Vybz Kartel's Editorial: Traversing the Chasms

The resurgence of the Dancehall/censorship debate, has once again caught my attention with the Broadcating Commission's announcement that "daggering" songs could no longer be played on the radio. You will recall I did a post demanding that these songs be banned, but interestingly, I am not very happy about the way this matter was dealt with.

A flood of articles lambasting Dj's have beenx featured since Esthe Tyson's article was published on February 1, largely with a monotony of perspectives. Vybz Kartel went on the offensive, and fired off an editorial in defence of Dancehall. See his article here.

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The time has finally come, when dissidents are unafraid to speak out against those in authority. Like-minded individuals, who represent but a small segment of Jamaica’s populace, dominate debates in the print media. It was refreshing to hear from Vybz Kartel in his editorial "Censorship vs free expression”; he has an opinion that I deem no less valid than that of the fire-breathing, middle class dragons, who categorically believe in the superiority of their arguments. I hope this current exchange of perspectives works to traverse the chasms that divide us as a people, and too, that it heralds the beginning of a new era of intellectual exchange. No longer should pro-choice advocates be cornered by religious conservatism; nor should homophiles be silenced by puritanical moral objectivism. Vybz Kartel, a representative of the marginalized classes, refuses to be bogged down by classist intellectual elitism, which hinders the possibility of forming a progressive nation, founded on mutual respect for people of all persuasions. Noteworthy however, is that he decided to deflect blame to other socio-economic problems facing the nation, without acknowledging the real possibility that our children are overexposed to countless mature themes in Dancehall.

I am personally overjoyed that the Broadcasting Commission has started to live up to their mandate. For far too long, we have indiscriminately allowed crude, deleterious lyrics to clog our airwaves and infiltrate the minds of our children. The popularity of Dancehall today speaks volumes to the influence it now wields in Jamaican society, and though it is by no means the cause of any of Jamaica’s problems, it cannot escape all blame. UWI academics and many diehard dancehall fans continue to exoticize the music as a means of cultural expression and a metaphor for life. Furthermore, they assert the lack of empirical evidence to support the claim that Dancehall promotes sexism, belligerence, homophobia and other retrograde persuasions. However, we do not need empirical evidence to know that if you hear something often enough, in the absence of critical thought, it eventually becomes verity. How often do you hear people chanting dancehall mantras in justifying their actions or reproaching other’s? “Man a gyalis” (I am a player), “Man a bad man” (I am a gangster), “Man fi main uman” (Men must financially support their women), or even “Bwai fi get gon shat” (He needs to be shot).

We need take our future into our own hands. There is no longer any ‘them’ and ‘us’. We are all witnessing the unraveling of a social fabric that was built through centuries of oppression and struggle. It will take a very long time to rebuild it, but if each of us grabs some thread and a needle now, we may be able to stitch together the pieces- together. Dancehall is a potent socializing force, which desensitizes our children to the use of violence, sexualizes our young girls andmakes them targets for predators, and on the whole glorifies the objectification of our women. Once our greatest pride and showpiece to the world, our music and the influence it has had on the psyche of Jamaicans is now a cancer threatening to envelop Jamaica’s prospects of being a prosperous nation.

As much as I disagree with Vybz Kartel, I want to see greater representation of his perspective in our print media- the delineation of sometimes controversial, divergent views, which more accurately represent the opinions of all Jamaicans. Jamaica’s lower classes have long been seething at the slight to the validity of their opinions, and many “well thinking”, “decent” Jamaicans are surely staggered by Kartel’s audacity. Serves them right! How insensitive we have been, in ignoring the perspectives of an entire class of people who cannot understand the need to ban any Dancehall songs. Had we made more inclusive efforts to bring all interested parties into the debate, we would not now be faced with a torrent of never before aired opinions. Let the dialogue begin.

Regulating Dancehall Airplay

BAN THEM!!! A desperate cry for a more stringent application of the regulations in the Children’s Code for Programming as outlined by the Broadcasting Commission of Jamaica.

