Bermudian reggae artist Collie Buddz‘ third studio album, “Hybrid,” has surpassed 100 million streams on Spotify. The album released on May 24, 2019, via Harper Digital Entertainment, marks his second titled to reach the career milestone.
“Hybrid” debuted at number one on the US Billboard Reggae Albums chart where it stayed for two weeks in the week of June 8, 2019. The album ended the 11-week dominance of Stick Figure’s “World on Fire,” on the Billboard Reggae Albums Chart and it went on to spend a total of 19 weeks on the chart. It also peaked at number 20 on the US Independent Albums chart and number 79 on the US Top Album Sales chart.
The ten track set has guest appearances from hip-hop artist Russ, UK singer B Young, rapper Dizzy Wright, reggae fusion artist Johnny Cosmic, Ghanaian superstar Stonebwoy, and the iconic hip hop figure Tech N9NE.
Other key contributors include Johnny Cosmic, who lends his expertise on guitar and production, and Niko Marzouca and Robert Marks, who handled mixing duties on most tracks.
The project executive produced by Collie Buddz himself as Ineffable Record’s CEO Igor Katz was lead by 5 singles “Legal Now,” “Love & Reggae,” “Bounce It,” “Bank,” and “Show Love.”
The album was Collie Buddz’ follow up to 2017’s “Good Life,” and in an interview with Billboard, Buddz discussed the drawbacks of major labels, sharing his past frustrations and advocating for independence in the music industry. He highlighted the value of owning one’s music and the benefits of promoting through social media, which has allowed him to stay connected with fans and collaborators.
“You get to own everything. Now you have the outlets of social media to promote your own stuff, and you own 100 percent of it. You’re signing a contract because you want big money up front? Trust me, it’ll come!” he said.
Buddz also discussed the intentional brevity of “Hybrid,” reflecting on changing listener habits in the streaming era. “I think people’s attention spans nowadays are shorter, so it was definitely my intention to have fewer songs,” he explained. “I could’ve added a couple more — according to management — so maybe I’ll throw the extra ones out there.”
An engineering graduate if Full Sail University in Orlando, Florida, Buddz contributed to Shaggy’s 2007 album “Intoxication” on the track “Mad Mad World.” In 2009, he was featured in a remix of Kid Cudi’s single “Day ‘n’ Nite.”
Buddz, who owns his own record label, Harper Digital, has sold out venues across the US and worldwide, solidifying his presence in the global music scene. His album “Cali Roots Riddim 2023” was nominated for Best Reggae Album at the 66 Annual Grammy Awards.
