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**Bio: Ranking Dread** Real Name: Winston Brown Born: 1955 Ranking Dread, also known as Rankin’ Dread and by various aliases including Robert Blackwood and Errol Codling, is a Jamaican-born figure associated with the Yardie culture in Britain. He arrived in the UK in 1978 and became a prominent DJ at the Four Aces Club in Dalston, London, under the guidance of Lloyd Coxsone. Dread initially gained recognition as a deejay with the Ray Symbolic sound system in Jamaica before releasing his first album, *Girls Fiesta*, in 1978, followed by the single “Fatty Boom Boom” in 1980. His past in Jamaica includes serving as an enforcer for JLP don Claude Massop, with connections to violent gang activities and the infamous Shower Posse. Dread fled Jamaica after being wanted for questioning in connection with multiple crimes, including police shootings. Upon settling in London, he established a network involved in drugs, prostitution, and armed robbery. By the mid-1980s, Ranking Dread had become a significant figure in the UK drug scene, with Scotland Yard identifying him as a key suspect in various criminal activities, including the murder of Nigerian drug dealer Innocent Egbulefu. His notoriety was further solidified in 1988 when he was labeled the head of Shower Posse operations in the UK by the investigative television series *The Cook Report*. Dread

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