Bay-C Squashes T.O.K. Breakup Rumors, Explains Jr. Gong Collabs, And Bigs Up Snoop Lion
Ever since 1999, when they dropped “Eagles Cry” on Dave Kelly’ Xtra Large label, T.O.K. brought has a completely fresh sound to dancehall, merging Jamaica’s great tradition of male harmony groups with the cutting-edge digital dancehall sound. They went on to become a dancehall supergroup, blazing a trail of hits around the world—and becoming bonafide pop stars in Japan. T.O.K. has not released an album since 1999, and they have pursued solo projects in recent years, but Alistaire “Alex” McCalla, Craig “Craigy T” Thompson, Xavier “Flexx” Davidson, and Roshaun “Bay-C” Clarke are still very much united, as Bay-C makes clear in this exclusive Boomshots interview. During a recent trip through London, the ReggaeGirlAboutTown caught up with the deep-voiced DJ in the studio and they sat down to reason about a wide range of topics, from his latest collaboration with Christopher Ellis “Don’t Change Ur Number” to his work with Damian Marley, Tarrus Riley, and Wayne Marshall and his thoughts on Snoop Lion and the Americanization of Jamaican music. Video After The Jump…
Let’s go to the video tape…
Part 1 of 2: The DJ from dancehall supergroup T.O.K. raps with Reshma B about the current status of the group and the reasons for its split with V.P. Records. He also speaks about his work on “Don’t Change Ur Number,” why the song is so “desperate,” and how it was put together with Christopher Ellis, Damian Marley, Maxi Priest and Tarrus Riley. Bay-C even reveals how super fly collabs between him, Tarrus Riley, Jr. Gong and Wayne Marshall are going hard.
Part 2 of 2: Bay-c raps with the ReggaeGirlAboutTown @ReshmaB_RGAT about the Americanization of Jamaica, what it’s like being pop stars in Japan, how Lady Saw took T.O.K from doo-wop into the dancehall, the issues Jamaica has with the Americanisation of the Island, and the whole “Snoop Lion” debate—watching Snoop Dogg turn into a Rasta. Plus he speaks on his current work in the pipeline with UK producers Seani B, Mark 1 & Terra Angel, and how the UK has reggae on lock.
Follow @ReshmaB_RGAT
Video By @REDNivars
Subscribe to BoomshotsTV
