Artiste Richie Loop prepares for Sumfest

On Wednesday afternoon, Richie Loop was in the rehearsal studio at Big Yard, practising the set he planned to deliver to fans on Saturday night at Reggae Sumfest.


Sweat poured from his brow as he went through song after song, backed by his band. The only audience was the group's reflections on a wall-length mirror facing the stage, and his keenly focussed mentor Robert Livingston, looking for flaws that need to disappear before Saturday night.
Livingston, however, his shirt drenched in sweat, seemed pleased how Loop worked the stage and with the energy he exuded during his mock performance. He was even more pleased with how quickly Loop went from being a talented emerging producer, to one of the hottest acts in the local entertainment industry in virtually no time at all.

"I never thought about it but maybe it is that I have never worked with an artiste that has been to number one that fast," Livingston said after the rehearsal ended. Chris Martin came in from Rising Stars and his career has been steadily growing, but not as fast as Richie's. He is definitely one of the fastest rising artistes for a long time."
It is still less than a year since Livingston heard of Richard 'Richie Loop' Webb and sent for him while Webb was still living in Clarendon, creating beats he hoped would one day provide him with a ticket to stardom. Richie Loop joined Big Yard last September on a trial run to see if he would be able to generate the kind of synergy with the label's cadre of young artistes to create the kind of music that would captivate the world or, at the very least, the Jamaican market.

In his first few months there, Loop produced a series of rhythms - 'Maad a Road' and 'Brainstorm' among them - that got him noticed, but nothing that raised eyebrows. That is, until earlier this year when coming off what he described as a creative block he stumbled upon, a sound that would eventually morph into the song the world now knows as My Cupp. The song was released in February and while it took a while to gather momentum, now dominates many local charts and is also doing well in markets in Canada and Europe.
He has since released Party Like It's Your Birthday, a collaboration with D-Major and Busy Signal, and Party Time, and both songs are keeping the hype at an amazingly high level for the 23-year-old rising star.
Still, Loop, seemingly oblivious to all the hype, remains humbled and is very grateful to be where he is today. "Being on Sumfest is a great achievement. Many young artistes don't get that chance, so it's a real blessing," he said, a boyish smile lighting up his face. "I have to thank my management team and the promoters of Sumfest for making it possible."

Livingston describes Loop as one of those entertainers that drives him. "An artiste can drive you to get more involved," he said, describing Loop as having good work ethic, as well as charisma.
"I don't know what the future holds, but work is what is going to make him go where he wants to go," Livingston says. "The key thing is that he enjoys what he does, and he has a lot more to offer."