Life is always full of obstacles. There are always people ready to pull you down (The pull you down syndrome). Well from the teachings I got from Bugle’s song, ‘Journey‘, one should not let the obstacles stop your life journey. The devil always celebrate when you give up on your aspirations.
Like what Bugle says, life is not an easy road, but you cant make obstacles stop you. Be strong and hold on to your faith. Everyone is destined for greatness but some decide to quit after one or two obstacle disrupt their progress. Keep your head up high, swallow your pride and decide never to fail.Even if it means riding a bicycle and deliver mails like a post man, just go for it.Praise God that you found a job and you wont rob and go to jail. Righteousness have to prevail. Watch the video below and read the lyrics to the song Journey and get a lesson too.
[Intro:]
Life you know
Is not easy road
But you cyaan mek obstacles stop you
Daseeeca
[Chorus:]
Some people stop by obstacles my journeys continue
Di devil is always gonna be around hauntin you Read the rest of this entry »
Many fans of what is today known as Dancehall reggae have no idea of its background/history. when the music started, it was the first in Jamaica to be computer aided in its production. as a result it was named ‘Digital reggae’. I remember in the early 90s we used to call it ‘Ma Diggie’. It so happened that it was not the only music produced using computer based software. Any other music could be produced this way and therefore the name was found not proper.
That is the time when it was named ‘Dancehall’. But where did the name come from? As written in The Story of Reggae, the name itself came up because most of the early tracks of Dancehall were deemed not suitable for radio airplay but were best for the dance hall.
Anyone who has followed it from the early days would agree with me that the vintage names that we can remember include the likes of Yellowman. Of cause a lot of today’s youths might not even know his single track. Yellowman was widely known as King Yellowman. He was popular in Jamaica in the 1980s, coming to prominence with a series of singles that established his reputation. Researching about his carrear, i found out that he released his first album1982 entitled Mister Yellowman. This was followed by Zunggu zunggu zunggu zeng in 1983. He is one of the artists who had sexually explicit lyrics that could not be played on radio hence fit for the Dancehall.
In brief, that is how the name Dancehall came about.
When Red Rat did a song on anti bleaching some 5 years ago, a lot of people took him as insane. I think what he was just trying to highlight is that a lot of people are adopting this self denial behavior. Surprisingly, musicians who are supposed to be positive models in society are becoming the bleaching advocates.
Artists from the ‘Gazza’ side of dancehall are in the forefront of promoting this skin bleaching thing. First, it was Vybz Kartel who completely changed his complexion from dark brow to an almost white skin color. My question is, ‘What values was he trying to promote?’.
Red Rat is one of his songs said skin bleaching is a sign of black people trying to look like white people. A sign that they are not proud of their African skin. In emphasising this, Red Rat actually said ‘Bleach out face, dem looking like dead people…face red like the devil, dem looking so evil.
Those dancehall artists in that skin lightening ‘syndrome’ are tarnishing Reggae image. Listen to the track below
When I-Octane and Vanessa Bling‘s picture caused a lot of controversy on the social networks I could not believe what people were saying. As a result, I had to research more on the issue. People were saying I-Octane is dating the Gaza empress but I could not buy that. After reading through a lot of articles, I finally came to the main issue behind that picture.
This picture was taken as a publicity and promotional image for their collaboration song titled ‘Cya Do It’. This song is likely to make history if people really give it time. It appears on the How it feel Riddim which is already on almost everyone’s mobile music player. Check them out in the video below.People always have something to say isn’t it?
It was in 1998 when Mr Vegas dropped his biggest heat of all times. The track ‘heads high’ automatically featured in Reggae Gold 1998 and everyone who was into reggae those days can agree with me that the tune was such a masterpiece. Instantly Mr Vegas became popular worldwide. I was a bit young those days but old enough to carry DJing kit for my elder brothers from another mother who were touring the ghettos of my city playing in the community halls.
From then, Mr Vegas has never looked back. Of cause the was a moment when he became silent but if my research serves me well I’m informed that he was at Cambridge University doing his Architectural degree. Soon after that he came back into music and im confident enough to say he is one of the artists who have managed to maintain the real sound of reggae dancehall without distorting the good traditional sound.
Who rules?
His music still sound the same and it reminds me of the good old days when Dancehall was still reggae. Just like how they used to do it together with the likes of Lady G, Mr Vegas has picked up a new talent in the shoes of Latty J. Latty is a new generation reggae dancehall artist but her sound is so outstanding and to me she is doing great in correcting the distorted sound of reggae dancehall. The real sound that was characterised with the sound systems like Stereo 1 International. Believe me, in countries like Kenya, Tanzania, and my home Zimbabwe, we really know that at some point in time dancehall was still reggae.
