Buju Banton criticises Afrobeats

As   Afrobeats stars, mainly from Nigeria such as Pato Ranking, Davido, Wizkid, Burna Boy, Yemi Alade, Olamide and Tiwa Savage began to rise in global popularity, I knew that sooner or later their Afrobeats music would put reggae music and dancehall on the back burner. Reggae and dancehall have enjoyed tremendous amounts of international recognition in the past. Reggae and dancehall were even listed in the prestigious  Grammy Awards category. Jamaican Reggae and dancehall artist Buju Banton won in the 2010 Best Reggae album at the Grammys.

Come 2024, the African music industry’s diverse genres and talents are not only conquering global charts, but also earning a place on the prestigious Grammy Awards.

The new Grammy category, “Best African Music Performance,” symbolises a significant acknowledgment of African musical traditions. This recognition encompasses “recordings that utilise unique local expressions from across the African continent,” reflecting the richness and diversity of African music.

New genres like Afrobeats and Amapiano, which blend distinct West African styles and South African kwaito respectively, are gaining momentum throughout the world. With increasing attention from major record labels and a commitment to developing local talents, the industry is poised for further growth, thus putting Reggae and Dancehall music on the back burner.

  Now it seems a war against this surge in Afro beats against reggae is about to erupt. Buju Banton has recently caused a stir amongst music fans with critical comments he made regarding his issues with Afrobeats.  After noticing that the world in now moving towards Afrobeats instead of reggae, Banton decided to try his hand in Afrobeats  and did a collaboration with Nigeria’s Patoranking on a song called Blessed More Blessed, but the song failed to get international recognition.

 Buju Banton, who has always been a controversial figure in reggae circles has been the first to come out with criticism of Afrobeats. He says “Yes Afrobeats is from Africa, but the beat is from Jamaica. The music does not uplift anyone. It lacks the substance that reggae music is made of.  Music is the bridge that connects us and music needs to free Africa. Afro beats artistes just sing f*ckery and they are in it just for the money. The artistes in Africa need to make an impact with their music. There is not a single song in Afrobeats, which I can relate to. The artistes I have respect for in Africa are Fela Kuti, Youssou N’Dour, Lucky Dube from South Africa, Salif Keita and Baaba Maal.”

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In 1992, when he came to Zimbabwe after releasing his controversial anti-gay song: Boom Bye Bye, which contains lyrics depicting the murder of gay men, Banton received a public backlash internationally. He has since apologised for writing such a song.

 I asked him: “Why are you Jamaicans obsessed with the activities of homosexuals? (They call them battyman) It’s two men doing their own thing. They do not harm anyone in anyway, do they?”

He rebutted angrily: “Weh you a seh? Is you in support of dem raatid battyman? Your president, Mugabe don’t like dem either.’’

I could see that the debate was not going anywhere and I decided to close my mouth.

 Boom Bye Bye is a song where Buju Banton was advocating for the killing of homosexuals  as evidenced by the following lyrics:

World is in troubleAnytime Buju Banton comeBatty bwoy get up an runAt gunshot me head backHear I tell him now crew

Boom bye byeInna batty bwoy headRude bwoy no promote no nasty manDem haffi deadBoom bye byeInna batty bwoy headRude bwoy no promote no nasty manDem haffi dead

One wonders  why he was campaigning for the killing of gay men. What is ‘conscious’ about such lyrics? They only serve to instigate hatred among  people.

First speaking on Afrobeats, Banton spoke down on the genre, pointing to its alleged lack of songs addressing sociopolitical issues plaguing various regions in Africa when compared to reggae and dancehall.

During a recent appearance on the Drink Champs podcast, the dancehall legend  shared his thoughts about Afrobeats, which included accusations of disrespect and theft of Jamaican culture.  Speaking on Afrobeats, Banton spoke down on the genre suggesting that it did not address social issues faced by black people.

“Tell me one Afrobeats song that can uplift us,”. “Kenya is suffering; young men of Kenya are revolting. South Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, you name it. But which of these Afrobeats songs can I relate to for a peace of mind, to tell me that I’m in the struggle, and we are gonna be better in the struggle. And even though it’s hard, we’re gonna overcome? Tell me.” 

It has been long documented that charity begins at home. There are several Jamaican dancehall tunes with vulgar lyrics I have come across. Tunes such as Bad Bitch, Step Brother’s Show me Your Pussy, Finger Licking Good and Till Mozart’s Leck Mist Im Arsch (meaning Lick My A*s) come from the ghetto youths of Jamaica. What’s so uplifting about these tunes? Banton should criticise these first before attacking Afrobeats. Is he jealous of the rise in the  Afrobeats market?

The 51-year-old also lashed out against Reggaeton artists, charging them with pillaging from reggae artists without proper acknowledgement. “Listen, a lot of culture vultures out there,” Buju added. “We have sat and we have watched Reggaeton taking Reggae music. You have f**ked with our music so hard and stolen our culture.”  I wonder what sort of acknowledgement Buju wants because in my opinion, Afrobeats is completely different from Jamaican reggae.

He goes on to say: “They connected with everyone else except us. But when we look at what they are doing, their music is not freeing Africa! It’s f*ckery!”

“The music needs to free Africa. If I am all the way in Jamaica and my country and my people fight fi free your continent with word, sound and power and you have the ability now, and all you are singing is f-ckery? You don’t sing a song to free Africa all now?”

 While Banton insisted that he was not “knocking” any artist in particular, he continued to blast both genres, deeming each as soulless and lacking the meaning  and tradition of reggae and  dancehall music.

“You don’t give us no respect motherf**kers, and you still expect us to kowtow and act like we take something from you?” he added. “This is the King’s music. Your music shall come and go, because it has nothing to do with soul; it has nothing to do with building energy.” 

I am  beginning to wonder what Buju Banton will say about Zim dancehall from Zimbabwe which in reality is a subgenre of reggae and dancehall music originating from Jamaica. Will he condemn it? Will he accuse the genre of disrespect and theft of Jamaican culture and music? Let’s wait and see.

I am not sure to what extent Buju Banon understands the lyrics in some Afrobeats songs. However, some Afrobeats fans vehemently denied Buju’s assertion, listing songs and artists that have “uplifted” the people while simultaneously growing in global popularity in recent years.

However, in every culture, there are artistes who come up with ‘conscious’ music  which addresses sociopolitical issues while others fail to do so. One might ask to what extent did the Boom Bye Bye song uplift the people. This is not to criticise Buju’s works as some of his material is quite uplifting. As a matter of fact, my favourite songs from the artist include  Destiny, Buried Alive,  Let My People Go and Born For Greatness.

 Nuff respect to you Buju!

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