“There Is A Rising Consciousness that’s Obviously Happening. There Is a Movement As Well.”
While passing through the concrete jungle the other day, Protoje dropped by Plex HQ to reason about life and the state of the music. We started off discussing his big tune with Chronixx “Who Knows,” and how Storm Saulter—of Better Mus Come fame—came to direct the song’s epic music video. Diggy said Winta James came up with the video’s basic concept, which he described as “You start off with everything and as the day goes on you lose stuff, and it’s either you’re gonna turn around and go home or keep pushing forward.” So it’s all about the Bounce Back, which is a fitting transition to our discussion of the shift within Jamaican music right now. “We want to change the perception of what people think reggae is,” Protoje explained. “Cause I see what people think the genre is, and the reality of what it is now—and It’s far.” Protoje made the point that he’d rather not be pigeon-holed within the category of reggae just because he is from Jamaica. “Chronixx and I make two different sounds,” he asserted. “Sonically our music sounds different, but we’re still under the same heading of reggae music.” He calls his current sound—which has amassed a huge following in Europe, where he will be touring this summer—”a real hybrid,” citing Junjo Lawes and Jimi Hendrix as infuences. Nevertheless, he goes on to state that he and Chronixx and s number of other like-minded artists and producers are all part of a cultural movement within Jamaica right now. “There is a rising consciousness that’s obviously happening. There is a movement as well… 2010 to 2020 is our time to govern them music.” Video and Summer Tour Dates After The Jump…
Part 1 of 2: “Chronixx and I make different sounds”
Part 2 of 2: “Now is our time to govern the music”
Protoje ft. Chronixx “Who Knows” Official Music Video
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Protoje Summer Tour Dates:
July 25 : RENCONTRES BREL Festival in Brussels, Belgium
July 26: REEDS REGGAE Festival in Zurich, Switzerland
July 28: LONG LAKE Festival in Lugano, Switzerland
July 31: WOODSTOCK festival, Poland
August 1: REGGAE JAM Festival in Bersenbrück, Germany
August 2: RGGAE GEEL Festival in Geel, Belgium
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well want some stateside apprearances…Indiggnation needed in this nation!
workin on it as we speak… don’t say a word!
[…] lineup that gets heavier by the day. This weekend it’s all about Live From Kingston featuring Protoje, Kabaka Pyramid, and Nomaddz But the exclusive jump-off is going down on Thursday December 18th, […]