Anslem Douglas

Anslem Douglas is a musician and composer from Trinidad and Tobago, most famous for the hit single "Who Let the Dogs Out?"

Biography

Anslem Douglas first became interested in music watching folk performers at the local community center in his native village of La Romain, in Trinidad. He was also influenced by his older sister, who was a writer and a poet.^{[citation needed]}

Anslem's musical development began to flourish in the local Pentecostal Church, singing in the choir. At the age of sixteen, he formed his own group, called Exodus; this gave him his first real taste of stardom.^{[citation needed]} The band became popular and performed frequently at venues around Trinidad.

In 1984 Anslem enlisted with the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard, where he served for six years.^{[citation needed]} During this period he continued to sing, performing with the Coast Guard's own band at local venues. There he experimented with other musical genres and discovered the Soca music culture.^{[citation needed]}

He recorded his first song in 1988 with Fireflight, then joined the band Atlantik.^{[citation needed]}

His musical influences include Blakely and Lord Kitchener, as well as R&B greats such as Peabo Bryson and Stevie Wonder.

Douglas released hits such as "Good Music to Dance" and "Who Let the Dogs Out", which was a popular party tune across the Caribbean, although the most popular version of the song outside of the Caribbean is probably the cover version of the song sung by the Baha Men. Other releases include "Soul Island" from the Friend CD and "Abuse" from his 2000 CD Sir Anslem Douglas.

In 2001 he was sued and lost a lawsuit with regards to full authorship of the song Who Let the Dogs Out? The chorus was originally composed in 1995 by Patrick Stephenson and Leroy Williams of Just Platinum Recording Studios/Action House Studios in Toronto, Ontario, Canada for a radio jingle. The lawsuit showed that Dougles was a client of the studio during that time, and that he used the chorus to compose the song. The lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed sum.

Anslem Douglas now owns a West Indian store in Whitby, Ontario.

External links

Anslem Douglas profile Canoe.ca
Anslem Douglas makes comeback - October 6, 2006 (Trinidad and Tobago Newsday)
THE MAN WITH THE BARK - By Joan Rampersad; February 10, 1998: The Independent, Pages 18,20

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