Jamaican youth fighting against the sexualization of our children, the objectification and commodification of our women, and the trivialization of violence embodied in the themes of modern Dancehall lyrics

For far too long we have indiscriminately allowed crude, deleterious lyrics to clog our airwaves and infiltrate the minds of our children. The popularity of Dancehall today speaks volumes to the influence it now wields in Jamaican society, and though it is by no means the cause of any of Jamaica’s problems, it cannot escape all blame. UWI academics and many diehard dancehall fans continue to exoticize the music as a means of cultural expression and a metaphor for life. Furthermore, they assert the lack of empirical evidence to support the claim that Dancehall promotes sexism, belligerence, homophobia and other retrograde persuasions. However, we do not need empirical evidence to know that if you hear something often enough, in the absence of critical thought, it eventually becomes verity. How often do you hear people chanting dancehall mantras in justifying their actions or reproaching other’s? “Man a gyalis” (I am a player), “Man a bad man” (I am a gangster), “Man fi main uman” (Men must financially support their women), or even “Bwai fi get gon shat” (He needs to be shot). We need take our future into our own hands. There is no longer any ‘them’ and ‘us’. We are all witnessing the unraveling of a social fabric that was built through centuries of oppression and struggle. It will take a very long time to rebuild it, but if each of us grabs some thread and a needle now, we may be able to stitch together the pieces. Dancehall is a potent socializing force, which desensitizes our children to the use of violence, sexualizes our young girls and makes them targets for predators, and on the whole glorifies the objectification of our women. Once our greatest pride and showpiece to the world, our music and the influence it has had on the psyche of Jamaicans is now a cancer threatening to envelop Jamaica’s prospects of being a prosperous nation.

The Broadcasting Commission of Jamaica has the following policy outlined in its Children’s Code for Programming:
Programming that contains any of the specified content elements that would qualify it for a NFT (Not for Transmission) rating may be edited to either eliminate or obscure the specific references, terms, or depictions before transmission. If the decision is taken by the media house to use an obscuring mechanism e.g. beeping of lyrics or blurring, after editing the elements must not be recognizable to the normal viewer or listener.

Now this approach works well for songs in English, but is completely inadequate for tackling songs sung primarily in Jamaican Creole. Besides the established ‘bad words’ that color our language, which these regulations would omit, all other mature themes go untouched. Whether this arises out of a general disregard for the first language of most Jamaicans, or an inability to censor lyrical expression is unknown to me, but something needs to change. The mere obscuration of a few objectionable terms does little to dilute the excessive sexual and violent references and the crude language. Further, the programming code is inappropriate for songs in Jamaican Creole, because regulators are far more tolerant of the views expressed in the language for the reason that “a jos so Jamiekan piipl stie” (That is just the way Jamaicans are). This is the only reason I can come up with for justifying why more songs are not banned don Jamaican radio. Is this a good enough reason? Hardly.

Besides objectifying women, many Dancehall songs glorify sexual aggression towards and the abuse of women. Many argue that people are able to distinguish literal from metaphorical, and do not actually act on the teachings of Dancehall artistes. Yet, Jamaica has in recent months been plagued by the manifestations of this demeaning tolerance. The current spate of abductions, rapes and murders, terms now synonymous, cannot be separated from the tolerant attitudes towards sexual aggression that our music embodies. music. Jamaican women, heads of many households, the stalwarts of the informal economy, and the nurturers of the values that define us as Jamaicans are no longer accorded much respect. We preach equality of the sexes; yet speak of our women as if they are commodities- objects of men’s debauched sexual fantasies. Many will tell you that Dancehall music reveres women, ‘kaaz a bie uman wi sing bout,’ but let us consider the song ‘Squeeze Breast’ by Mavado- an established ‘lyrical genius’ in Dancehall, and make that decision for ourselves:

Original Version
Kuoros
Shi se shi waahn mi skwiiz ar bres dem laik di triga af ma gon,
Ton ar bak wie ahn fok ar aad ahn mek shi kom,
Outa di bedruum shi ron, mi no nuo a we shi ton,
Di pusi kech a faiya an di pusi staat bon

Vors 1
Dem gyal ya waahn stif kak,
So mi fok ar out aad wen shi pozishan fram bak
Worse di gyal skin kliin, yes an di pum pum fat
…
Mi fok ar tu di maks

Vors 2
Its a fokin afier…
Gyal sidong pon mi kaki laik chier,
Gyal no yuu did a se dat de no fier,
Nou yu a baal se di pusi jaa tier,
Waahn mek a ron bot mi grab ina di ier,
Fling ar pan i grong ahn put I fut ina di ier
Kaki ina beli plos I buuts don pripier
pier naiz a mek aal di nieba a ier
Gyangsta no kier.

