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In paying tribute to legendary radio announcer, Barry G the Boogieman, who died last Wednesday, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia Grange, commented on the famous clash between him and British broadcaster, David Rodigan.
“During his time on afternoon radio at JBC with his ‘Two To Six Supermix’ show, he represented the station with flair in what was popularly known as the ‘war of the afternoon shows’ between JBC and Radio Jamaica, RJR. We will also vividly recall his other musical clash, that between him and the famous David Rodigan of British radio. The sound system duel between them gained worldwide attention making the two broadcasters especially famous in the United States, United Kingdom, and Japan,” Minister Grange said.
It was not surprising, therefore, that Rodigan – who the Jamaican Government awarded the Order of Distinction in 2020 for his “outstanding service to the promotion of Jamaican music across the world” – took to social media last Friday and saluted Barry G.
“My dear friend and fellow broadcaster Barrington Seymour Gordon, aka Barry G the Boogieman, has slipped off this mortal coil. He was a colossus in Jamaican broadcasting, and a household name islandwide,” Rodigan said.
He continued, “His unique style of presentation, his distinctive stentorian voice, his love and passion for music, endeared him to legions of devoted listeners on JBC Radio in the 1980s and onwards throughout his broadcasting career. Radio was his life, it was everything to him.”
Rodigan, an author and historian, shared that he was fortunate to work with Barry B in the mid-1980s and from then the two developed a great friendship.
“His wit and repartee was quite unique and broadcasting alongside him, for all those radio clashes, was without doubt one of the great highlights of my career. He will be dearly missed by all those who knew him and loved him. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Josett and his family,” Rodigan wrote.
Rodigan’s post quickly garnered hundreds of comments from fans of both him and Barry G.
Barry G’s lifelong friend from Kingston College, Michael Chambers, who commended him for “revolutionising radio” told The Gleaner about the genesis of the famous clash with Rodigan.
“That thing with Rodigan came about because Rodigan came to Jamaica, came to the studio and the Saturday night they just started playing music together ... one from him, one from David. That grew to the point where David recorded it and took it back to England, played it on his show and then Barry started going to England to be on David’s programme. They eventually took it into the dancehall and had a clash between the both of them,” Chambers explained.
The broadcaster, who had been experiencing health challenges, got baptised three years ago. In one of the longest posts on his Instagram page, Barry G described his journey, from leaving high school in 1975 at 17 and going straight into radio.
“I became this natural broadcaster, hitting number one in the first year. As I matured on the radio, I grew into my placement as King of Afternoon Radio with no guidance from a broadcasting school and 47 years of experience. Many may therefore say I am a naturalist with all these years under my belt. My dream is to host a broadcasting school and guide the youth on their delivery as future producers and broadcasters,” Barry G wrote.
“Thanks to all the people who found time to congratulate me on my baptism and wish me good and thoughtful messages, I received and saw them all, it means a lot to me. I came from so little, an inexperienced country boy who grew up with his grandma, one pair of shoes and dreams for the future.
To all the young people, all the little boys and girls reading this, I was once you, and I am here to testify that once you want it, you can have it. No matter your background, all you need is determination, a dream and most importantly the guidance from God. This is a new journey for me and I look forward to what God has in store,” he said, signing off as “Barrington G”.
English (US) ·