A gravel-voiced, consciousness-raising Italian Rastafarian.
About Alborosie
Hometown
Marsala, Sicily, Italy
Born
July 4, 1977
Genre
Reggae
The unlikely reggae star Alborosie was born Alberto D'Ascola in Sicily, in 1977. He performed in Italy's Reggae National Tickets band as a dreadlocked teenager and moved to Jamaica in the early 2000s, working as a sound engineer and producer before releasing his debut album, Soul Pirate, in 2009. A self-styled "reggae ambassador," Alborosie defiantly paid his dues in a wild milieu (his stage moniker combines his given name with a Jamaican insult he endured) and specialized in self-conscious lyrics that include, "I'm Italian but not Columbus." His respect for and dedication to the roots reggae cause attracted A-list collaborators, including Horace Andy and Dennis Brown, for the collection Specialist Presents Alborosie & Friends in 2014, and he recruited Bob Marley's former backing group for 2018's Unbreakable: Alborosie Meets the Wailers United. Respectable dub albums, such as 2015's excellent Dub of Thrones: Alborosie Meets King Jammy, punctuate his numerous studio releases, on which Alborosie singsongs in credible patois and, occasionally, croons in lovers-rock Italian.