Respect | Selwyn Brown

Irie Magazine presents Selwyn Brown

Selwyn Brown

Biography

Selwyn is renowned as a founding member, keyboardist, singer, songwriter, producer, and workshop director of reggae artist, Steel Pulse. Born in London to parents Simeon and Dezrene who migrated from Jamaica, Brown moved to Birmingham in the early 1960s. With Steel Pulse, Selwyn composed the following hits: ‘Babylon Makes The Rules’, ‘Don’t Be Afraid’, ‘Melting Pot’, ‘Love This Reggae Music’, ‘Stay With The Rhythm’, ‘Soul of my Soul’, and co-writer of ‘House of Love’.

Over the years, Brown has collaborated with numerous artists and musicians on various projects. One of his current projects is Pulse Beat, a Steel Pulse tribute band co-managed with former Steel Pulse founding member and iconic drummer, Steve ‘Grizzly’ Nisbett. Other recent projects include collaborations with Jerry Johnson, Sidney Mills, Wayne “C#” Clarke, Broussai, Easy Star, as well as local Birmingham talent including Josh Brown, Wizi, Derrick Brown (Mommas House Recordings), Cipher Jewels, Jason Taylor/Owen Wilson of TMA (The Movement Army), Donna Sterling and Poppa Biggie.

Recently, Brown composed a song to mark Jamaica’s 50th anniversary of Independence: “Jamaica (Land of wood and water),” recorded with Pulse Beat and produced by Louie Brooks. Brown also conducts recording and Reggae History workshops in schools/hospitals/community centers and will be including some of the songs on a children’s album.

Celebrating Black History

“I originally wrote the song as a theme piece for a workshop that I directed at Birmingham Children’s Hospital (BCH) in October 2012. October is Black History Month in the UK so I wanted to create a song that would educate people about Black heroes and their achievements and also uplift people’s spirits at the same time. The original was a scaled down version with me playing all the parts on keyboards. The kids voices you hear are some of the patients who were hospitalised at the time, some with serious illnesses. Their enthusiasm was incredible despite their ailments. This updated version has been revamped with live instruments played by myself and the musicians in Pulse Beat, a band that I manage and direct in Birmingham. Pulse Beat are essentially a Steel Pulse tribute band but we are currently working on some great original songs which will be released as singles, EP’s and albums. I’m hoping the song will also be adopted as an anthem for UK Black History Month in October and I’ve also had interest from people in the education field to utilise it for Black History projects in schools, colleges and universities. Celebrating Black History, my tribute to our rich heritage, culture, achievements and traditions.”. Irie Magazine Logo

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