Nitty Gritty

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For other uses, see Nitty (disambiguation).

Glen Augustus Holness, otherwise known by his stage name Nitty Gritty, was a popular Reggae singer. Born in 1957 in the August Town section of Kingston, Jamaica, he was the second of eleven children born to religious parents.

Before joining up with King Jammy in 1985, he worked with Joe Gibbs, started a group called The Soulites, and was training to be an electrician. The first hit he recorded with King Jammy was "Hog Inna Minty", a Jamaican folk song. Nitty Gritty was the first to record the song and was an instant success. On June 24, 1991, he was killed in front of Super Power Record Shop in New York at the age of 34. It is alleged that he was killed in a shootout with Super Cat, another dancehall artist of that time, but Super Cat was subsequently acquitted of the charges.