Producer Turned Recording Artiste Elliven‏

Neville Palmer’s love affair with music began at an early age. While attending church as a child, he would often bang on the drums and pluck the strings on the guitar. He would later surround himself with those musical instruments where he took duties on his church band and choir. I always knew I wanted to get into music whether it was as a producer, a songwriter, or a musician,’ Palmer who now goes by the moniker Elliven said in a recent interview.

Palmer started out professionally as the producer and head honcho for NAP Musiq label. His first success as a producer came via singer Daville’s remake of Bryan Adams’ 1980’s hit We’re in Heaven. ‘I was surprised the way that song took off and based on that initial success, I was able to get NAP Musiq the attention that we wanted,’ Palmer explained.

Other projects from NAP Musiq included the Passion rhythm compilation which featured songs from Capleton, Turbulence, Luciano, Chuck Fenda, Anthony Cruz, and Richie Spice; the Wash Pan rhythm which contained tracks from Vybz Kartel, Elephant Man, Kip Rich, and Macka Diamond among others; the Spot Check rhythm which featured Beenie Man, RDX, Mr. Peppa and Turbulence.

These days, Palmer is busy pursuing a career as a recording artiste. ‘To me it’s not a switch from being a producer. I look at it as another dimension of music. I still write songs for artistes and I still produce music,’ said Palmer.

As a recording artiste, he has released music under the name Elliven which is Neville spelt backwards. ‘I’m bringing a different style and flavor to the music. It’s a good vibe with a mixture of dancehall and reggae. Overall its music that everyone can relate to,’ said Palmer. His current singles include Yuh Look Good, Whina and Caan Tek it Away which are all in rotation on the local airwaves.

Currently based in Philadelphia, USA, he migrated to the states ten years ago. ‘I am originally from the East, Bull Bay to be exact. I left Jamaica to further my education and to be with my family,’ said Palmer. He cites a lack of resources which have hindered the success of reggae and dancehall acts based in the states. ‘There’s a lot of talent in America as far as reggae and dancehall music is concerned but the resources are very limited,’ Palmer explained.

His long term goal is to build on the musical legacy left behind by the artistes who are no longer with us. ‘I want to build on the musical legacy that our icons such as Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Dennis Brown and others left for us. I also want to be a positive inspiration to the youths,’ Palmer concluded.

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