Blak Ryno gets back US visa

JA Productions artiste Blak Ryno has been granted a US work permit, giving him the opportunity to perform in the United States for the first time in five years. “Mi just have to give thanks to God first for this opportunity. I cannot tell you how many times mi pray about this. Last year, mi ask God for three million dollars, I never knew where it would come from, and mi go Sting and beat Kiprich in the clash and get it, and this year, many times, I asked Him to clear the path for me to get back my visa, and through all the obstacles, mi hold the faith and now mi get it back,” an elated Blak Ryno told Loop News. Blak Ryno admitted that he had to go through a lot of tribulations before he got his heart’s desire. “God is slow, but He is sure, that’s all mi can say. Special big ups to my manager, Justus Arison, and my publicity and street team for everything that they are doing,” he said. Blak Ryno has seen an upward arc in his career in recent times. He will release a video for his breakout single, ‘Side Chick’ on Justus Arison’s High Life riddim this week. “The video looks great, the quality is great. It was a great vibe on the shoot and that comes out in the actual video, so I know dancehall fans are going to like it. The video ah go shell down the place,” he said.
The ‘Side Chick’ single could be the first major success of this new partnership as the song has been getting mainstream airplay on major radio stations such as IRIE, HITZ and RJR with his latest effort, ‘Side Chick’. Dancehall fans love the pop-dancehall hook on this song where Ryno samples Sean Kingston’s ‘Make Up Your Mind’ as he expresses his love for his girl on the side. Ryno recently inked a distribution, booking and recording deal with JA Productions which will see him releasing his first album within the next couple of months. “We are looking at a 14-track album which will be released later this year on iTunes. We have completed most of it so far, dancehall fans can look out for that,” he said. A former member of Vybz Kartel’s Portmore Empire, he has emerged as one of the most exciting acts in local dancehall since his clash victory over Kiprich at Sting 2013. He has mended a lot of fences this year, reaching out to many persons with whom he had been estranged. He reconciled with former Gaza artiste Popcaan two weeks ago ending a public feud which started almost four years ago when Blak Ryno first left the troubled Gaza camp of incarcerated deejay Vybz Kartel. The reconciliation had been ongoing over the past few months, but it became a matter of public record when Popcaan invited Blak Ryno onstage during Popcaan’s ‘Where We Come From’ album launch last week at Triple Century Sports Bar and Grill. “It’s a great look right now,” Ryno said.