3 weeks ago
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Of the scores of reggae and dancehall albums that were released in 2025, there is one that made its presence felt consistently for eight months on the iTunes Top 100 Reggae Albums charts. The album found its way to the Number 1 spot all of 22 times since its release on April 25, straight through until December 31. It was consistently in the top 10 of the chart and has racked up thousands of sales and millions of streams. Titled God & I, it is the most recent project from the ‘Hot Ras’, I-Octane.
The singer was happy to share that he has grasped the importance of educating himself about how to navigate the maze-like music industry and tap into the inner workings of the crucial numbers game. He freely gives credit to an artiste who is known for racking up big numbers and staying on top of his game on charts such as iTunes.
“I have learned a lot about how people process music and how people receive music,” I-Octane told The Sunday Gleaner.
“If you are not on certain people’s algorithm, you are not going to get the support. There are a lot of good albums out there, but if you are not connected to the main pullers, then yuh not going to get yuh music out there. So I find a way where I go to the consumers direct. A friend of mine, Xyclone ... he’s a great artiste, and he understands the logistics of getting directly to the consumer ... he literally showed me how to do it, and I give thanks for that. He listens to all the new albums, and he told me that it’s a great project. So he showed me how to do it.”
He spoke with firsthand knowledge of the obstacles that face independent artistes who are not signed to major record labels when trying to get on the playlists that matter.
“An artiste who is playlisted can go to him bed and sleep and wake up, and his album is on the charts because while he’s sleeping the album is streaming ... it’s on the big platforms, it is selling and getting the big numbers,” the singer explained.
He added: “However, as an independent artiste, you have your fans, and you go directly to them. This is where sales come in as well because one album sale is equal to 1,500 streams. So just imagine if you sell 30 albums in one day. Being on the iTunes charts so consistently is an accomplishment, and I have learned a lot. A lot of people ask me, ‘Bro, how yuh do it?’
Wikipedia states that the Recording Industry Association of America and major charts define 1,500 on-demand audio or video streams as equivalent to one album sale. This metric is known as an album-equivalent unit, and this formula was designed to blend traditional album sales with modern streaming, where 10 song downloads also equal one sale.
DYNAMICS
I-Octane shared that learning those dynamics along the way and putting this knowledge into practice has really magnified the project, which he described as “one of the best albums released in 2025, even though it didn’t receive a Grammy nomination”.
“I have a lot of great albums,” I-Octane said, and he didn’t even sound like he was blowing his own trumpet. “But this one is personal to me, and I think it is one of my best albums so far. From April 25 until now, a lot of albums come out in dancehall, and no matter what, God & I still up there in the Top 10. I have 22 Number 1 screenshots for the album. And the iTunes chart cannot be ripped ... you have to do the work. The entire world has been looking at the chart and seeing this ... people from Japan, the Caribbean, everywhere,” he said, quite pleased.
God & I is not enmeshed in religiosity, whether Rastafarianism or any other; instead, it has spiritual undertones and a lot of consciousness with songs such as Constant War; Thankful; Life is a Blessing, a collaboration with Vershon; Opportunist (featuring Shane-O), which went Number 1; and Walk With a Chip by Good Good Production.
For 2025, he did one-off shows, but he and his team are planning to do a major tour this year as he continues the promotion of God & I. Reflecting on his career, I-Octane confessed that he has learnt an important lesson about not sabotaging his own efforts. In the past, he was his biggest detractor by releasing three or four singles from various producers right after dropping an album. In effect, he used to “kill” his own album by shifting the focus to those singles, which would gain immense traction but did not play a role in promoting the album.
“Is like yuh right hand a squeeze yuh left hand. For an artiste like me, because I can do dancehall and reggae so well, it is a blessing, but sometimes it can be a curse,” he admitted.
So, how does he really feel about the album and its performance?
“If you notice the name, God & I, it was like having a conversation with God Almighty and tapping into that element. Throughout the years, I have been blessed ... it doesn’t matter the circumstances ... I had my first kids when I was in my teens, 15, 16, and I still kept grounded. One of the times I get discouraged doing cultural songs because is like the music never have no perspective. Is like a man can sing seh ‘ Yow mi jump outta a banana tree and run da man yah down the road and flip backwards’ and that become the number one song. And me deh yah a sing bout love and upliftment, and people are like ‘Whatever, we don’t want [to] hear that.’ So I decided that I’m going to do an album giving thanks to the Creator. And my team was very encouraging,” he said.
He noted that career-wise, 2025 was a great year. The singer, who has “been away a good while, but is on and out”, pointed out that his new perspective “is to approach the thing like a brand-new artiste”.
“Me is not one of the artistes who was popular .. a run mi run di place. Every show fi close, every corporate event a me. So one of the times I was overplayed, so I just had to step away, and I am into the mix with this album. I turn up for the interviews, I do the meet-and-greet, and it’s like I am introducing Octane to a new generation. For 2025, I was more focused on building new relationships and fixing old ones. The ones dem that did tarnish mi try mend dem back ... but the ones that can’t be mend gone too far and dem people deh haffi live with the emotional scars. That is it,” he said.
The new year will bring a new song and video, Money Prayer, which he is confident is exactly what his fans ordered.
English (US) ·