Local musician wins Grammy with Eminem
(CNS): Caymanian musician Jason Gilbert (known as JG) hit the music big time last night when he became a winner at this year’s Grammy awards. The 27-year-old singer/songwriter from George Town, (left at the Grammy Awards) who divides his time between the US and the Cayman Islands, was part of the production team nominated for two awards for Eminem’s best selling Recovery album. JG not only worked on the production of Recovery which won Best Rap Album but the local musician wrote the song WTP (White Trash Party). JG ended up on the winning team having come to the internationally renowned rapper’s attention after sending several of his self-penned tracks to Eminem’s management team a year ago.
The move, orchestrated by fellow producer Supa Dub’s manager,resulted in JG’s song WTP becoming track five on the 16-track Recovery album, which has been high in the charts since it was released in June.
JG, who also fronts the Caymanian band ThE iZ, and had a hit with Summer is Over on his 2007 solo album attended the 53rd annual Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles last night where he got to meet Eminem for the first time.
Although Eminem who performed live during the show had been nominated for 10 Grammies he ended the night with two.
See JG on Youtube just before the ceremony
Visit Grammy.com for more.
Category: Local News
JG, I’m very proud of you by seeing how much success you have achieved and I’m sure you will continue to thrive and prosper in the music industry. I LOVE the FACT that you BIGGED UP our little paradise in your interview and I could see you were proud to acknowledge your roots!
You will always have people who will hate on you, who will try to tear you down and come across persons who are just simply, ignorant. Use their negative commentary and turn it in to a positive!Use them to your advantage and write them hits! People will judge you and try to sum you up as if they know who you are as a person. You know the people who are really there for you at the end of the day and who know you best! CONGRATS JG!!!
JG boy yuh make me proud huh, congrats on your Grammy and hope you’ll inspire other young Caymanians to get involved in the arts. Government needs to build a Music Academy and help promote to positive benefits of music and as studies have shown children who play instruments have stronger development skills.
I wanted to post a comment and share my utter disgust with some people on this site. There are a number of posts congratulating JG (which is good) but yet I see thumb down marks on them. How can you thumb this down!? This is a great accomplishment and it is rude to thumb down someone else congratulating someone. Some people seriously just amaze me.
On another note, I personally would like to congratulate JG on his work and I love how he mentioned the Cayman Islands in his interview. We should all be proud of his hard work instead of hating on it.
In case some of you missed it …
I would just like to commend Jason for representing the Cayman Islands in both his attire and red carpet interview!
He donned a sticker of our national flag on his lapel and was eager to mention his country of origin as he clearly arrived at the awards with all of us on his mind.
After all of that it is truly sad to see the way in which so many of ‘us’ are trying to tear him down. Is this the thanks we give our high achievers? XXXXX
Again – congrats Jason! Worry not – some of us do wholeheartedly appreciate your efforts and share your love and passion for our country and people.
All the best bro.
Whodatis
Whodatis…….Well said! Congrats Jason!!!!!
I would hate to be included in the numbers of people who would castigate rather than heap praises on our illustrious homie for his splendid achievement, but…
What th’ heck…I gotta check… it’s tha season to put rhyme to reason and roll with my comments like Rap’s knife in tha neck.
I like all kinds of music, even rap (some rap) but I cannot and will not elevate the pits of anti-social behaviour and anti-social music. I cannot hold in esteem any artists that elevate such behaviour by their music.
Has anyone actually heard (and understood) the lyrics to "White Trash Party"? Tell ya what, I will leave the indictment to the music; let us allow the lyrics speak for themselves:
The song alludes to getting so wasted the subject walks around like a "body without a head" and the next day still be too high to rise from bed. The song encourages folks who "don’t give a f**k and not doing the "s**t that you should", as long as they are "up to evil" to get on the floor and represent their "hood". The song invites participation in a wee bit of reckless driving and disturbing the peace – to wit: do "some doughnuts in the hospital parking lot". A little light-hearted domestic violence is mixed in for good measure: the dude says he "don’t need a tank top to be a wife beater". And the subject is so happy and incorrigible about being the wonderful person he is that he will rip a tree out and turn it upside down before he turns over a new leaf.
Yeah! Great stuff!
Impeccable grammar too. Way to go Eminem and JG!
