It’s been 13 years since Darrin O’Brien, aka Snow, heard Informer drifting out of the speakers of his jail-cell radio. Serving a one-year sentence for assault, Snow couldn’t believe his ears. He’d just assumed the sessions he’d done with producer MC Shan were never going see the light of day.
Obviously, it didn’t work out that way; Snow exited the pen in a limo. Informer was a reggae hit to the max. Its catchy patois chorus and rapid-fire delivery had huge crossover appeal, something that eludes most dancehall and reggae heavyweights.
To this day, the former Billboard number-one song reigns in record books as the highest-charting and biggest-selling reggae single in history. Though Snow’s made three proper studio albums since, and a few hits, nothing has come close to touching the success of his debut single. Curiously, Snow doesn’t see Informer as the highlight of his career thus far.
“The song I did with Buju [Banton] was bigger in my mind,” says O’Brien, referring to Anything For You, from 97’s Justuss (East West), which was named after his daughter. “I see that as more of an accomplishment, because it launched me and got me accepted by the reggae community.