About Edge Michael
Owing to the potency of his radical roots sound and his conscientious lyrical style, singer/songwriter Edge Michael acquired, at an early age, the alias, Rebel With a Cause. Born Oral Mark Durloo – son of David Durloo and Melzeta McIntosh, herself the sister of legendary reggae superstar, Peter Tosh.
Edge Michael has embraced his fated path, from his earliest high school performances straight through to his professional recording career which started in 1990 as lead vocalist for Jah Children, Edge Michael shared stage with a host of renowned reggae artists, including Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs, and Sanchez. His first studio recording was the self-composed, co-produced single, Try My Love, released in 1994, on The Crowd Pleaser record label. This first effort received both modest airplay and industry recognition.
In 1995, while performing lead vocals for Gumption, the then opening and backing band for reggae superstar Beres Hammond, Edge Michael recorded his second single – a cover of R Kelly’s Bump n Grind. 1996 saw the release of Edge Michael’s first full-length LP, Hard Road to Travel. Self-composed, arranged, and produced, the album contained fourteen tracks of mostly love songs – all with his signature thought-provoking lyrical style.
Following the release of Hard Road to Travel, Edge Michael began performing on tickets alongside a distinguished list of entertainment luminaries, such as Steele Pulse, Burning Spear, Bunny Wailer, Maxi Priest, and Shaggy. Edge Michael’s United States promotional tour in 2000, as well as performances on Fox 5's Good Day Atlanta and 89.3FM WRFG-Atlanta during that same year, pushed through an exponential increase in his fans, as people across the country took to his soulful musical stylings.
Throughout the mid-2000s, Edge Michael toured extensively throughout Europe, performing for audiences in France, Germany, Belgium, Austria, Holland, and Switzerland. Amid a burgeoning European following, Edge Michael met and subsequently began collaborating with the Austrian-based band, House of Riddim – together, producing some amazing roots reggae music.
In 2007,Edge Michael’s eponymous sophomore release, Rebel With A Cause, was released on his own label, Loco Records. Quickly garnering the attention of roots reggae aficionados the world over, Rebel With a Cause was ultimately selected as a Top Ten Reggae Album Pick of the Year by the Brazilian-based Radio Reggae Trade and 1.FM Reggae Trade on iTunes and Windows Media Radio Tuner.
Riding on the inspiration of his successful European adventures and collaborations, Edge Michael’s third LP, Cornucopia, was released in 2008, on the JAMZ Inc. label. Cornucopia is a marvelous compilation stuffed with powerful, mesmerizing sounds – the overarching messages being love, righteousness, truth, and praise of Jah. Jamaican radio station Linkz 96FM presented Edge Michael with their 2009 Album of the Year Award. Delilah, the first single from Cornucopia, garnered immediate praise, as did Edge Michael’s reggae-infused rendition of Lionel Ritchie’s classic, Deep River Woman. Among the many tracks on Cornucopia, the standouts include: Same Faces ; Help ; Famine ; Mr. Babylon ; Lessons ; Real Enemy ; You and I ; and You’ve Got My Love.
Often compared to the reggae greats – Bob Marley, Dennis Brown, and Beres Hammond – as well as to modern-day hit-makers – Taurus Riley, Alborosie – Edge Michael is well on his way to making a significant mark in the world of reggae artists.