner Circle, and The Wailers. Eventually, after Carrot’s verse and chorus and another Bob interlude, we see the young bearded deejay on the song, hat backwards and prancing around the screen. It’s… Sean Paul! Yes, the then-fresh faced, now-international dancehall superstar delivers a couple of verses in his signature style, in his first ever appearance in a music video. In fact, this is quite possibly his first appearance on record. The song and video made a lasting impression on me back then so, after rediscovering it recently, I had to share this gem with all the LargeUp readers.