READYING himself for the high-octane promotion of his sophomore album Gully Sit’n, dancehall artiste Jeffery ‘Assassin’ Campbell spares a moment from his busy schedule to ‘ID’ his career.

He’s been an ‘in-the-streets-student’ of the music for nearly a decade and opens up about what being on the other side of the mic is like.

How did you get started as a deejay?

I started from Camperdown (his alma mater) days. I linked up with Spragga [Benz] and ‘Briggy’ (another deejay who also attended Camperdown). we used to go around to the studios, we network, and we took it from there.

What are the most important traits a dancehall artiste should have?

First off, you have to have the talent; that’s a plus. This thing don’t have formal qualifications, but you have to have a type of discipline and drive to get things done, and above all you got to have a love for the music. Because you find that some man have the talent, but they don’t reach farther because they don’t have that love of what they’re doing.

How much money do artistes make?

Oh boy, it varies still. But for me personally, it keeps the lights on and a food pon de table.

How many hours on average do you spend in studio?

It’s relative. You can spend hours at a time and other times you don’t go [in studio] for weeks. It’s seasonal and that mean if you’re working on an album, you’ll be there endlessly.

What do you do to stay ahead of the competition?

I just continue to be a student of the music, and try to learn everything I can. In terms of your music, you must always be honest with yourself and allow your peers to be honest with you, so that they can tell you what sounds good from what doesn’t. I always try to keep myself in a state-of-mind to be creative.

Why is it so important to be creative as an artiste?

Music is an art form and the more creativity you come with as an artiste the better you find that your lyrics will be. If not, you’ll find that you just copy others instead of doing an original job.

What do you think is needed for the dancehall industry to be more efficient?

That would take the whole day, but it has to start from the [industry players’] mindset. The man dem need fe realise that dem is a part of something great, and stop the ‘bad mind. Jamaica is just a dot on the map, and our music is so world renown that it scary if you think about it. We are blessed to have this music and the industry needs to more acknowledge that and treat it as such.

How important is the industry in the development of an artiste’s career?

It’s a mutual relationship. If there were no industry then there would be no artistes. There are various benefits to be derived from that relationship, but that is only if we as artistes, producers and such are operating with honesty and integrity. For example, the industry affects negatively on a lot of artistes’ careers. Like you’ll agree to perform on a show for X amount, and when you finish performing you only can get Y. That kind of thing is damaging to an artiste’s career.

What’s bad about being in this industry as an artiste?

There’s a lot of hypocrisy, envy and deceit, but those things that don’t kill you make you stronger. There are also people in your camp sometimes who behave like they are with you, but at the end of the day you find that they’re not and so you’ll always have to watch your back.

What advice would you give to those interested in your profession?

Respect the music because it has a life of its own. Don’t abuse it, and cherish the fact that you have an opportunity to do what you love and get paid for it.