General Ginger starts musical journey anew

But his life took a sharp turn when he had to leave for the United States of America despite huge interest in his talent from the legendary Sly and Robbie.

Tulloch, who goes by the dancehall moniker General Ginger, a name given to him by schoolmates at Old Harbour Secondary in the late 1980s, was musically onto something big. His x-rated single ‘Tek Wuk’ was popular at the time in dancehall circles, he tells Old Harbour News in an interview, before disappearing into oblivion for the next two decades.

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“So Sly and Robbie said ‘OK when we ready fi start we are going to call you in’. So I tell my mother that listen mi no ready yet, because you have until six months to leave any time your papers come through. I said ‘I don’t ready yet you know, mi a come up about the fifth month’. And we agreed on that. Mi mother call me back like the next day and said I buy you ticket. Mi se ‘fi when?’

And she se like two days’ time; and mi se ‘we no agree on that’. So like tonight the policeman check mi and se Sly and Robbie ready for you tomorrow, was the same day mi a go pon the plane the morning,” Tulloch, 50, recalled while crediting a police officer who was his neighbour for making the connection with Sly and Robbie.

His talent came with clear and powerful vocals, two important tenets often associated with the best artistes in the business. In the US it was like starting life all over again, Tulloch told Old Harbour News, his musical journey going on a hiatus in the process.

“I did stop (doing music) for a while. When I reach up in America I didn’t have any connection. My intention was to come back to see Sly and Robbie but then by that time my mother wasn’t so well and I don’t think it was good to leave. I had to stay around to help out,” he said. 

In recent times though, the Bartons-born artiste, has endeavored to resurrect his musical career, but far remove from the sexually explicit version that almost shot him to stardom.

Today, he says he’s more mature and is focus on delivering a conscious message to the world. Singles such as Gun Fusion, Be About Your Purpose and I Pray For You confirms the new path General Ginger is currently on. He continues to hone his craft doing dubs and jingles while holding down a fulltime job. Plans are in the pipeline for a few gigs in clubs in the US, he said, but what’s more important for him is the message.

“My main mission is to be a light of consciousness and a light of righteousness… because of all that’s going on in the world now I believe the youth need some positive role model and I want to be one of that light of consciousness,” said Tulloch, who came to Jamaica to share in the fun and excitement of a reunion with his high school graduating class of 1991.

General Ginger said he had his first gig in grade three in primary school. By the time he was enrolled in high school he was already a recognised talent among his peers and had the privilege of performing at Teens Splash in Coney Park where he finished in the top three.

“I started doing music from primary school but I never had that name yet until I reach into Old Harbour High School. That’s when I get the General Ginger name because mi decide se mi a tek it serious. People use to se mi harsh with it so they called me Ginger and so wi just add the general to it,” said the New Yorker and past student of Bartons Primary.

Though he had put music on the back burner for a long time, Tulloch had this burning desire to return to the hobby he loves best and has commenced publishing his work through his YouTube channel.

A lot has also changed in the industry, he noted, hence his decision to be the executive producer of his own work. He recounted how ‘back in the day’ that one Cedella Marley wanted to sign him but such an opportunity was undermined and eventually scuppered by those he entrusted.

“The guy who I did the song (Tek Wuk) for wanted me to sign with him instead of Cedella Marley. So there was a conflict there and things didn’t go according to plan,” he said.

Speaking on the reunion he said: “It was an awesome feeling. I believe there’s a lot of upliftment and it is growing in the right direction.”