'No disability can stop me' - Dancehall's little giant determined to make it big

Although he is confined to a wheelchair and stands at three feet four inches tall, Gavin 'GMG' Burgess is determined to make it big on the party scene.

The 32-year-old refuses to let his physical impediments stop his love for promoting parties in Jamaica and Florida.

"After a spinal cord injury accident in 2003, where I lost my mobility and was confined to a wheelchair, I experienced depression and sad days. I got motivated by a longtime friend Rashedi, who is now deceased, to go out and promote dancehall parties because he knew that's the vibes I liked, because we did our first event, The Arrival, in 2007 in Kingston, Jamaica," he said.

After that, Burgess began doing his own parties in Miami and Jamaica, such as The Arrival, Tun Inna Miami, Infared Pressure and Flava Rock.

"Even though my hands are unable to move, having the passion for the love of music I became a selector/DJ, where I played my own sound using a pencil and my laptop - 1Link International - which gave me more experience in the party world and lots of bookings. People were amazed," he said.

DOING AS MUCH AS I CAN

"I don't see myself as having a disability. I just apply myself as a normal individual and do as much as I can."

A past student of Mona High School in St Andrew, Burgess grew up in a tough section of Mountain View known as Top Range. He said that at age four, he was diagnosed with a bone disorder that stopped his growth.

Burgess told THE STAR that he was able to walk until he was 18 years old, when he fell and damaged his spinal cord.

"My nerves were damaged, and this is how I ended up in a wheelchair. I lost my physical movements, and I have no feelings in my arms and so on," he said.

He migrated to Miami in 2003, but makes frequent trips to Jamaica to promote his annual event called Yard and Abroad.

"I love what I do, and I am going to be in the entertainment scene for the rest of my life. No disability can stop me," he said.