Anyway, that’s not the topic of the day. My focus today is on Mr Vegas. If anyone has given him/herself a chance to listen to tracks such as ‘Selfie’ he/she can agree with me that Mr Vegas is original. His music is not a bubble gum therefore it doesn’t lose taste. It’s not soap therefore it does not wash away. I feel that dancehall is back to reggae when I listen to Mr Vegas. Give yourself time to really read his music and you will get what I’m saying.
“Playing the rhythm, resisting against the system”- Bob Marley.
As I was watching I Wayne’s performance at Rebel Salute, I really agreed with him when he called for a reggae a clean-up. Commercialisation of reggae music has led to a trend of artists who just do it to please their pockets while killing the moral values of reggae. This is done through the hands of non-critical RAGGA artists who lack simple logic to define the role of reggae. Its high time people get to know the difference between reggae and commercialised dancehall.
Promoters due to their political and economic interests now promote gangsterised ragga on the expense of reggae. What I have realised is that big promoters are linked either to the political elites or to the economic blocks. Working under the ideologies of politicians, they are promoting a sense of false consciousness. Sing about revolution and no promoter looks at you. Sing about sex and all sorts of immorality then all promoters start knocking on your door. All they want is to make people think that everything is ok when in reality we are suffering under the feet of politicians. It pains me when politicians play with ghetto youths’ brains. Read the rest of this entry »
I may not know the joy of giving birth. May not experience the pain and all the hurt, but I know how it feels to lose a child, And if pain is pain then I am hurting inside. If infertility makes me less than a girl, what would I say to many women in this world? Would you tell them have faith; Would you tell them be strong; Or would you tell them that they’re less than a woman? – Lady Saw
The society that we are living in today has created a lot of labels and titles to a person who is infertile. Reggae school of thought is one philosophy which advocates for a society where people understand that infertility is a condition that can happen to anyone due to some biological issues. Being infertile or failing to have a child due to a series miscarriages does not make you an outcast. Today I’m speaking in Lady Saw’s voice.
Lady Saw (birth name, Marion Hall) is one influential female artist in the world of reggae. She is one of the people who haven’t managed to have a child. In her case it’s attributed to miscarriage. Using reggae as a vehicle, Lady Saw has managed to deliver a positive argument to the people in terms of infertility and related conditions.
In her song No less than a woman, the Queen of dancehall reggae gave a deep thought provoking argument that should make the people understand the condition better.
As Lady Saw says, “Infertility is a word that a lot of people are ashamed to mention. A lot of people are so illiterate when it comes to that word. They act as if it’s a crime if you can’t have a child. But I don’t think so, I don’t have a child, I may one day; but in the mean time I am going to share all my love”.
In the song, the Queen of dancehall reggae argues that not having a child don’t make someone less than a woman. Putting the situation in her own shoes, she mentions that she is full of love that she can give to the kids who are not wanted by their biological parents.
“You can say all you want about me trying to ruin my reputation, but I have so much love to give to so much unwanted kids”
Lady Saw: Women infertility
This song speaks in the voice of a woman who has been through tough moments from the society which takes her as a sub-standard woman simply because she can’t have a child. She is encouraging members of the society not to stick negative stereotypes on an infertile woman’s forehead. She is a woman enough equal to that woman who have 10 children.The Queen concludes saying’
You see, what I am saying is this song is dedicated to all the females who have been trying to have children but never succeed. Some have miscarriage just like myself, but you know what, don’t give up, have faith, one day you may just succeed. You know what I’m saying, and don’t feel you are less than a woman because you don’t have a child ’cause once you give you love to other children that counts. You know what I’m saying.
Watch the video and also have a critical look on the lyrics below. This should change the negativity in this world. Remember what Bugle said, “For as long as it’s not HIV, always stay positive”.
Wise up
Lyrics to No Less Than A Woman (Infertility)
Intro:
Infertility is a word that a lot of people are ashamed to mention
A lot of people are so illiterate when it come to that word
They act as if it’s a crime if you can’t have a child
But I don’t think so, I don’t have a child, I may one day
But in the mean time I am going to share all my love. Read the rest of this entry »
So mi seh pull up yo pant’s and put hi pon yo waist. And tuck in yo shirt, and don’t bleach yo face.Inna my days that mi a meditate. So mi study fi di test, mi no procrastinate. Early to school, mi no have time to late.Sit down inna exam, am I the great. Mi no get nothing less than 98. When school door open mi never avoid di gate – Such are the lyrics from Vybz Kartel‘s music as he chant from the prison walls. All he is saying is; how youths should behave in school…not to fall victim to gangster life. They should not be involved in all sort of things that are common in the streets.
