Radio legend Barry G Dies at Age 70

Barrington “Barry G” Gordon, whose exuberant delivery and charismatic personality made him one of Jamaica’s great broadcasters, died at the Savanna-la-Mar Hospital in Westmoreland on October 29. He was 70 years old. His death was confirmed by Michael Chambers, his friend of 50 years, who gave the cause of death as pneumonia.

Barry G joined the staff at the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation (JBC) in the late 1970s, shortly after graduating from Kingston College. He hosted shows such as the Boogie Down Show on Saturday nights which announced him as a rising star.

Later, he hosted the four-hour 2 To 6 Supermix which made him the number one-disc jockey in Jamaica for most of the 1980s. “He played predominantly reggae, but his shows were all kinds of music. Barry loved all kinds of music,” said Chambers, who was his technical operator for several years

Barry G became globally famous through his radio clashes with British radio legend David Rodigan. Those square-offs started in 1983 and made both men stars in major dancehall-reggae markets in the United States, United Kingdom and Japan.

After leaving JBC in 1987, Barry G moved to the rival Radio Jamaica and also had stints at Power 106, KLAS FM and Hot 102. He enjoyed a career revival at Mello FM in Montego Bay where he stayed for 11 years before leaving in 2021.

Barrington “Barry G” Gordon was awarded the Order of Distinction — Jamaica’s sixth-highest honour — for services to broadcasting in 2010.