I can only wish we had more role models like these guys producing songs like this to elevate our youth to aspire to such admirable activities to represent their "hood" as drunkeness, recklessness and domestic violence. A CD of the album should be freely distributed to all the schools on the island to play in class. Employers should make it required listening for their work force. As parents we should be proud to buy our children the album in hopes they might be inspired to work their way into a convicted criminal’s musical entourage.
A person who complained about the tenor of one of the negative comments wrote: "As Caymanians we need to stop bringing down our OWN people!"
I fully agree. This kind of music most decidedly does not bring down Caymanians – it degrades all people equally.
Eminem is also impressively edifying. Excerpt of lyrics from the new Eminem album and the track "Won’t Back Down":
"Bitch you listening tryna turn me down
Slut im talking to you, turn me back up"
Yeah, gee, I guess this is pretty uplifting stuff and worthy of our highest praise. Makes me wanna kiss my Mom and hug my sister (before I get real with my spiel, do th’ deal and pop a cap from 9 in their skanky arse as they wine). Hmmmm…?? Darn! JG has inspired me to start writing rap music! Wow. Maybe other Caymanian young people will be equally inspired? We can only hope all our youth should aspire to such esteemed vocation.
Eminem’s younger brother was convicted of DUI. Kinda telling, huh? Big Bro’s influence or gangsta runs in the family?
You are in marvelous company there, JG! A splendid showcase for your talent.
Here is the bottom line: If there is anything admirable about Eminem and being associated with his work, any admiration is overshadowed by his tainted reputation and the sick lyrics he spews. My obvious potential as a rap songwriter notwithstanding, the truth is that I thank all that is good that I have been able to attain a comfortable life without being associated with sociopathic music and criminal artists.
In regard to awards: Let us be reminded that in 1994 the infamous terrorist Yasser Arafat wrapped his blood-stained hands around the highly esteemed Noble Peace Prize, as a joint recipient. It was a very controversial award, but it brings home an important point we seem to be missing as we gush over JG’s receiving his recent laurels: Just because a person works passionately at what they love and do best, and thus they receive accolades from a committee of fellow mortals, it does not necessarily mean that the person in question embodies greatness of character nor do they necessarily deserve our admiration or the praises of society at large. In my opinion it should be sufficient for Eminem and JG that they could earn lots of $$ from the project. They do not need my admiration or my praise. Nor do they deserve it.
Having said that, I actually do laud JG for being recognised by a group of his colleagues in the music industry. I laud JG in the same way I laud the great adult movie stars Ron Jeremy and Jenna Jameson for receiving the prestigious AVN awards. It is all art. So… Congratulations to you all! Great work! (Heck, the truth is I’d gush over Jenna even if she never won a single award.)
HUGE accomplishment! You worked hard for your awards. Keep it up! (Figuratively speaking, there, Ron, only figuratively speaking.)
The headline is misleading…….but it is still a great accomplishment. Keep striving JG and eventually you will win the grammy for yourself!
all the hater comments are coming from people who have never accomplished something significant in their lives.
Why is it so hard to support a local on a HUGE accomplishment? Yes winning for Rap Album of the Year is a TEAM effort and WRITING and PRODUCING an ENTIRE track on the album is not just an ‘insigificant’ contribution.
The album won because of the hard work and dilligence from every single person who contributed to it — Producers, engineers, songwriters, mixers, etc etc etc. TEAM EFFORT.
I could not agree more!!! CONGRATS JG!!!! WELL DESERVED!!!! I pray and hope you continue on this journey and wish you ALL SUCCESS!!!!
First and foremost I would like to say congrats to Jason Gilbert aka JG for getting to be a co-producer on Eminiem’s album but not to dis credit is talants but I think people are making this out to more than it is. He is listed as a co-producer on the one song “WTP” along with Supa Dups who is the main producer which is great but he didnt win the grammy for producer of the year. The album won best Rap Album so not only did JG recieve recognition also every one who worked on that particular album, which is in an excess of 40people (from other musicians, creative directors, programmers, sequencers, engineers, producers etc.) and I highly doubt that WTP was the decidng factor for the album being nominated as it wasnt released as a single and it is by far not one of the best tracks on that album. but none the less congrats to JG for just having to do something on the album. Please see list for people reciveing credit for their work on the album.
