The Beat Goes On
NEW YORK—Winston Foster not only escaped the oppressive poverty of his Trenchtown youth, but also overcame the psychological effects of childhood taunts about his albino skin, which still causes his face to erupt in large, ugly welts. The fun-loving Foster wouldn’t let any of those obstacles stand in his way, creating the larger-than-life figure of d.j. Yellowman, the top-ranking toaster in Jamaica, especially admired by the ladies.
The Beat Goes On
YELLOWMAN: REGGAE’S CLOWN PRINCE
NEW YORK—Winston Foster not only escaped the oppressive poverty of his Trenchtown youth, but also overcame the psychological effects of childhood taunts about his albino skin, which still causes his face to erupt in large, ugly welts. The fun-loving Foster wouldn’t let any of those obstacles stand in his way, creating the larger-thanlife figure of d.j. Yellowman, the top-ranking toaster in Jamaica, especially admired by the ladies.
“1 didn’t love dat name at all,” he says backstage after a sweaty, undulating set at New York’s Lone Star, relaxing between two doting female fans. “I used ta get upset over dat name ’cause it was a nickname de kids teased me wit’. But people who used t’laugh, no more laugh. Dey appreciate me and love me.”
Indeed, the 24-year-old’s fame is beginning to spread to Europe and the U.S., where CBS Records just released his stateside major label debut, King Yellowman. Although he claims not to smoke, drink or take drugs, Yellowman celebrates life’s small pleasures for his fellow Jamaicans.