Junior Cat Bio
JUNIOR CAT is one of reggae music's most prolific artists. An icon, Junior Cat "The Wild Indian," is known by reggae and hip hop fans across the globe for his dapper Bad Azz style that made the fellas crave and adoring ladies rave over his delivery of edgy lyrics that ricocheted through dancehalls and stages in the 90s with hit classics like: IRON GLOVES; TOP DOG; ANOREXAL BODY; and as featured in the mega-hit movie Shottas, WOULDA LET YOU GO. JUNIOR CAT is the Don that lesser deejays imitate but never duplicate.
Born Ricardo Maragh in Kingston, Jamaica, JUNIOR CAT started making his way through the rugged ranks of dancehall leagues in his early teens while hanging out in the local clubs, shops and street corners of the Cockburn Pen community. "The Pen," at the time, was the hub for the reggae industry's finest architects. Junior Cat's popularity grew when he entertained the masses with his quick witted freestyling while effortlessly "riding a riddim," without so much as skipping a beat. His climb to fame was, however, more painstaking as he was often compared to his older brother, Super Cat who was already making his way to mainstream fame. That, however, did not impede JUNIOR CAT's ambition.
After winning a local talent contest, Junior Cat extended his prowess to Sound Systems -where greats like Early B; Puddy Roots; Little Twitch and Ninja Man gathered at dances to compete with one another in support of their "Sound." Sound clash competitions began to spread throughout the island taking the artists to higher levels of fame around the world. Fans then and now pay big money to be in the presence of a Sound Clash especially when there is an artist performing live alongside the selectors. The bigger the Sound, the more exhilarating the experience. Junior Cat, a bad boy per se, quickly built a reputation for holding no prisoners on the mic with the toughest lines that made grown men run in shame and was a regular feature on what would later become the World Famous Killamanjaro Sound.
JUNIOR CAT was given his first opportunity to record a song by producer King Jammy's and that single, NEVER DIS THE PROGRAM amazingly entered the National Charts at #3. It wasn't long before he had a succession of single hits (Can't Nyam Me Out, Clappers And Bomb, Curve, Dead Man, Deportee, Figure, Inna Me Gun Mouth, Funeral Bag, Original Dog Heart, Killing Pussy, Make A Living, Nah Lef It Far, Rougher Than Rough, Sample, Slick Rick, Top Dog, Who So Ever Will May Come, and Wickedest Gun) that kept his voice steady on the airwaves which led to the recording of his debut album "Top Dog," (1992) again on the King Jammy's label. Junior Cat, as expected, was becoming a catalyst in the game.
After receiving much success from the release of Top Dog, JUNIOR CAT moved to New York and signed to his brother's Wild Apache Label. During that union, he recorded several more songs, SECOND HAND DON, DJ ORIGINATOR, and TELL THEM STOP IT, before collaborating with Super Cat, Nicodemus, and Junior Demus on Columbia Records' The Good, The Bad, The Ugly and The Crazy.
Shortly after the album dropped, JUNIOR CAT's contract with Wild Apache expired and instead of renewing, he chose to seek his own and pursued opportunities that took him on several tours throughout the hungering reggae markets of Europe, Japan and South America. He headed back into the studio to produce and record more Specials on independent labels before finally deciding to endeavor in another area of the music business and formed his own label MR. MARAGH MUSIC. He has been producing other artists as well as his own music in other countries and collaborating with giants of the Hip Hop community to create a new style of hits proving his versatility and loyalty to the art of his genre simultaneously expanding his fanbase to the younger generation.
In the last couple of years, a matured JUNIOR CAT, has eloquently expressed his Spiritual side via Conscious/Roots Reggae which highly reflects his Rastafarian faith. This connection is heard on his new album tentavely titled, Fight Back slated for a late Winter/Early Spring 2014 release. The first single, JAH WORKS, will be the first single to drop at the end of November 2013 before the height of the Holiday Season with another joint, NO ROCK AWAY shortly thereafter.
This new album features music tracks with a clean, inspirational positive flow of energy throughout but does not stray from the typical JUNIOR CAT fashion with songs about reality as relayed in NO ROCK AWAY, and MAMA (featuring singer Courtney Melody). This album is definitely a showcase of Love, Life and Greatness. The instrumentals were laid down by legendary studio musicians Sly & Robbie. While Conscious Reggae may not be what most JUNIOR CAT fans expect from the man who made a success of himself singing about violence and guns for almost two decades, it is certainly not surprising for JUNIOR CAT -an admirably devoted father and husband as well as entertainer- to maintain the highest level of integrity in any musical composition he releases to the masses and has yet to disappoint.
JUNIOR CAT lives in New York City and is preparing for several tours in the U.S., Caribbean, and Europe.
