Millie Small
(Oct. 6, 1946 – May 5, 2020)
History
Singer and songwriter, best known for her single “My Boy Lollipop”; Millie Small, a trailblazer who launched Ska out of the Caribbean and onto a global audience. At the time, ska acts like Prince Buster and Derrick Morgan were popular among ‘Skinheads’, rebellious white British youth. My Boy Lollipop was not as hardcore, but it outsold songs by more established artistes signed to bigger labels.
Small was born in Milk River, Clarendon. She launched into fame as a teenager firstly through winning the Vere Johns Opportunity Hour Talent contest at age twelve. She later moved to Kingston to pursue her musical career where she later signed with Studio One record producer Coxsone Dodd. Small also worked with musical pioneers and producers such as Owen Gray, Samuel Augustus “Roy” Panton, Lindon Pottinger and Prince Buster. However, Chris Blackwell saw a greater potential in her and later became her manager and legal guardian, where they move to England to give her intensive training to position her on the global scene.