English Translation
Chorus
She said she wanted me to, squeeze her breasts like the trigger of my gun,
Turn her backwards and f*ck her hard until she cums,
Out of the bedroom she runs, I do not know where she turned,
The vagina caught on fire and started to burn.

Verse 1
These girls want stiff cocks,
So I f*cked her our hard, when she positioned from that back,
Even better her skin is smooth, and her vagina is fat
…
I fucked her to the max

Verse 2
This is a f*cking affair,
Chick, sit down on my cock as though it is a chair,
Chick, aren’t you the one who claimed that it wasn’t fair,
Now you are crying that your pussy wall tore,
Wanted to make a run, but I grabbed her in the hair
Violently threw her on the floor and tossed her feet in the air,
C*ck in her belly, and the condom is in place,
She’s making lots of noise, even the neighbors can hear,
Gagsters don’t care.


Lyrical masterpiece or literary non-fiction? I think the latter, because the song graphically describes a horrific scene in which a girl is raped at the hands of a most callous man. We have a society where women are abducted, raped, and murdered like nowhere else. We cry, we try to understand why, but the answer is never forthcoming... we never realize that it is through our own negligence, that such abuses are allowed to happen in the first place. Jamaicans are too passive when it comes to rejecting influences- we should stop pretending as if we didn't have all this crime /barbarism / disregard for our women and children coming- A manifestation of the blind eye we turned to the media to which we exposed our children

Adults have- or should have, the intelligence to separate ‘metaphor’ from reality, but children cannot. For this reason, our tolerance of dancehall is helping to create a new generation of heartless, ignoramuses who will only perpetuate the negative themes in Dancehall. The glorification of violence in Dancehall music now goes unnoticed, because the retaliative stance taken against ‘offenders’ is now entrenched in our value systems. We are so desensitized to savagery that shooting, stabbing and the like are considered just action by many Jamaicans- so long as the situation warrants such action. We show descent by actively through violence, because reaching a common understanding and working through one’s problems is not a valid course to take anymore. How often we hear about delinquent students, with aggression problems wreaking havoc in our schools. Surely many socio-economic factors contribute to this kind of deviant behavior; but the fact that such attitudes are tolerated and even glorified in popular culture cannot help.

Your company/organization has vowed to protect the interests of our children, and the Broadcasting Commission has created the Children’s Code for Programming to regulate material for television and radio productions. It is very disheartening however, that you have taken a seemingly lax approach to censoring objectionable lyrics. Criteria that qualify songs for NFT (Not for Transmission) as defined in the Programming Code, are omnipresent in Jamaican Dancehall music. Here is a reminder of some of them:

Excessive Violence – V4

B) There may be express or implied encouragement of violent activity against persons according to demographic characteristics e.g. gender, or race. D) Violence is portrayed as the primary means of resolving all problems. It is also portrayed or described as a heroic, glamorous activity, and the real, negative consequences of resort to violence are not included.

Excessive sexual content S3

A) Sexual portrayals or discussion are highly pervasive and an integral part of the programming.

B) There is explicit sexual content including characters simulating sexual activity frontal nudity, and description or portrayal of male and /or female genitals.

C) The programming includes frank sexual dialogue or discussion.

D) The portrayals, discussion, or descriptions are not meant for scientific, educational or journalistic purposes but meant to titillate the viewer or listener.

Excessive language L3

A) Obscene, sexually explicit or profane language is pervasive throughout the programming.

B) Obscene gestures are depicted, described or discussed.

C) Graphic verbal expletives in either English or Jamaican Creole are included e.g. “fuck”, “battyhole”.

