Bounty Killer Receives Keys to Kingston: "This Is More Than a Grammy to Me"

The dancehall legend also celebrated the renaming of Wenchman Road to Rodney Price Drive, calling his hometown community Seaview Gardens the "mecca of greatness."

An elated Bounty Killer after receiving the Keys to the City of Kingston (Photo: Ksampcrop)

Dancehall legend Rodney "Bounty Killer" Price returned home on Tuesday to receive the Keys to the City of Kingston and witness the official renaming of Wenchman Road to Rodney Price Drive in his honour.

"This is more than a Grammy to me," Bounty Killer declared after accepting the city's highest civic honour from Kingston Mayor Andrew Swaby.

The veteran deejay reflected on his decades-long journey, expressing gratitude to his family, friends, loyal supporters, manager Paul "Bankey" Giscombe, and the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) for immortalising his name. The road renaming recognises his outstanding contribution to Jamaican music and his lasting influence on the Seaview Gardens community in St Andrew.

Bounty Killer poses beside the newly unveiled Rodney Price Drive sign (Photo: Ksampcrop)

“Today is really the unfolding of another historical chapter in my career. And this milestone is a very unusual and an uncommon accomplishment - the Keys to the City of Kingston.”

Describing the occasion as a celebration of perseverance, Price recalled the hardships he overcame on the very streets where he was honoured. “This is more than just a ceremony. This is a celebration of troubles and trial and triumph and greatness. It’s just right round the road, that’s where I got shot when I was 16, right around there,” he reflected.

Turning his attention to Seaview Gardens, the entertainer paid tribute to the community that shaped him. “Big up the community of Seaview Gardens, we are the mecca of greatness. Our community is a golden garden. Hard work and dedication leads to these accomplishments and accolades in life. And then they say a king has never been crowned in his town, so what is this then?” he asked to loud applause.

Bounty Killer alongside Kingston Mayor Andrew Swaby.

Closing his remarks, Bounty Killer underscored why the civic honour carried even greater significance than international recognition. “This is more than a Grammy to me. These are people who watched me emerge as a young artiste. These people are personally involved in my upbringing, and for them to decide that I deserve the key to Kingston, this is something phenomenal.”