Dancehall desperately needs a lyrical pull up and fix back!

By Shaun Cain

Current, relevant and trending as they may be, not one contemporary dancehall artiste that emerged over the last decade and a half has made the Grammy nominations for the 63rd renewal of this prestigious global music event.

The nominations for the Best Reggae Album category were announced on November 24. The albums deemed worthy of the top prize are:

• UPSIDE DOWN 2020 — Buju Banton
• HIGHER PLACE — Skip Marley
• IT ALL COMES BACK TO LOVE — Maxi Priest
• GOT TO BE TOUGH — Toots & the Maytals
• ONE WORLD — The Wailers

The winner will be announced on television on Sunday, January 31, next year.

But the absence of a new age star from the list of nominees clearly shows that something is wrong with what is going on in the dancehall. Dancehall needs a massive 'haul and pull up'. The genre is bawling out for a revamp to save a significant aspect of our musical heritage. And, I don't think these artistes even realise what is happening, mi Genna.

They are miles out of touch with the mainstream market. There is a blinding mismatch of expectations, as the mainstream consumers are clearly rocking to a different tune.  Dancehall artistes have fenced themselves into an almost infertile field where the thematic seedlings are confined to sex, drugs, violence and bad mind. Nothing else 'nah plant' and nothing else 'nah' grow 'inna' the dancehall space, 'yu zeet'!

Why is the mainstream market not feeling dancehall music? The issues addressed by dancehall music must encompass a much wider human, not just a Jamaican, experience.  There is so much happening in our communities, but our artistes are just not interested in anything that is devoid of drugs, sex, violence and bad mind. For example, how many dancehall artistes were falling over each other to record a song to strengthen and extend the reach of the Black Lives Matter key campaign messages? Dancehall missed a massive trick there, mi G.

Our dancehall artistes are living in a bubble where they are constantly being motivated by the need to impress or, better yet, 'diss' their fellow entertainers. While such engagement might create a temporary hype among die hard fans, the approach is underpinned by chronic myopia. The needs of all the stakeholders must be met, so it is imperative that the artistes study the different situations with which they interact and identify the most important stakeholder at any given point in time. The aim is to prioritise the interest and satisfaction of that group. If the expectations of the mainstream consumers were being addressed, there would be more support for the genre at the very top of world music.

No amount of money pull up is going to reverse this debilitating trend and preserve dancehall from the pervasive lyrical and moral decay it is currently suffering.  A different kind of haul and pull up is required, 'mi' general. The themes that have become staples in the dancehall must be broadened to connect the music with new international audiences. The universal human needs are love, unity and equality. In fact, this knowledge resonates so eloquently in the title of The Wailers' nominated album, "One World [One People]".  

Maxi Priest shows he is on the same wavelength by driving home the point firmly. On his nominated album, he reminds us, and I presume this includes our dancehall actors, that after everything is said and done, "It All Comes Back to Love". 

Why have these messages escaped dancehall music so badly? Their underrepresentation in that space is very alarming, 'mi genna'.

Some artistes complain that people with money are not investing in them. We all know that every investor goes after options whose risks are worth the gamble because of the chance of realising a significant return. So, if they are committing their investment money elsewhere, could that be giving a hint about the quality of dancehall's output and its ability to command widespread international support and consumption? To me, the biggest questionable dimension is the lyrical elements. Dancehall 'nah pree' love, unity and equality. 'Mi nah lie, mi G', if anything is true, dancehall is violating love, unity and equality.

Let us not forget the perennial argument that marketing is a limiting factor for the artistes. While I would agree that poor marketing or the lack thereof can be a barrier to the success of any product or service, social media 'bun dung nuff a de' barriers that kept dancehall music out of the mainstream, 'yu zimmi'. 

Many dancehall artistes have hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube, yet the popularity and influence of their music is not blaring on a global scale. If we love the music, we must haul and pull up dancehall and put it right,'mi G'.  'Fling weh' the 'tings' that are undermining the music, so the genre can shed the excess baggage, fly freely across the world and perform the role it was originally intended to do. That is, delivering hope, peace, love, unity and our cultural heritage to mainstream music consumers.

