Informer

Snow is Darrin O'Brien, a white reggae rapper from Allenbury Gardens, located in Toronto's North York district. During O'Brien's teenage years, his neighborhood experienced an influx of Jamaicans who fostered in him a love for dancehall reggae music. They nicknamed their Caucasian friend Snow, which depending on who's telling the story, is either an acronym for Super Notorious Outrageous Whiteboy, or a shortened version of another name they called him: Snow White.

While on bail for attempted murder charges, Snow took a vacation in Queens, New York where he met rapper and producer M.C. Shan. The pair produced a four-song demo, which earned him a contract with Motor Jam Records company, who then licensed his music to East West Records. (Then home to major acts like En Vogue). Shortly thereafter, Snow had to return to Canada to face sentencing. Although he was acquitted of both attempted murder charges, he began serving an eight-month sentence in Toronto for assault. "Informer" exploded on the Billboard charts while he was incarcerated, spending seven consecutive weeks at #1 on the Hot 100 and reaching the Top 10 on the singles charts worldwide. By the time he was released from prison, Snow had become an international household name.

Snow's patois-laced single is based on a separate 1989 incident when he was charged with two counts of attempted murder stemming from his involvement in a knife fight. Only hardcore reggae listeners could understand what he was singing about without a lyric translation sheet. "I had my father and brother in my cell," he recalled to Genius. "When I was in custody, I wrote that little piece [sings]: 'Informer, detective man say Daddy Snow stabbed somebody down the lane.' I didn't even want to be a singer - it wasn't like I was handing out demos. I just did it because I got snitched on. Where I grew up, in my family, that was a terrible thing to do." Snow's charges were reduced to aggravated assault, and he was eventually acquitted and freed. The finalized song, which he completed with M.C. Shan's help, details the artist's time in jail, right down to the cavity search.