D) Language is used to abuse and denigrate.

Dancehall artistes now belch out the very same mature themes that the regulations in the Children’s Code for Programming were meant to protect our children from. When are we going to take a stand? The inhumanity of our lyrical declarations is an embarrassment to the foundations of the reggae movement in Jamaica. This is not what our music used to be, and it does not have to remain this way. How much longer will we sit by and create a society of immoral savages who perpetuate such a degrading worldview? These songs preach that the sexual exploitation of our women is okay. I cannot be convinced that these songs do not fuel the sadistic intentions of rapists! The rapists must surely be empowered by the fact that they live in a society it is entrenched that men are superior to women and have the authority to do as they please, by whatever means. Our feeble attempts at regulating the content of the music on our airwaves must improve. Albeit a small change in the grand scheme of things, and only one of many wrongs in Jamaica that need to be corrected, we can do something now to effect change in Jamaica- ahn wi kyaahn tari no langga.

If Vybz Kartel or any of the popular artistes was to sing, 'mek mi baks ar, a we shi tek dis fa,’ it would not be out of context, because our women are treated much worse in vile illustrations of the sex act they often describe. Singing about sexual intercourse is fine, but describing intercourse in the manner that is typical (as in Vybz Kartel and Spice’s new song Rampin Shap), is illegal or it should be. Unfortunately, objectifying and commodifying our women is allowable, as is inciting violence against others whether homosexuals or rival gang members ‘pan di goli said’. There is no self-respecting woman who would gyrate to these lyrics. The fact that so many enjoy these lecherous excuses for music speaks volumes to the tolerance of sexism in our society. Worst of all, our young females hear these songs and soon accept this debased view of them in society. They are not equals, they are inanimate, and without feeling, ready to be exploited by perverted neighbors, fathers, and strangers. As Mavado reminds us in his song, “shi se shi wahn mi skwiiz ar bres dem laik di triga af ma gon.” Dancehall’s portrayal of the woman is fully embraced, so now the women ask to be treated like objects. What has our country come to?

I am not naïve enough to think that banning these songs in their entirety will lessen the demand for such crude lyrics, or adversely affect the careers of the DJ’s- surely not in the short term. Regardless though, those who know better need to do better. If you were to unanimously refuse to play the music of artistes notorious for promoting these depraved behaviours, you could put enormous pressure on them and their producers to clean up their act. We need to send a very strong message that Jamaican ears and brains are being eaten out by maggots which fester in the lyrics they spew, and that we will no longer support it. These men and women are lyrical geniuses; they can do better. This positive feedback loop wherein popular demand for such degrading lyrics increases the production of it, which then increases our love and demand for the music needs to be intercepted. I lack the benefit of proof that this system is as destructive as I claim it to be, but my concern should warrant a full psycho-sociological evaluation of Dancehall culture’s contribution to the moral degradation of Jamaican society and its effect on our children. Regulations that are more inflexible need to be put in place; or the Broadcasting commission must be given increased authority to patrol our airwaves and ban certain songs permanently. I love Dancehall music. The beats are intoxicating, and they stir within me a desire to express myself through movement. I hope for the music to evolve and regain its crown as one of Jamaica’s signature cultural forms. As is now though, whose best interests is the music serving- the consumers? The beats can remain, but the lyrics must go!

I am an avid supporter of our native language, Jamaican Creole, and have taken it upon myself to translate into English our literature, and our music, so that I can share them with the greater world. Shock and disgust are the two reactions I get most frequently, after sharing the interpretation of today’s popular dancehall songs. Many cannot believe that the main themes explored in Dancehall music could ever be played over loud speakers in one’s home, much less on national radio. Our immune response to detest filth has apparently been suppressed as we have become desensitized to issues that others easily identify as pressing in other nations. I am a concerned Jamaica looking out for the interest of our children. Your company/ organization has mandated to do the same, and it is time you step fully to the plate. The acquiescence with which we approach the unraveling elements of Jamaican’s moribund social fabric must be done away with. Let us act now to reclaim the Jamaica we love and miss- if only for future generations.

Sincerely,