finetune artist: Antonio

b. Maurice Silvera, 10 October 1973, Portland, Jamaica, West Indies. Silvera was an exceptional athlete in his teenage years, although he aspired to become a musician. The young singer, like so many Jamaican artists, had to overcome parental indifference toward the music industry. His debut, "So Good", indicated that he had made the right choice. At this time his appearances on sound systems such as, Prince Ajax, Mafia Five and Missile were under the guise of Singing Morris. At the same time as performing on the sound systems, he persevered with his recording career and released "Woman A You Me Want", in combination with Shocking Murray. The success of the release led to a supporting role on an Austrian tour alongside the Jungle Brothers. After the tour Silvera decided to visit Jet Star, where he met the UK-based producer Trevor "Juggling" T. It was the producer who suggested a name change and the singer became known as Antonio (as Portland is the capital of Port Antonio). It was not until the singer recorded in the UK that he gained significant notoriety with the release of "From So Long". The hit resulted in him being considered a British reggae singer and a series of UK hits followed. His success led to his performing in the ragga dancehall arena with Squad One, Governor Tiggy and Firefly, although he returned to the lovers rock style. He recorded a version of the Whitney Houston hit, "My Love Is Your Love", which was released in competition with Terry Linen's reggae version of the song. Antonio followed his success with, "So Many Signs", "Love Revolution", "Survivor", "Rise" and "What's Going On". His career has since blossomed and he has worked with the cream of the UK reggae industry including, Mafia And Fluxy, Danny Ray and the Ruff Cut Band. Inspired by his runaway success Antonio's hits were remixed to satisfy demands from the UK garage scene although he asserted that reggae would always be his foundation.

Listen to Antonio at Finetune.