Credits for Recovery:
Erik Alcock – Guitar
Julian Alexander – Art Direction, Design
Mark Batson – Keyboards
Kip Blackshire – Choir, Chorus
Boi 1da – Producer
Nick Brongers – Producer
Matthew Burnett – Strings, Additional Production
Damon “Bing” Chatman – Assistant Coordinator
Larry Chatman – Production Coordination, Project Coordinator
Christian Clancy – Marketing
Kristen Ashley Cole – Choir, Chorus
M. Crawford – Composer
Sean Cruse – Guitar
Kal “Boogie” Dellaportas – Engineer
Terry Dexter – Choir, Chorus
DJ Khalil – Producer
DJ Mormile – A&R
Dr. Dre – Producer, Executive Producer, Mixing
Eminem – Mixing, Additional Production
Jordan Evans – Strings, Additional Production
John Fisher – Studio Manager
Michael Gamble – Engineer
Brian “Big Bass” Gardner – Mastering
Christal Garrick II – Choir, Chorus
Nikki Grier – Vocals
Havoc – Producer
Emile Haynie – Producer
Howie Herbst – Assistant Engineer
Matt Huber – Assistant Engineer
Chin Injeti – Bass, Guitar
Tony Iommi – Composer
Mauricio Iragorri – Engineer
Joe Strange – Engineer, Assistant Engineer
Jim Jonsin – Keyboards, Programming, Producer
Sly Jordan – Saxophone, Vocals, Choir, Chorus
Just Blaze – Producer, Mixing
Danny Keyz – Keyboards
Alex Da Kid – Producer, Mixing
Rich King – Choir, Chorus
Trevor Lawrence – Keyboards
Spike Lindsey – Assistant Engineer
Nick Low-Beer – Drum Programming
Magnedo – Producer
Deborah Mannis-Gardner – Sample Clearance
Robert Marks – Engineer
Rob Marks – Mixing
Marshall Mathers – Composer
Steve McEwan – Guitar, Vocals on track 11
Tracy McNew – A&R
Alex Merzin – Engineer
Danny Morris – Keyboards
Mr. Porter – Producer
Dawaun Parker – Keyboards
Nigel Parry – Photography
Chris “Trife” Patilis – Assistant Engineer
Kirdis Postelle – Project Coordinator
Dwayne “Supa Dups” Chin Quee – Drums, Producer, Engineer, Drum Arrangements
Rahki – Keyboards, Programming
Khalil Abdul Rahman – Keyboards, Drum Programming
Luis Resto – Keyboards
Robert Reyes – Assistant Engineer, Vocal Engineer
Makeba Riddick – Vocal Producer
Liz Rodriguez – Vocals
Paul D. Rosenberg – Executive Producer
Matthew “Boi 1da” Samuels – Drums, Engineer
Jason Sangerman – Marketing Coordinator
Les Scurry – Production Coordination
Daniel Seeff – Guitar
Script Shepherd – Producer
Manny Smith – A&R
Mike Strange – Guitar (Acoustic), Bass, Guitar, Keyboards, Engineer, Mixing
Marcos Tovar – Engineer
Bill Ward – Composer
Ryan West – Engineer, Mixing
Jason Wilkie – Assistant Engineer
Andre Young – Composer
Ianthe Zevos – Creative Director
Let us not forget that Jason was not only a co-producer but WROTE one of the songs himself! Hello! Jason deserves more credit than you’re giving him.
its a TEAM EFFORT – writing and even co-producing a song is a BIG DEAL.
Congratulations JG on an excellent performance and for following your dream. It only demonstrates what using your talents and education can get you.
Please ignore the crabs in a bucket mentality of some of these negative bloggers – they are free to comment but that does not matter.
Like all who received a Grammy Award it took a team effort, Eminem, could not have achieved his success without you and you could not have received the global recognition without help from someone and that happen to be Eminem. Eminem, himself stated that the night he collected the award on behalf of the whole team.
Feel proud, you deserve all the attention that the world stage is giving you and as they say the sky is the limit. A bit of advice, in all of this don’t forgot from where you cometh, give God all the praise and glory for opening all the right doors for you.
Continue to work hard and promote the Cayman Islands, we need it. Generally speaking we are proud of you and your achievements, althought most of us do not use this forum to voice our views.
On behalf of myself and family and friends you are a great inspiration and a true example of what hardwork and determination can do and the real talent that exists on these islands.
AND……….. I am sure they, their family and their friends are equally as proud of them all as we are of our JG. What an accomplishment CONGRATULATIONS to all on a job well done.
Shows us this "Grammy".
