*Dancehall and reggae artist Buju Banton appeared on the latest episode of “Drink Champs,” to reflect on his journey to becoming a music legend and share his insights on reggae’s global influence.
During the interview, Buju also recounted his first meeting with the late-great The Notorious B.I.G.
“When Biggie came to Jamaica, he came in a wheelchair. And it’s the most gunshots he has ever heard in life,” he recalled, Revolt reports. “The only person who gets more respect than Biggie Smalls in Jamaica is two people. We love DMX. And the last person who gets our love in Jamaica, [on] our island, [who sang] our oath, was 50 Cent. [It was] ‘Many Men.’”
Elsewhere in the conversation, Buju expressed concerns about the current direction of the Afrobeats genre.
“We hear our African brothers and sisters doing music that we can identify with, but we’re not hearing nothing to free Africa, to free the mind of African [people]. We are concerned,” he stated. “Because if we are in Jamaica, and we’re singing about sexuality and violence and they can say to us, ‘My brothers in Jamaica, we remember when you used to speak to us from your heart. Now you’re speaking to us from your lips. And we have to pull ourselves up from the bootstrap’… Then, we must be able to speak to our brothers across the pond and say, ‘My brothers, if we’re lacking, pull us up.’”
Buju was open about his disdain for reggaeton, stating… “When I was 16 years old, I remember a song called ‘Tu Pun Pun,’ El General, right? The Panamanians, they showed us love… But then the music went to Puerto Rico [and other places]. And all of a sudden, it’s like, you created this s**t.”
He continued, “Why do you think there’s so many lawsuits currently from Jamaican producers with reggaeton? There’s a major lawsuit right now with Steely & Clevie. Steely & Clevie is one of our biggest producers, and these guys have been biting this s**t because they think we’re from the Caribbean and there’s no intellectual property control or we have no idea what we’re doing. But it’s a new day in Gotham. The Batman is still alive.”
The global superstar artist also remarked on the enduring influence of hip-hop.
He explained, “When I was 14 years old, my friend upstairs, his mom bought him a boombox. And we got exposed to Hip Hop. We were listening to Slick Rick [and] Doug E. Fresh’s ‘The Show,’” he said. “So Hip Hop has always been influential. But then when I started diving into the issue of Hip Hop and realized that Kool Herc was a DJ, a Jamaican, who made the fusion more palatable, I said, ‘OK, then it makes sense.’ So, we embrace it.”
When it comes to his forthcoming project, Buju teased what sound fans can expect.
“It’s 100 percent dancehall. Why? I haven’t given the masses dancehall music since I came home. And you know, they need it,” he shared.
Watch Buju Banton’s full Drink Champs interview via the YouTube clip above.
READ MORE FROM EURWEB.COM: Buju Banton: Back in Jamaica After Serving 7 Years for Drug Charge
