Jan 04 2009
Sunday Meditation: Busy Signal
Well, it’s 2009, and since Vybz Cartel was named Dancehall DJ of the year in Jamaica for 2008, in honor of the rebel spirit, I’m giving my first Sunday Meditation of the year award to their arch nemesis Busy Signal. It’s not only that I think Busy had a better year than Vybz, he’s also putting out better songs now. The video above is “Done Wid Di War”, and if you clicked play before you started reading, you already know why I’m advising a heavy meditation to Busy’s words.
To those who don’t know Jamaican society, you might wonder why so much of Dancehall music is focused on the yin and yang battle between the conscious and the slackness. You might not understand why violence and war are a constant theme on both sides. You might bristle at the gun talk. But keep in mind, the Eskimos have lots of words for snow. And Jamaican’s got lots of words for guns. Because that’s what surrounds their atmosphere. It’s a reality that both the roots and the rudeboy artists have to deal with. And Busy manages to do the almost impossible, appeal to both sets by arguing against the futility of the violence that perpetuates both their worlds. In other words, whether you like groundations by ital pots over log wood or passa passa hot fridays doing the latest step, the bullshit gun man mash it up for everyone. And that’s something we can all agree on.
