{{Short description|Jamaican dancehall and reggae artist (1971–2022)}} {{Use British English|date=October 2013}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}} '''Merciless''', born '''Leonard Bartley''' (1 July 1971 – 19 July 2022) in the Turner district of [[Chapelton, Jamaica|Chapelton]], [[Clarendon Parish, Jamaica|Clarendon]], Jamaica, was a Jamaican dancehall and reggae artist. He died on 19 July 2022, in St. Andrew, Jamaica.<ref name="Jamaica Observer 2022">{{cite web | title=Merciless: 10 things to know about Leonard | website=Jamaica Observer | date=20 July 2022 | url=https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latest-news/merciless-10-things-to-know-about-leonard/ | access-date=11 May 2023}}</ref>
==Biography== Merciless first found success performing with [[Sound system (Jamaican)|sound systems]].<ref name="Larkin">Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, {{ISBN|0-7535-0242-9}}, p. 194</ref> He made his recording début in 1994 with "Len Out Mi Mercy", which was a hit in Jamaica and elsewhere, and a string of further hits followed, including "Mavis", which was the top reggae single in Jamaica in 1995 and used the same [[riddim]] as [[Shaggy (musician)|Shaggy]]'s "Mr. Boombastic".<ref name="Larkin" /> Like several other dancehall stars, he adopted 'conscious' lyrical content in the late 1990s.<ref name="Larkin" /> He is similar in sound to fellow artist [[Bounty Killer]].<ref name="Campbell">Campbell, Howard (2009) "[http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20091206/ent/ent5.html Merciless prepares a 'Letter' for Sting] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100523144025/http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20091206/ent/ent5.html |date=23 May 2010 }}", ''[[Jamaica Gleaner]]'', 6 December 2009, retrieved 2010-11-04</ref><ref name="Larkin" /> In the late 2000s he was imprisoned in [[Florida]] for fourteen months.<ref name="Campbell" />
He was also known by the nickname "Warhead", and engaged in several high-profile on-stage 'battles' in the late 1990s and 2000s with fellow deejays [[Beenie Man]], [[Ninjaman]], and Bounty Killer.<ref name="JG">"[http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20011228/ent/ent1.html No mercy for Merciless] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812004912/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20011228/ent/ent1.html |date=12 August 2011 }}", ''[[Jamaica Gleaner]]'', 28 December 2001, retrieved 2010-11-04</ref> His rivalry with Bounty Killer did not prevent the two from recording together, with "No One Cares" released in 2000.<ref name="JG2">"[http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20000806/Ent/Ent4.html Bounty Killer and Merciless record together] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812004919/http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20000806/Ent/Ent4.html |date=12 August 2011 }}", ''[[Jamaica Gleaner]]'', 6 August 2000, retrieved 2010-11-04</ref>
==Discography== *''Mr. Merciless'' (1994), [[VP Records]] *''Len' Out Mi Mercy'' (1995), Annex *''Mama's Cooking'' (1997), [[Greensleeves Records]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Merciless}} [[Category:1971 births]] [[Category:2022 deaths]] [[Category:Musicians from Clarendon Parish, Jamaica]] [[Category:Jamaican DJs]]
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