CURTIS CAMPBELL, STAR Writer

Dancer/entrepreneur Keiva Di Diva is showering praises on dancehall artiste Mavado, following his decision to include her and other local dancers in his international music video Give It To Me, which features platinum-selling rapper Nicki Minaj.

According to Keiva, it's ironic that Mavado who has never done a dancing song became the first dancehall artiste to feature her in an international music video in her 20-year career. She also says Mavado was very hospitable and courteous to the Jamaican dancers while they filmed in the United States.

"I was in New York and I gave him a call and we spoke about an hour. I told him that Jamaican dancers weren't getting enough exposure nor features in international videos. He felt my pain, and he told me that he would feature me in a video with a major artiste, but he waited about two hours before letting me know that it was Nicki Minaj. When he finally told me, I was screaming, and he said he would put me on the map. After that, he asked me who else I could get, and I called Craigy Dread and Cosmic dancers because they were also in America at the time," she said.

Keiva also disclosed that unlike other artistes, Mavado paid her for the feature.

"Mavado treated us so good, tears came to my eyes. He looked out for us and was always checking up to ensure that we were okay, and we felt so welcomed. He also kept me close through the filming process to ensure that I had a presence in the video, and I was so impressed and happy," Keiva said.

The dancer also said Mavado wanted her to be a part of the promotional team that went to premiere the video on BET's 106 & Park recently, however, she was already back in Jamaica at the time of his request.

"He tried to get me to be a part of the video premiere on BET, but I was in Jamaica. Honestly, I couldn't sleep that night because I knew it would have been a great opportunity for me. He (Mavado) was hoping the video would be filmed in Jamaica so that he could get more Jamaican dancers involved, but that didn't work out," she said.

Keiva is now recommending that local artistes do more songs that are dance oriented. She was also featured in DJ Liquid's Bubble music video, which was also filmed in New York. Keiva also has three more music video features to be released in coming weeks.