Friendship is that strong and habitual inclination in two persons to promote the good and happiness of each other. (Anonymous)

Everyone has a "best friend" during each stage of life - only a precious few have the same one. (Unknown)

Dancehall reggae ambassador, Sean Paul (Henriques), has been rocking the world with his signature blend of reggae, dancehall and hip-hop since the release of his second album, Dutty Rock, in 2002.

The album's hit tunes, Gimme The Light, Get Busy and Like Glue, earned him great success and in 2004, it was certified double platinum (more than two million copies sold) in the United States, and sold nearly six million copies worldwide, earning him his first Grammy Award.

Sean's duet, Baby Boy with Beyoncé and I'm Still In Love With You with Sasha, created a firestorm furthering his success in the US market and worldwide, while increasing the popularity and appeal of Jamaican dancehall reggae.

His third album, The Trinity, released in September 2005, also included a number of hits such as: Give It Up to Me, Temperature and Never Gonna Be the Same. The video for (When You Gonna) Give It Up To Me, featuring Keyshia Cole, was featured in the 2006 movie; Step Up and he also won an American Music Award for the song.

Since his debut on the music scene in 1996 with the single, Baby Girl (Don't Cry), Sean Paul has been racking up numerous prestigious awards including, the 2005 BillBoard Music Award for best-selling reggae artiste of the year and top-selling reggae album of the year (The Trinity). In 2006, he earned the American Music Award for favourite pop/rock male artiste and the Billboard Music Award for the hot 100 single of the year; Temperature. In 2007, he received the Jamaican Award for best male reggae singer.

Recently, he has been the featured artiste on Estelle's single, Come Over and he is set to release his newest album, The Next Thing later this year.

Best friend

His best friend is Duncan Messado, marketing consultant at KRB Lea Ltd (Port Royal Rums). In this week's feature, Duncan shares interesting insights about Sean Paul including his athletic prowess. Duncan reveals that Sean Paul has been a competitive swimmer since high school and that he played for Jamaica's national water polo team. However, he gave up his love for the sport in order to pursue his music career.

How did you meet Sean Paul and how long have you been friends?

Sean and I became friends in first form at Wolmer's Boys' School. This was in 1985 (23 years ago). We realised that we lived within walking distance of each other and we were both good at swimming. We both made the school's swim team while in first form.

Then his father, Garth Henriques (who was a part of the national water polo team), got me involved in water polo. Sean and his brother were already playing the sport. He and I eventually started playing for the school's water polo team and later, we played for the national team.

After three years at Wolmer's, we both went to Hillel Academy, where we completed high school. We played sports, went to parties, did everything together and have remained best friends until now.

Tell us what you admire most about him and why do you think you have remained friends all these years?

There are a lot of things I admire about Sean, but the two things I admire most are the fact that he is humble and he is very driven. With all his success, he has not changed at all and he still works as hard as he did before he had his first hit. Actually, I think he is even more driven than before and I really admire that quality in him. He is also a very emotional and caring person.

The things that are important to me are also important to him, such as family and friends. We also have the same interests and mutual goals.

Tell us something interesting about him?

He is a very good athlete. He is very good at water polo, swimming, basketball and runs whenever he gets a chance. When we were in high school, they had a 5K road race and he won it, beating all the members of the track team who had competed.

What are some of the things you talk about when you are together?

When we are together we spend a lot of time catching up on what's going on in each other's lives and what's going on with our friends around the world. We also talk about what's happening in Jamaica and the world and how it affects us and our families.

Share with us one of the happiest moments you have experienced with him?

There are so many. He was the best man at my wedding and he was there beside me for the entire day. He had to give up a show to be there and I considered it one of the best days of my life.

Another moment that stands out in my mind was when we went to Orlando with Sean for my daughter's fourth birthday. He was performing at Universal Studios and we had a wonderful time there. To date, we have not been able to top that birthday present to her.

Tell us the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of Sean and why?

The first thing that comes to mind is family. Family comes first for Sean and is the most important thing in his life.

What are his favourite foods, favourite music and favourite sport?

His favourite food is sushi, but Sean, myself and our close friends, Richard and Jonas, all have a weak spot for a restaurant in Cross Roads called Jus Foods, as their fried chicken with rice and peas is amazing.

He listens to dancehall music and to hip-hop.

He loves sports (water polo, swimming, etc.), but doesn't really follow any professional sports.

Tell us the colour that you associate with him:

Yellow - signifying someone you'll never forget.

Orange - signifying someone you consider your true friend.

Red - signifying someone you really love.

Green - signifying someone who has had a significant impact on your life.

I have to say all four as Sean means all those things to me. A true friend is one you can rely on and Sean has been there for me throughout the years, through broken hearts, disappointing outcomes and I have been there for him as well. Next to my family, he is right up there.

Sean has made me a better person. In going after his dreams he has encouraged me to pursue mine. After leaving the University of Technology, he got a lot of negatives from people when he decided to pursue music full-time, but he knew he had a passion for it and that he would be successful. He made me realise that it is possible to achieve our dreams.