When Adijah Palmer AKA Vybz Kartel was arrested more than two years ago, a lot of people were left worried and wondering if ever they were going to hear his voice again. ‘Free world boss’ became a slogan across the world as his fans campaigned for his freedom.
To keep his fans updated with his settings, it is fortunate that Kartel is being given a chance to communicate his mind through music. I started listening to Vybz Kartel’s music back in the day and his music was radical and positive. It was fair enough to rate his music the same way with the likes of Bounty Killer.
However, as Kartel gained popularity his music became better in sound but deteriorating in content. Of cause, a lot of people loved his content but I would like to argue that he promoted escapism and utopian fantasy.
Please note that not every single song from him was like that, the man had a lot of positive music that according to Bugle he became “the most controversial but he opens up eyes”. Songs like Poor People Land proved the point that in himself, Kartel is a reggae artist who was however at one point in time overpowered by commercialisation of the genre. I respect Kartel’s talent and to me he is one artist that I think he knows what he is doing. Nevertheless, for a moment in his career, Kartel released music that was celebrating the inequalities in the society. At some moment he led the youths astray.
As something to celebrate, the music that Kartel is releasing from the confines of prison is so positive that it has the power to transform the minds of the ghetto youths. His music these days reminds me of the Vybz Kartel that I used to know.
Songs like School Youths and Mama are fully loaded with deep lyrics that every ghetto youth should take seriously. He is in prison but his music is out there. Respect to positive lyrics.
Passa Passa as dfined by Catfish John (2007) refers to a well-known dancehall reggae event, or street dance/gathering. It is reported to have begun on Ash Wednesday in 2003, originating from Spanish Town Road in the Tivoli Gardens section of Kingston, Jamaica. The party used to be done on a Wednesday night stretching up to Thursday morning. Passa Passa has remained the most important dancehall night/event in Jamaica (of course not mentioning the likes of Sting and Sumfest) and the world. Well known DJs who would play on such shows include Maestro, Likkle Richie, and Tony Matterhorn. The famous world. As mentioned by Catfish, it was Passa Pass that propelled the “dutty wine” dance to international fame.
Today,PassaPassa gigs are spread all over Jamaica and are overflowing to other condiments like Africa with Zimbabwe being one country that has adopted them due to the rise in thedancehall culture. With the rise of the Internet, the videos are all over the world and have become virtual guide videos, spreading currentdancehall style and culture across the globe.
The state in which Passa Passa parties are is no-longer the favorable in the eyes of reggae music. Of late, people would go to these parties and enjoy the music peacefully with rare cases of violence and drug abuse. In the good old days this was a very good socialisation platform.
To date, Passa Passa parties in Jamaica have now taken ‘the lost ways’. The way it is now being done is not in tune with the reggae philosophy which requires discipline at all times. Morality is slowly fading away. ‘Gangsterism’ which has taken over the ghettos of Jamaica has led to the birth of what some call ‘The Americanisation of dancehall’. Below is an example of a simple Passa Passa show. They can get worse and even more dangerous.Some of the videos, I can not even link them to this blog due to their explicit nature.
Drugs, sex and violence are now the norm at Passa Passa gigs. They have lost control and lawlessness is taking the lead. No one watches/controls another at these parties. They are spreading sexually transmitted diseases as unprotected sex has become normal on these gatherings. Drug abuse is also leading to dangerous games and experiments which leave out a lot of physical injuries if not deaths. Read the rest of this entry »
In Jamaica, they always have throwback riddims, recycled old beats, and the hardcore reggae scene is always present. You have faster stuff like the more commercialised stuff, but you always have that segment of music that is always from the core, from the original root of it. – Damian Marley
Reggae as a music genre.
As we can all see, this is my first article on this blog. This is a reggae lifestyle blog as you can all see from the blog title. Before start writing and analysing more reggae, it is of great importance to start by giving a brief background of this genre.
Reggae as a music genre is a style of ‘popular’ music with a strongly accented subsidiary beat, originating in Jamaica. Basically, this music is filled with positive lyrics meant to bring a positive change in the people’s way of thinking. It evolved in the late 1960s from ska and other local variations on calypso and rhythm and blues, and became widely known in the 1970s through the work of Bob Marley. Its lyrics are much influenced by Rastafarian ideas which revolve around righteousness, emancipation of black people as well as equal rights and justice for all. It is a strong high culture genre of music with a cut above the rest thought provoking message.
This music was formed as a music for the people, meaning music that stand in as poor people’s mouthpiece. Reggae music is a strong tool worldwide that is used to challenge the inequalities in the society. Reggae was popularized in the U.S. by the film The Harder They Come (1973), starring the singer Jimmy Cliff, and through tours by Bob Marley and the Wailers and by Toots (Hibbert) and the Maytals. Read the rest of this entry »
REGGAEFICATION 