Ricardo Dias de Lima Ventura da Costa, better known as Richie Campbell (Caxias, November 25, 1986), is a Portuguese Reggae, Dancehall and R&B singer. He is one of the most successful Portuguese artists of the 2010s and his repertoire consists of songs in English, usually with a Jamaican accent, and in Jamaican Patoá.
Recognized as the first Internet musical phenomenon in Portugal, Richie Campbell made history when, in 2011, he became the first artist without a label in Portugal to sell out a venue the size of Campo Pequeno.
The artist’s first original album was released in 2012 and achieved great success. Focused was recorded in Germany and features a range of important Jamaican collaborations, such as singer Ikaya, Anthony B or Turbulence. This album also features the hit “That’s How We Roll”, nominated for a Golden Globe in 2013.
In May 2015, Richie Campbell was the first Portuguese artist to release an album without prior notice. In The 876 was produced by Jamaican Niko Browne and recorded between Kingston (Jamaica) and Lisbon. The album reached No. 1 on the digital charts in just two hours. The surprise launch was unprecedented in Portugal and set the tone for an unstoppable year for Richie Campbell. The In The 876 tour, carried out together with the 911 Band, took place between 2015 and 2016 and visited countries such as Germany, Poland, England, France, Switzerland, Sweden, Italy, Austria, Luxembourg and also Jamaica and Barbados.
Parallel to the In 876 Tour, 2016 marked a year of reinvention of Richie Campbell’s music, in which the following stand out: the unexpected collaboration with Cape Verdean-Dutch singer Nelson Freitas, the single “Break of Dawn”, which was the music video most viewed of the year in Portugal and which as of January 2023 has more than 20 million views; the remix of Rihanna’s hit “Work”; and the acclaimed “Do You No Wrong”, produced by Lhast, which was awarded the platinum single distinction.
In 2017, Richie returned to the road, in a year marked by the release of new songs and the return to the R&B and Dancehall sounds that marked the beginning of the artist’s career.
Career
He started in the band Stepacide in 2010 and was part of the No Joke Sound System project, leaving both projects in 2010 to focus on his solo career. Still in 2010, he released his first album My Path, available only as a free download, and saw his EP released in series 6 of Optimus Discos, directed by Henrique Amaro. It was in the top 1000 worldwide, with the same score as Alessia Cara, Anne-Marie and Ariana Grande.
In 2012, he started the Focused Tour, whose last concerts on the tour took place in Porto and Lisbon. In the latter city, he recorded Live at Campo Pequeno, which was released in 2014 on CD and DVD.
On May 4, 2015, he released the album In the 876 without prior notice, which reached the top of iTunes sales in two hours. This album was recorded in Kingston and Lisbon. Its name is a reference to Jamaica’s telephone code.
In 2016, he released the single “Do You no Wrong”, which, due to its great success, became a platinum single.
Richie Campbell works and performs live with a band called The 911 Band, which has been highlighted by several people as the best Reggae backing band in Portugal. The band contains members who have already worked on projects such as One Sun Tribe, Kussondulola, One Love Family, among others. The 911 Band is made up of a drummer, a bassist, a guitarist, three backing vocalists, two keyboardists and a saxophonist.
