Buju banton

Thrasher Magazine, June, 2003

I BOUNCED OUT OF THE CRIB to go meet Buju and Shelblack at Le Parc Hotel in Beverly Hills. I was literally a minute out of the door when the po-po rushed me, pushed me into a fence, put a gatt to my head, and cuffed me. This was the second time this week this shit happened. After a few minutes of hostile interrogation, they realized I didn't fit the description of the black male they were hunting down and then told me to flick off. I cut through the tens of thousands of anti-war demonstrators marching through Hollywood brandishing defaced George W effigies and hooked up with Shel, Buju, and his yard clique at the 'telly. We bounced in the S500 down to LB to the Bob Marley Festival, where Buju dropped mad blessings from his new joint Friends for Life (which features Fat Joe, Beres Hammond, Wayne Wonder, Nadine Sutherland and Bounty Killa). Buju and his band rocked LB with mad reggae rhythms, girls in abundance, and warnings of mass destruction in Babylon unless we open our hearts to love. Word says we got to b e taking this battle to a new level, soundboy. We ain't saying flick the police no more. We be thinking it. One.

Aki X

What's a dread up to in Hollywood?

Right now? Zion I, it is a path I followed. Not up to nothing except feeling good. I'll perform for the Bob Marley Day Festival, where we're going now in Long Beach, and also San Diego tomorrow.

You feeling the Cali love?

Yes. I love California, It's all roots out here on the West Coast, while on the East Coast it's primarily dancehall. I like both East and West.

Where are you based right now?

I be based in Kingston, Jamaica on Carlisle Avenue, number 10, Gargemel Complex--Gargemel Castle. This is a worldwide address--this is my studio.

What's cracking in Jamaica as far as reggae and dancehall go?

Many things are happening. New songs being created everyday. New DJ's like Assassin and Vibes Cartel. A lot of music is on the emergence.

What about Jamaica as a whole?

Jamaica is very independent as far as music goes. We have 14 parishes like you have 50 states. Our major export along with coffee is reggae music. At this time Jamaica is going through an economic crisis because of globalization.

The whole world.

All the nations are being squeezed.

Let's talk about the impact of the economic crisis in Jamaica.

Our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is stagnant. We haven't seen any economic growth in the last five years or in our revenue. GDP is the earnings your country gets from the products you export. So the nation is suffering. Crime is on the upsurge. The inability to provide jobs for those people leaving institutions breeds crime.

You got crazy riots going off?

No, not to that extreme. The world now is a more dangerous place.

In what way?

In every way. The world has gone ballistic man, are you asleep?

I'm very awake.

The bomb is already on its way.

To where?

The western world. The world has gone ballistic. Nowhere is safe anymore and Jamaica is not immune.

It's been like that around the world, it's just that America is no longer safe. I grew up with mad terrorism in London everyday.

The IRA?

Yeah. Where do you see all this going?

It's going nowhere. I see the need for conflict resolution to resolve the matter. I don't have the answer to all the questions but I know what I know, and that's what we need. I'll leave that to the great intellectual minds to figure out.

Do you think that will ever happen?

Well, if it don't happen we will have a war. Without conflict resolution there will be war.

Back to the soundclash and the dancehall, who's blowing up in Jamaica?

Vibes Cartel.

They're dancehall?

Yes, dancehall. Rough.

How has Sean Paul's success in America and his crossover with hip-hop affected reggae music in Jamaica?

This is not the first time that reggae music has been taken to a higher plateau by the Americans; yet, it never affected our culture at any point in time. When it affect our economy, then it be boosted. We are stagnant until it is formatted in a different way.

How would you format it?

With reggae music being featured like reggae with real drum and bass, featured in a real Jamaican setting. Not everything is tropical beach you know. Put reggae music in a setting that reflects reggae music.

Which is?

A lot of things. If and when you come to Kingston and we go to dancehall clubs, that alone will be an eye opener.

Let's get onto the new joint Friends for Life.

I feel like I accomplished some milestone in my life in the sense of music on this album.

Who produced it?

It was produced by various producers like King Jammy, Cool and Dre from Miami, Bobby Digital, to name a few.

RZA Bobby Digital?

No. Digital B, the original from Jamaica.

What other artists are going to be up on there with you?

Bounty Killa, Wayne Wonder. Beres Hammond, Nadine Sutherland and Fat Joe.

Terror Squad Fat Joe?

Yes.

Is he rapping?

No. He is doing something else real interesting.

What rappers would you like to work with?

Well I check some rap out, but the lyrics have got to make sense. Nas is a good rapper.

What do you like and dislike about hip-hop these days?