THE annual New Jersey Awards takes place April 14 at the Prince Hall in Newark, New Jersey. Among the performers will be singers Richie Stephens, Natural Black and New Jersey lovers rock artiste Christopher Wallace aka Dr Love — a cousin of the late rapper, Notorious BIG.

In a recent radio interview, Dr Love promised to give it his all.

“This is one of the biggest platforms in the state for reggae artistes, so I plan to bring my A game and give fans a special treat,” he said.

Dr Love has built a reputation in the tri-state (New York, New Jersey and Connecticut) area. He is again nominated in the Singer of the Year category, which he won two consecutive years. He lists Alton Ellis, Ken Boothe, Kenny Rogers, Willy Nelson, Percy Sledge, and Ray Charles as his biggest influences.

Dr Love's latest songs, What’s Wrong and the gospel-inspired Now I Am Strong, have been released in Jamaica.

Other new releases include I Know featuring Ras Emmanuel; Kiss Me Good Morning, Too Much Guns in The Streets and Can’t Stop Me From Loving You.

His famous cousin was also named Christopher Wallace but gained fame as the Notorious BIG and is arguably the most influential rapper ever. His parents are Jamaican.