Dancehall star William Anthony Maragh more popularly known as Super Cat was born on this day in 1963.
Super Cat found international notoriety with party cuts like “Dem Nuh Worry We” with Heavy D and played a role in the early beginnings of Biggie Smalls’ career with the single “Dolly My Baby” and the lyrical “Nuff Man A Dead.”
His career defining album “Don Doda” turned thirty last year. Released May 12, 1992, it was his first album on Columbia Records and one of the first dancehall albums for a major label.
The album which he co-produced, refers to Super Cat’s street name and the project found favor both in Jamaican diaspora and with American hip hop audiences.
Robert Livingston, was the co-producer of Don Dada and Super Cat’s former manager spoke exclusively with World Music Views about the album and what it was like working with Super Cat in those days.
“We both produced the album, and I did a lot of work on the album,” he says
Other than Dem Nuh Worry We and Dolly My Baby, which got international attention, Don Dada also spawns political songs like “Them No Care,” and “Fight Fi Power,” which Robert says he was tasked with finding a foot for Cat amidst a sea of emerging hip hop acts.
“I kinda watched what was going on in the market and how the urban market was gravitating to the dancehall market. We did the collaboration with heavy D, and a lot of fusion was happening at the time, the whole reggae vibe in New York City was getting attention from the key DJ’s. The energy was good,” he recalls.
It helped that Super Cat offered the market something unique which could not be cultivated in the streets of New York.
“Super cat had this unique sound and style and was gaining respect, marketing wise I got the American urban market to respect him,” he states. “Super Cat fit the urban crossover, the song with Sugar Ray crossed the top 40. For me I was blessed to have that knowledge and that understanding,” Robert says.
When asked who are some of the artists that followed Super Cat’s Don Dada blueprint he says emphatically, “Junior Gong and Sean Paul,” and adds that Shaggy had other influences.
“Shaggy was more influenced by Shabba(Ranks), Super cat was more influenced and influential to hip hop, they liked his style, he was more a street approach. He gained that respect.”
In the video for “Ghetto Red Hot”, Robert, the producer for the track rides Super Cat through New York city on a Ninja Motorbike. He says ‘bikes’ as it is called in Jamaica were important to the dancehall culture back then.
“I was a good bike rider in the streets, bike was what we know as street people, even a man who have a car always maintain him bike, the girl look nice on the back of the bike and it’s a scene,” he explains.
Don Dodda And Columbia Records
The Don Dada album peaked at No. 37 on Billboard’s Top R&B Albums chart and Cat would stay around with Columbia for another two albums between 1993 and 1995.
Although Robert didn’t stick around for the duration of Super Cat’s Columbia Records career, he says the relationship with Columbia was an enjoyable one.
“I really enjoyed being with Columbia, we had a Jamaican product manager, Karen Mason, a good product manager who understood the culture and who understood who Super Cat was. The fact that she understood who he is and having me explain to the label what he can do, it was kinda quiet easy to channel him through the label. Maxine Stowe, who was the A&R responsible for signing Super Cat, was doing a compilation with Columbia’s David Kahne and she was very instrumental in the signing of Super Cat to Columbia records,” he explains to World Music Views.
Super Cat was Stowe’s first signing to the label but Robert says he was the man on the ground with the young Cat getting the records and remixes made by forging key relationships.
“David Kahne is not really a street A&R but he understood. Specialist Dillion was there too. Rough House was signed to Columbia, they had Kris Kross, Jermaine Dupri’s father used to manage Kris Kross, Cypress Hill and the Fugees were there. I was really instrumental in getting Cat to get into that field. Columbia was a great place to be having all these avenues and stars around, not just for the album but marketing. He did the remix for Jump with Kris Kross,” Robert explains.
He tells World Music Views the story of how difficult it was to convince Super Cat to get on the Jump remix which was already a successful original song.
“It was an opportunity that he didn’t see, he didn’t understand and I had to do what I had to do to get him on it. I had to call Bobby Brown late one night to get him some time to record cause we didn’t have a studio. We got into Atlanta and Jermaine Dupri finished it and we did and the label accepted it.”
“For me I was just punching up the business and trying to find my way through it. That Kris Kross record really helped Super Cat,” he reflects.
“I said this song is a big song, there is nothing you’re gonna do to help this record, this record is gonna help you, I had a rough time in the business trying to convince artists to do something that will help their careers. I was really upset with what happened and I have no royalties from that record, I just bounced,” he said with much disappointment.
When asked what was the reason for the professional split with Super Cat he explains:
“I can’t even pinpoint any reason, one of the time I heard him put my name on the record, he wanted to own everything but he didn’t want to do the work, I said to him that you and I could do the record but I think he had a perception that Riley and those guys did ‘Boops’ and he didn’t make any money, so he didn’t want that to happen again so he try to work hard and not make that happen again.”
He further commented, “After he realized that we were more than just business people we were just brothers, if a fight bruk we were always together, 20 years after he realized, and we still have a good relationship now, but when I signed Shaggy I didn’t talk to Cat, because I heard that I robbed him and I called him and say tell me how did I rob you because we just started making money.”
