Between Bob Marley and Kabaka Pyramid

I love reggae music!

(Yes, I know! This R&B junkie still appreciates musical diversity in all its ramifications. But on second thought, I feel that reggae is the music of my subconscious while R&B owns my conscious self.)

I love its ingrained ability to evoke self awareness and propagate the knowledge of historical events and paradigm shifts. Known for its function as a tool of political commentary, reggae awakened my consciousness to a paradigm composed of malevolently retrogressive beliefs and control structures that have configured human reality for ages.

These within the box constructs and norms birthed traumas and a false understanding of true reality for some and a false sense of security and power for others. Think racism, classism, capitalism, materialism, colonialism and imperialism.

The racist philosophy propagates the superiority of one race above the other. The classist mantra divides and conquers humanity along the lines of social stratification. You are a worthless human being and useless nonentity, if you fall within the proleteriat or lower class. And you are somebody, if you fall on the opposite side of the spectrum. For the capitalist, everything or everybody is a means to an end. Everything and everyone exists to be exploited. Profit is the name of the game. And for the colonialist who also served as imperialist, all nations are equal and some are more equal than others. Consequently, the lesser must serve the greater with their sweat and blood, rescind and invalidate their identity through assimilation and adopt a cultural homogeneity reflected in a common language and common belief system which erases their historical currency and value to the human ecosystem.

I thank reggae music for engendering the awareness of my immediate environment and the world at large, and Bob Marley and the Wailers for making this reality possible. Not one bad song was made by them. Every lyric, line, chorus was delivered with full impact. Marley was an avantgardist and “War” showcased his musical ingenuity, when he converted into a song, the speech delivered by Haile Selassie before the UN General Assembly on October 4, 1963.

It was a anti-colonialist and anti-imperialist rhetoric which veritably beamed light on the true state of the world. It was a rhetoric which challenged the status quo and brought to fore matters that would have preferably been kept shrouded, especially at a dark age when information was either carefully doctored, policed or concealed by the main stream media.

Marley sang and spoke the truth at a time when it was unfashionable to do so. Unfortunately, the world has hardly evolved since his time on earth. Humanity has a penchant for seeking comfort when it ought to challenge the systems of oppression, demand for a positive systemic transformation, justice, egalitarianism and respect one for another. Humanity would rather play the ostrich and feign ignorance.

But Marley never permitted this collective cognitive dissonance to slide and constantly kept the colonized sensitized and the coloniser on his toes through his invasion of the air waves with lyrical bullets in songs which neutralised distorted historical narratives and showcased a vivid view of the world like “So much Trouble in the World”, “Get Up, Stand Up”, “Rat Race”, “Who the Cap fit”, “Exodus”, “Time will tell”, “Babylon System”, “Redemption Song”, “Buffalo Soldier”, etc.

He fostered positivity and encouragement with “Three little birds” and “Coming in from the Cold”, called for collective unity and harmony in “One Love”. When it was time to unwind, “Jamming” came through. The Rasta man professed his romantic love in songs like “ Turn your Lights down low”, “Is this Love?”, “Waiting in Vain”, “Satisfy my Soul”, and “Could you be loved?”. His solidarity with the African continent was perceptible in songs like “Africa Unite” and “Zimbabwe”. Marley can be credited for instigating an understanding and co-operation between diasporic and African indegenous people.

On April 18, 1980, Zimbabwe gained her independence from Britain. Marley had the honour of visiting to perform at a unique event which signified the supposed end of colonialism in that country. However, his influence on the African consciousness was ubiquitous as many youth embraced his message and embarked on a musical propagation of the reggae philosophy. In South Africa, Lucky Dube was the face of reggae. However in Nigeria, there were many contenders like Majek Fashek, The Mandators, Evi Edna Ogholi, Maxwell Udo, Andy Shurman, Orits Williki, Ras Kimono, etc. They followed the Marlian footsteps by recreating a politically underwired catalogue of songs which sensitized, educated and encouraged.

The uniqueness of Marley was seen in his lyrical simplicity, purity in delivery and memorability. He did not sing to impress or entice, but to heal and restore lost hope. His songs are therapeutic, cathartic and even medicinal, if you will. 43 years after his demise, Marley’s musical legacy still thrives and flourishes. His music retains social currency with a value upsurge in the hearts of music lovers around the world.

Marley transited two months before my birth and this commonality makes him very special to me. I appreciate his music not just for sentimental reasons, but for its overall authenticity and the value imbued on the listener which emanates from a pure heart desiring collective liberation and a common good for all. His music enlivens my sense of justice and fairness. Additionally, nothing compares to dancing to a positively vibrational music. Try it!

In the years prior and after his demise, reggae music became widely co-opted and commercialized which stripped the genre of its political undertones and created a distance from social criticism. This was palpable in the emergence of English reggae bands with multicultural affinities like UB40, Inner Circle, Beshara, Merger, Greyhound, Musical Youth and reggae fusion artists like Maxi Priest.

In later years, Reggae music also bred derivatives like Ragga dancehall furthering a global exposure of multiple Jamaican-born artists on the world stage like Beenie Man, Buju Banton, Patra, Diana King, Shaggy, Shabba Ranks, Mad Cobra, etc. Despite the deviation in principles, it fostered a unification of “Black” and Caribbean Americans as could be seen in the plethora of musical collaborations in the 1990s like Queen Latifah & Shabba Ranks (“Whatcha Gonna Do?), Johnny Gill & Shabba Ranks (“Slow and sexy”), Patra & Aaron Hall (“Scent of Attraction”), Shaggy & Janet Jackson (“Luv Me, Luv Me”), etc.

Seemingly, it appeared that no one was willing to walk atleast a kilometre in Bob Marley’s shoes. Maybe, such musical revolutionaries existed underground and were invisible in the mainstream, until Kabaka Pyramid. It does not get more conscious than the album Kontraband (2018) with an overload of social criticism and positive messages/vibration.

Pyramid reiterates the lyrical points of Marley. His work indicates a stagnation in the overall socio-economic and political reality of humanity which remains the same like the days of the latter. “Well Done” is an indictment of corrupt politicians and their complicity in the decay and disillusionment of nations and citizens across the globe. “Borders” emphasizes the oneness of humanity and the illusion of national borders. Other subjects include destitution, impoverishment, migration, gentrification and segregation. Like Marley, he reflects his African solidarity in “Africans Arise”. He broaches on the metaphysical subject of reincarnation in “The meaning of life”. Environmental pollution and health crises take the frontburner in “Everywhere I go”. Natural beauty and self love is exalted in “Natural Woman”.

His collaboration with Akon (Senegal) in “Africans Arise” and Stonebwoy (Ghana) in “Borders” mirror the black unity and African- diasporic solidarity modelled by Marley.

Kontraband belongs to the treasure chest of reggae music. With its inspirational themes, the listener is uplifted in a time when contemporary music has lost its essence. The reassurance of the existence of a remnant of authentic musicians willing to go against the grain is gained.