"Informer" | ||||
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Single by Snow | ||||
from the album 12 Inches of Snow | ||||
Released | January 2, 1993 | |||
Format | CD single, CD maxi, 7" single 12" maxi, Cassette |
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Recorded | 1992 | |||
Genre | Reggae fusion, hip hop | |||
Length | 4:05 | |||
Label | EastWest | |||
Writer(s) | Edmond Leary Darrin O'Brien Shawn Moltke Terri Moltke Jeffrey Silva (Associate Writer) |
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Producer(s) | M.C. Shan | |||
Snow singles chronology | ||||
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"Ich bin der Farmer" | |
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Single by Bozo Der Boss |
"Informer" is a 1992 song by Canadian reggae musician Snow from his debut album 12 Inches of Snow. Produced by MC Shan, who also contributed a verse, the single was a chart-topping hit, spending seven consecutive weeks at Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was his biggest hit in the United Kingdom, where it reached Number 2, behind two different number one singles. In 2007, the song was ranked Number 84 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the 90s. Conversely, the song was included in Pitchfork Media's 2010 list of "the seven worst U.S. Number 1 singles of the 90s".
In 1992, while on vacation in Queens, New York, Snow met MC Shan, and the pair produced a four-song demo. MC Shan then introduced Snow to producer–managers Steve Salem and David Eng, who signed him to their Motor Jam Records company, and licensed the music to East West Records. Shortly thereafter, Snow began serving an eight-month sentence in Toronto for assault. "Informer" began getting radio and MuchMusic airplay while he was incarcerated.
The song is based on a separate 1989 incident when Snow was charged with two counts of attempted murder. At the time, he was detained for a year in Toronto before the charges were reduced to aggravated assault, and he was eventually acquitted and freed.
In a 1999 interview, he referred to his criminal history as "a couple of bar fights."
Directed by George Seminara, the video shows Snow entering a jail cell. His producer and friend, M.C. Shan, is also featured in the video; he explains how he got into prison by not turning Informer. Shan is seen enjoying a sauna with a couple of women. There are bikini clad women throughout and Snow is accompanied by female dancers glossed in black and white. When first shown, the video had no subtitles, but they were added because few people could comprehend what Snow was saying. One of the dancers is Mona Scott, who would later go into music management, starting Violator Management. She would go on to become owner of Monami Entertainment.