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Shaun Cain is a journalist, author, voiceover talent and producer/presenter of the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain Interview Show on the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain YouTube channel. 

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American R&B hit-maker reaches out to Jamaican singer, Acain.

By Shaun Cain

Jamaican singer Acain, who recently appeared on Auntie Donna’s Facebook Live Stream Love Connection, got the biggest shock of his life when he received a note from international singer, Major, for performng one of the American’s hit songs.

Jamaican singer, Acain on the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain

Major, a Grammy nominated international artiste, has enjoyed moderate successes, as his single,  “Why I Love You”, has peaked at number 5 on the Adult R&B Billboard charts. 

The R'n'B singer congratulated Acain on a rendition the Jamaican did of “Why I Love You". Acain, whose real name is Adrian Klane, told the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain Show that he was at home one day and decided to sing and entertain himself.  He said he recorded a video of himself and his son singing the song and posted it on social media. The Jamaican was ecstatic when he realised the video instantly went viral, attracting more than 50,000 views within just one week, which eventually climbed to 100,000 views in a month.

Major, who was born Major R. Johnson Finley in Texas in the United States of America in 1984, eventually saw the viral video and shared it with his family. According to Acain, “I even got a call from the original artiste, Major, and he commented on the video to say, oh my god, this is my favourite,” Acain explained. The Jamaican added that Major congratulated him and told him that he sang the song really well and he [Major] was in tears when Acain’s son started hitting the notes. “It was a pleasure hearing from him,” Acain revealed.

The video of Acain and his son singing “Why I Love You” has so far amassed more than 15 million views worldwide on both the Facebook and YouTube platforms combined.

Acain currently hosts live streaming events on Facebook where he shares his vocal gifts with the world. He has managed to attract more than 360-thousand followers on Facebook alone.

Watch the second of this 2-part interview with Acain on the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain You Tub channel here.

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Shaun Cain is a journalist, author, voiceover talent and producer/presenter of the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain Interview Show on the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain YouTube channel. Check out the content on the channel today. 

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Singer tells all after leaving Auntie Donna drooling on her Facebook Love Connection Live Stream

By Shaun Cain 

Jamaican singer, Acain, has left fans curious to learn the latest developments in his search for love after appearing on humanitarian and social media sensation, Donna "Auntie Donna" Gowe's, Facebook Live Stream Love Connection, recently. 

Gowe is known all over the world for helping the less fortunate through her Give Back Programme from donations provided by fans of her live online interactions.

Acain singing on Donna Gowe's Love Connection

After asking Acain about himself and learning that he was a singer, she requested that he sang for her.  The up and coming artiste crooned a few bars of Luther Vandross' "Here and Now" hit, which grabbed Gowe's attention spellbindingly. She commended him on his voice and decided she wanted to see him sing live. The Jamaican humanitarian promised the caller she would ring back via video phone. She was besotted when her eyes beheld the vocalist live on video call. In commenting on Acain's appearance, she provocatively described him in terms she coined as 'tanable' and 'lookable'. 

The Mountain View Avenue, Kingston resident asked Acain to sing another song.  That was when it really started happening on the torrid Love Connection.  The 32-year-old balladeer oozed a stand-out rendition of American R'n'B singer, Major's, chart topping, "This is Why I Love You".  When he hit the high notes, Gowe giggled, tossed her head about gently and drooled while she savoured the love enveloping moment.  

As she exposed the depths of her emotions, she blurted, "if a when mi did inna me prime, you couldn't get wey from me, enoh sah." Following their jovial exchanges, she told the singer that if he did not find anyone from the calls she anticipated he would be receiving after ending his conversation with her, he should ring her back because she had someone in mind that she felt he might like.

Journalist and author, Shaun Cain, host of the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain Show, which is presented on YouTube, has caught up with Acain, whose real name is Adrian Klane, at his home on Jamaica's north coast.  The singer was full excitement about his experience on the Love Connection Live Stream with Donna Gowe.  He revealed some jaw-dropping details of intimacies he has shared with prospective partners.  

