Dancehall-reggae artiste Shabako is bemoaning the fact that reggae songs that reflect great themes of righteousness, love and unity are drawing less attention than music that is not uplifting.
“Great reggae music is still being made, songs that preach righteousness and reflect the values of discipline and hard work. But those songs are largely ignored. If you check the radio waves, there is a lot of dancehall and even more foreign songs, yet we complain that the fabric of our society is being destroyed. Look how many murders we have in our island,” said the artiste.
“The media needs to play music that encourages a different frame of mind and thinking in our young people. The great reggae songs that reflect true Jamaican values are out there, but they are being ignored,” added Shabako.
Jamaica as a society, has been in a downward spiral in relation to peace and harmony, recording 72 murders in the first 15 days of 2022, and over 100 up to the present time.
Recently, the United States Department of State issued an advisory warning its citizens to avoid travelling to Jamaica because of its COVID-19 and crime rates. On Monday, January 10, the Department of State increased its alert to a ‘Level 4 – Do Not Travel’, noting that there was an increased risk in Kingston, Montego Bay and Spanish Town communities.
According to the department, violent crimes, such as home invasions, armed robberies, sexual assaults and homicides, are common in Jamaica.
“Local police lack the resources to respond effectively to serious criminal incidents. Emergency services vary throughout the island, and response times may vary from US standards,” the US advisory stated.
In the meantime, Shabako is promoting his most successful single to date, ‘Faith’, which was released jointly on the LiveWyah Records, 1Family Records and OH Canada Productions imprints on November 20. The song has so far racked up several thousand views on Youtube on Shabako’s channel.
“People keep on telling me this is ‘the song’, and that they feel like it’s speaking about them… they can relate to it, that’s why it has taken off so well… Faith proves that there is a space for good reggae music,” he said.
The artiste said he got the inspiration to pen the song while working at his day job at a grocery wholesaler business.
Shabako’s management has bankrolled a video which was released in December last year.
Born Dwayne Shabako Stewart in the parish of Kingston, he moved to the parish of Westmoreland at age three years to live with his paternal grandmother, with whom he spent the next 15 years of his life. He attended Maud McLeod High School, where he often entered the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission’s (JCDC) festival for schools as a drummer.
He spent the next formative teenage years in Eltham Park in Spanish Town, where he grew up with his mother and other relatives. Music remained an essential aspect of the family, as his favourite uncle owned a sound system, ‘Warr Paxx International’, on which he would practise his skills.
He returned to Kingston and began to freestyle lyrics for friends, alongside his younger brother. He began to perform under the name of ‘Kritical’, and recorded his first single, ‘It Seems to Rain’, featuring Jada Kingdom, in 2016.
He said the song was not well promoted, and he began to focus on hard core dancehall tracks, but success again eluded him.
Years later, he relocated to St Thomas, where he soon discovered Rastafarianism, and changed his name to Shabako as homage to the Kushite King ‘Shabaka’.
Over time, he has evolved into a more positive, conscious individual whose lyrics speak to more about life and nature.
“My lyrics are now geared at a cleaner, healthier, soul-rendering style, enough for mamma to hold a vibes and listen to,” he said.
