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Shaggy's 'real' voice unveiled in new interview

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Listen: Shaggy’s ‘real’ voice unveiled in new interview

Rapper Shaggy has revealed his “real” voice and admitted he played up to his Jamaican accent for his singing career.

The chart-topping singer, who was born in Kingston, Jamaica but moved to New York when he turned 18, revealed the history behind his famous accent, in a new interview he shared on TikTok.

The 55-year-old said: “I got this voice by mocking drill instructors in the military. Because in the Marines, the drill instructors would go, ‘Yeah boy, drop and give me 20, let's go’,” he said.

Referring to his first big chart hit Oh Carolina in 1993, Shaggy said: “I just sang that song in that voice because, you know, that... it sounded cool.”

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