I-Octane on the rise

I-Octane - file

Reggae artiste I-Octane is not only 'stabbing vampires'; he is also making major strides on the local and international reggae scene.

Born Byiome Muir, I-Octane burst onto the music scene in 2000, moving the industry with his high energy.

Since being in the business, he has made his mark on major shows, including Christmas Extravaganza, Sting, Sizzla's Rise to the Occasion, All Spice, Fully Loaded, the Ocho Rios Seafood Festival, Red Bull Soap Box Show, Cure Fest, East Fest, and Rebel Salute.

Performing overseas

Recently, he did shows in Holland, Canada, Washington and New York at Irie Jamboree.

I-Octane said performing overseas and locally has been great.

"It's great. It's a different set a people. It is always awesome. A reggae music dem a embrace to the fullest and dem a sing mi song dem line fi line," he told THE STAR.

"My career is in the developing stages. We know seh wi ago pass this level. Mi accomplish a lot of things cause mi already work pon every major show in Jamaica. The response in Jamaica is always excellent," he added.

This kind of response is expected because I-Octane's performances are usually powerful with songs like Stab Vampire, Different Page, Run Yet, Poverty and Gun Rise, which features Teflon.

For his work, I-Octane also received Best New Artiste and Best Dancehall Collaboration in Richie B's Excellence in Music and Entertainment (EME) Awards in 2007. He was nominated for Best Solo Male Reggae Vocal and Best Reggae Video for Stab Vampire at February's Reggae Academy Awards.

With these developments, I-Octane said he is working on his debut album, for which he already has 80 per cent of the material. He said it will be ready by the first quarter of 2009.

"Right now the album is in progress. Wi just a try get the name I-Octane pon a level so that when we release the album people will be willing to buy it," he said.

For the rest of the year, I-Octane has four shows in the United States and one in Sweden. He is also booked for most of the local shows. He will also release his newest track called No Conscience soon.