Famous singer Shaggy, stunned fans by revealing his signature singing voice is not really his at all.
The “It Wasn’t Me” rapper used his real voice in a recent interview on TikTok and fans instantly expressed their dismay, having believed for decades that Shaggy had a heavy Jamaican accent.
The 55-year-old Marine Corps veteran revealed in the March 4 video that he began putting on the accent as a joke.
“I just sang that song in that voice because, you know, that … it sounded cool,” he said, referring to his 1993 breakthrough single, “Oh Carolina.”
@direalshaggyShaggy discusses how he got his signature voice while in the U.S marines♬ original sound – DiRealShaggy
Shaggy’s fans flooded the comment section on TikTok, as the star continued to explain how he had duped millions of fans worldwide for so long.
“‘I got this voice by mocking drill instructors in the military,” he said. “Because in the Marines, the drill instructors would go, ‘Yeah boy, drop and give me 20, let’s go,'” he said, using the voice and accent that his fans recognized as his signature sound.
In this image released on December 31, Shaggy performs at Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2023 broadcast on December 31, 2022 at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images
Shaggy performs onstage as TLC & Shaggy’s Hot Summer Nights Tour takes over Miami’s FPL Solar Amphitheater at Bayfront Park on June 03, 2023 in Miami, Florida. Photo by Jason Koerner/Getty Images for Live Nation
“And I would mock him as a form of joking because it motivated, you know, your platoon,” Shaggy said.
Shaggy explained that once he gained notoriety with the fake accent, he felt pressured to keep it up.
“‘Oh Carolina’ blew up and now I’m faced with the situation that I’m gonna have to sing every song like that,” he admitted.
Shaggy poses with his award at the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards Premiere Ceremony at Microsoft Theater on February 10, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Shaggy performs at the Hangout Stage during 2017 Hangout Music Festival on May 21, 2017 in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Hangout Music Festival
One user commented, “So we all just hearing shaggy real voice for the first time?”
Another wrote, “That’s shaggy’s government voice???” (RELATED: Sofia Vergara Laces Into Interviewer Who Mocked Her Accent)
Shaggy attends the 65th GRAMMY Awards on February 05, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Another wrote, “Not Shaggy gas lighting us all these years,” and another, “HOLD UP!!! Shaggy DOESNT HAVE AN ACCENT.”
Shaggy, whose real name is Orville Burrell, was born in Jamaica but moved to New York City at the age of 18.