Justin Mark Boreland, better known as Merlin, is a British rapper of Jamaican descent from Brixton, London and nephew of reggae singer Smiley Culture. He was the featured vocalist on the B-side "Megablast" of the UK top-ten single "Don't Make Me Wait" by Bomb the Bass (1988) and A-side of the UK top-ten single "Who's in the House (The Hip House Anthem)" by the Beatmasters (1989). Merlin also contributed vocals to the track "Pimps, Pushers, Prostitutes" (for which he received a writing credit) on the 1989 UK top-five album Original Soundtrack by S'Express. An eponymous studio album was released the same year followed by a second, The New Rap Messiah, in 1992.
In 2020, Boreland became a tutor in music composition and production at the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance, London.
Publications
- Boreland, Justin & Peters, Eleanor (2023). "The Benefits of Music Engagement Projects on Young People: A Music and Education Perspective". In Peters, Eleanor (ed.). Music in Crime, Resistance, and Identity. Routledge Studies in Crime, Media and Popular Culture. Abingdon: Routledge. ISBN 9781032030470.
References
- ^ Hamilton, Andrew. "Merlin". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
- ^ "Merlin". Discogs. Archived from the original on 7 August 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
- Warren, Emma (2023). Dance Your Way Home: A Journey Through the Dancefloor. London: Faber & Faber. ISBN 9780571366033.
- "Don't Make Me Wait – Record Details". 45cat. Archived from the original on 25 September 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
- "Who's In The House (The Hip House Anthem) – Record Details". 45cat. Archived from the original on 25 September 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
- The Virgin Book of British Hit Singles. Vol. 2. London: Virgin Books. 2010. p. 315. ISBN 9780753522455 – via Internet Archive.
- Future Music (15 January 2015). "Classic album: S'Express on Original Soundtrack". Music Radar. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
- Magnelli, Lara (6 October 2021). "Justin Boreland aka Merlin | rapper, producer, educator". Institute of Contemporary Music Performance (Podcast). Sounds Like These. Retrieved 8 September 2023. (Archived version at Wayback Machine.)