California-born songwriter JAAME.SSS didn’t begin his musical journey in studios or on stages, but in the quiet of notebooks filled with words he never thought the world would hear. That changed after tragedy struck.
“My father passed away on July 31, 2023,” he recalls. “His final words were, I am beloved, I am blessed. Out of that pain, I wrote something for him, and it ultimately turned into this song. My brother had passed before him too. It was rough, but out of all that pain came these words.”
Those words became “Beloved and Blessed,” JAAME.SSS’s debut single, which is now holding the No. 1 spot for a third week on the Jamaican charts and sitting at No. 15 in Panama. The track’s demo surfaced online a year ago on August 25, 2024 is now performed by Skatta Lopa, lead singer of the legendary Inner Circle Band, whose voice carried James’s heartfelt lyrics to unexpected international recognition. That reggae version was released July 31 this year and has already surpassed 2.3 million YouTube views with much of the views coming from Jamaica.
“I haven’t been to Jamaica,” he admits, “but I always loved reggae and Jamaican music. A mutual friend introduced me to Skatta. He loved the words, loved what they meant, and he immediately connected with it. He told me, ‘A lot of music has words, but they don’t actually mean something. These words mean something.’”
While not the vocalist on the record, James takes ownership as its songwriter and producer. “Yes, it’s Skatta’s vocals, but I’m the one who wrote it. That’s why it says featuring Skatta Lopa.”
Lopa is the lead singer of reggae band Third World and was a member of the Blood Fyah Posse band but the song’s Jamaica chart success is particularly striking in today’s dancehall landscape, where trap-infused beats often dominate. Asked how his record broke through, James said: “We just did some marketing and pushed the song out there. Ads on YouTube, social media sharing, and of course, Skatta and his team spreading it.”
Yet, behind the numbers and rising buzz, James remains grounded in the emotional origins of his work. “I’m torn,” he admits. “I’m happy about it, but these tragedies had to happen for this to happen. That’s the part that makes it hard.”
Even so, “Beloved and Blessed” feels like only the beginning. When asked if he will be releasing more music, James doesn’t hesitate: “Yes.”