The headline should be "Caymanian involved as one of large collective and had relatively minor contribution to Eminem album which won Grammys for artist in the specialist rap category".
Slightly less catchy but more accurate. It would be like reporting that "Caymanian wins SuperBowl" when in fact he was a assistant special teams coach in the Divisional Championship game.
Perspective and accuracy would help in reporting this story.
Show me the Grammy!
Is Cayman really applauding this? The type of music preformed by M&M is exactly what is bringing this island down to the gutter. Rap music like his is all about greed, hatred, and getting what one can get out of life even if it means stepping on others around them. If Cayman is happy with their native son then you get what you deserve. What a bunch of hypocrites!
CNS: This comment was flagged as "Personal attack" with the user comment: "JG or Eminem has nothing to do with what ever crime or issues that might be going on here in the Cayman Islands! As Caymanians we need to stop bringing down our OWN people! JG has achieved one of the highest awards that EVERY local artist hopes to WIN! I know personally what its like as an artist trying to make it in the music industry and understand the sacrifices,dedication,and the hard work it must have taken JG to be where he is at now! This comment is hurtful and ignorant!"
However, I believe a thick skin is a basic requirement for anyone in the US music industry and the comment is very mild compared to the kind of criticisms that they would be used to. There are several responses to it below with alternative opinions that also deserve to remain posted. Therefore I have not deleted it.
Actually Eminem is not the reason for what you posted above.. take time n listen to his lyrics before you bash on a artist that speaks about things he went through in life.. Great rap artist has a very good point in their songs.. Do a lil research on some artist like lupe fiasco for prie example.. Theres a reason why eminems album is called "recovery" google it! lil wayne is who u should be bashing on
"Rap music like his is all about greed, hatred, and getting what one can get out of life even if it means stepping on others around them."
Pardon me but – have you ever heard of this little thing called the (offshore) banking industry / hedge fund industry?
Should we compare the global effects of either force on the worldwide masses of people? (E.g. Millions of innocent children die annually from a lack of clean drinking water and malnutrition simply because in global economic terms – it is unprofitable to feed them.)
Lastly, there are genres and categories within rap music. Eminem does not fall into the one that you are describing. I see the point you were trying to make but I am afraid you are a bit off target on this one.
Again – congrats JG.
(If certain rock artists can run around drunk in ladies pants and makeup, picking cocaine-fueled fistfights as they bite the heads off of chickens before pulling some underage rebellious groupie to satisfy sordid and illegal desires of fornication … then I do believe you should feel free to enjoy your award.)
Dear Testicle Tosser; this is what is WRONG with the mentality of the older generation in Cayman today STOP BLAMING the MEDIA!! IT IS THELACK OF PARENTAL CONTROL & CONCERN!…..Learn to control your children and TAKE INTEREST in your child’s life and do your duty by SUPERVISING & GUIDING these young Caymanians instead of letting them do as they please and go and mix with whoever they want!
I must agree with you regarding parental control. If parents (you know, those old fogies with the bad mentality you refer to) were to exercise adequate control over their children, including what they listen to, MarshalB. Mathers would probably still be living in the slums outside of Detroit and washing dishes for a living.
You are a trip. Kinda schizoid in your thinking though. You denigrate the mentality of the older generation and old fashioned way of thinking and then implore them to do the old fashioned thing and take control of their offspring.
As parents we took your advice – we maintained control and it worked. We closely watched what our children did and with whom they did it. We set limits and those limits included rules regarding the type of music that was allowed into our house. Our children are successful in their chosen fields, following their dreams. And they did not have to be taken under the wing of a criminal to achieve their success.
I guess what I am saying is that, like you, I blame negligent parents for the proliferation of antisocial stuff. (Including antisocial music.) So I guess we are on the same page on this one.
Congratulations JG! I think this is fantastic! Cayman’s very own Grammy Award Winner – should go down in history!
Congrats Jason.
Go deh JG!!
Just before Christmas the Commisioner of the RCIPS said that rap music was a negative part of the Caribbean gangs and drugs culture.
He praised moves by some countries to ban certain acts.
Eminem has had a few problems in this area including attempts to ban him from performing in Canada, refusal of a visa for Australia and a bust for illegally carrying a concealed firearm. He’s also had problems with drug abuse.
Be interesting to hear Mr Baines’ take on this story because surely it gives a positive example to Cayman youth through the medium of rap music.