Acain at his home in Jamaica

In a deeply intriguing interview, Acain told Shaun Cain how shocked he was by some of the requests he received from the persons who contacted him searching for love. He admitted to doing the unthinkable, explaining that he was so lost in the experience he had to pinch himself to make sure he was not dreaming.

Watch Acain's interview on the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain YouTube channel here. 

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Shaun Cain is a journalist, author, voiceover talent and the producer/presenter of the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain Interview Show on the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain YouTube channel. Check out the content on the channel today. 

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International music selector, Andrew Fresh Kid questions Tony Matterhorn's claims of pornography in dancehall

By Shaun Cain

Celebrated music selector, Andrew "Fresh Kid" Taylor, has called for clarification on what dancehall's apparent "line" of decency is. 

                                                                                    Andrew Fresh Kid

Speaking with Shaun Cain on the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain YouTube channel, recently, the UK based international deejay was responding to a claim made by fellow selector, Tony Matterhorn, who argues that some dancehall artistes have been overstepping the "line" in their music by apparently turning the Jamaican hardcore genre into pornograhy.  

Andrew Fresh has requested to know what characterises the "the line" to which Matterhorn has referred. The Lucky Valley, St. Catherine native says he has not seen any pornographic practices at any venue in all his years of playing music. "I have played in parties that have been promoted as a half-naked party or something like that, which is a totally different thing. That's been advertised as such, so you would expect that, but if you tell me about sex and things like that, to be honest, I have not seen that in the spaces that I have been performing, so I don't know. [Therefore,] I cannot comment on something that I have not seen," he said. 

Andrew Fresh, who is known to be a regular deejay at international party hot spots such as Ayia Napa and Ibiza in Europe, argued that half-naked revellers have been a popular feature at street carnivals for many years and no one seems to object, so why is dancehall being picked on? As I said, I have been to carnival in places like Trinidad or even in London or in Canada and I have seen soca fetes advertised, and I haven't seen where dancehall is going on any worse than like the soca fetes. I don't know what to say still because, in term of dancehall overstepping the line," he stated.

Andrew Fresh spent his entire life surrounded by music. His father owned a sound system named Hollywood, which was regularly booked to play at various events and venues across the country.  

Every time his father settled down to prepare his playlists, Andrew Fresh would be present, keenly observing and trying to fathom the logic of the order in which the records were organised.  Sometimes he would ask his father to explain the rationale.  After watching the musical master at work for a while, the penny suddenly dropped.

At a very young age, Andrew Fresh started practising how to spin records when no one was at home. He learned how to cue the records, put the needle on the vinyl and safely remove it at the end of each song.  As he did this, his passion for selecting and spinning records was ignited. 

Andrew Fresh’s father soon realised that his son had a special talent for playing music with an unrivalled energy and vibe that kept people wanting to hear more and more of his selections.  This eventually saw Andrew Fresh become a staple on the sound system’s official list of selectors at the age of 11.  

Although his height, at the time, threatened to curtail his deejaying career, innovative ways were introduced to ensure that he lived his passion, which allowed the patrons revel in his musical dexterity. A special hop-up step was built, so that Andrew Fresh could access the turntables and mixing console to create and deliver his musical magic. 

After years of playing music in Jamaica, Andrew Fresh emigrated to London in the United Kingdom where he continued his deejaying exploits.  He subsequently joined one of the city’s biggest sound systems, Lord Gelly’s, which started in the mid to late 1970s in the English capital. In his efforts to add value to the Lord Gelly’s brand, the young Jamaican introduced dub specials, and commissioned a number of popular entertainers to create unique recordings that would strengthen the sound system’s popularity and crowd-pulling capabilities.  The Lord Gelly’s music machine reigned supreme throughout the UK for a very long time.  

And, even after more than 3 decades of deejaying, Andrew Fresh is still at the top of his game. The St. Catherine native can’t wait for the restrictions imposed on the entertainment industry due the Coronavirus pandemic, to be lifted, so he can touch road again.

Click the following link to watch the interview here.

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Shaun Cain is a journalist, author, voiceover talent and producer/presenter of the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain Interview Show on the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain YouTube channel. Check out the content on the channel today. 

Please remember to subscribe, like, share and leave a comment.

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