Dancehall artiste Teejay has scored his first Billboard entry with his summer hit Drift.
Drift debuted at number 47 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart for October 7th. Teejay joins Jamican-born dancehall artiste Byron Messia as the only dancehall artistes with an entry on the chart.
The dancehall hit Talibans by Messia moves up to number 22 in its 15th week on the chart.
In June, Teejay signed a publishing deal with Warner Chappell Publishing and then a record deal with Warner Music in the United States, which he credited to the success of Drift. The song, released in March via Panda/DJ Mac/Top Braff Music, has received heavy airplay on Jamaican and overseas radios and went viral on Instagram and TikTok.
Solid Agency, which manages Teejay, said the artiste’s Warner signing was “dancehall’s biggest deal for the year.” However, details of the deal were not provided in the release.
“Me feel good. A music we a duh from long time, and me hard work is finally paying off. Dis a just the start,” Teejay said in a release by the agency.
While sharing the news in a post on Instagram, the Uptop Boss captioned the photos: “Damn look what drift did.”
Co-chair and CEO of Warner Chappell Music, Guy Moot, said he is happy to see dancehall music and another Jamaican artiste in this context and on the global rise.
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“It’s the right artiste with the right music and the right time,” he said.
Drift has gone viral on TikTok with over 20 million views on songstats and myriad dance challenges, the release said. The song, which was written and recorded in one hour, has also reportedly blown up internationally, with the biggest numbers in London, New York, and Atlanta.