If parents are going to blame any kind of music on how their kids act, they are mistaken. The parents are supposed to make the BIGGEST impression on their kids. The kids are supposed to want to please mom and dad. I know my kids don’t like to disappoint me! I listento rap music and Eminem is excellent. He can be vulgar but he had a horrible upbringing and this is how he knows how to express his feelings. The recovery album by eminem is great. There are some real inspirational songs on it. Maybe the "kids" that are listening to this can relate because of their bad upbringing? How are they getting the music? Internet, mom buying them CD’s? If my child came home listening to something I didn’t agree with, i would still let them listen to it, until they started acting wrong and then all the reins would be pulled way back. I loved listen to Heavy Metal, it didn’t make me bite heads off of bats, or stab my loved one, or thrash my head into a wall. I sure hope that music doesn’t make people do things. We are in for some serious azz kicking if thats the case. I am glad that a Caymanian was recognized for his hard work on WTP(white trash party). Peace Cayman! I wish people would stop trying to blame their children’s problems on outside sources, the inside needs to be more stable to override the outsiders!!
Come on Guys,
please let’s be real now.
The commissioner is not ./was not/ would not be referring to the Rap Music that does NOT incite voilence, or desrespect for women , law and order and the socieity at large!!
We are all intelligent guys aren’t we?
Please let us not be in denial, or stick or head in the sand.
YOu all have listened to MUCH of the Rap Music and you all have heard the " cursing" " e.g fu—king words with all it Vulgarity .Haven’t you?
You see on MTV and BET the way so many females dress with the lots of skin showing? The seductive , provocative dress?
Then we wonder why so many ofour young ladies are chosing to be
" baby mothers" instead of first owning a home and having geting a degree .
Do you all not hear so many of the Rap songs and they lyrics that really does not have a lot of respect for women.
Just look at the dress code of the men and women !!!
Listen to the very explicit, provocative dress code of both the men and women . Is there any wonder we have got a "EPEDEMIC" of baby mother and baby daddy problems affecting our society!!!
So why are we commenting on a HIGHLY PAID Police Commissioner ‘s comment? At least he is offering some comments and concerns for the highly paid position he has instead of sitting in his offie and saying and doing nothing.
He was and is not and cannot be talking about the RAp Music with clean, motivational Lyricis that elevate us as Black people
Excellent !!!!!!!
It would be cliché to ‘congrats!’ and ‘All the best!’. However, to be recognized let alone receive an award of this magnitude that is sought after by ANY musician, globally or locally, is truly an accomplishment worth giving high praise.
This is not just a step forward for Jason or even the Cayman Islands, but for the entire community of young Caymanian’s who have dreams and the ones whose dreams have faded, they’ve now been rekindled. I don’t say this to only categorize the people who are aspired to become musicians, but to anyone who is bold enough to dream big or as I like to call it ‘dream in color’.
Due to lack of positive role models and simply encouragement, we have somehow lost our passion and only become ‘boxed’ in by how society sees us and expects from us. We are suppose to graduate high school, some are fortunate to make it to study overseas, while most attend the local college part time, get a bank job with a car loan for the latest Honda and move on. This in no way means that education is not first! (as a reminder to all before the thumbs down Jason also has a Degree). I myself fit that category I must admit. I no longer believed in myself merely because no one else thought it could be done. And that is the sad reality that we face.
Parents and the entire community as whole, encourage our children to follow their hearts, no matter how far reach it may seem. If it is to be the next Lebron, Beckham, renowned Chef, Astronaut, Pilot or JG, your encouragement is all that is need.
To Jason, Thank you, for ‘dreaming in color’ and standing alone out of the box.
From a proud fan who believed in you from day one.
KABOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Where is this Grammy you speak of? It appears to me that the producers are only recognized for the Record, Album and Song of the Year award, which Eminem did not of course win.
Who knows, maybe he’ll bring back the shiny Gramaphone and prove me wrong.
Good job and well done, I wish all the best and sucess for this young man. Here is a good example to the young, work hard, stick to values and in the end it will be well worth it.
God bless you and your family.
Congrats Jason, we are all proud of you.
CONGRATS Jason!! Great talent. Your family & friends rejoice with you. Greetings from W/B.
Today is a great day for the musicians of Cayman. JG I send my congratulations on a job well done. Please take note even though we are small in numbers we are still capable of reaching the highest highs. Today is a gold medal for Cayman
Once again JG congrats…