Crazy Fox with wise message
When the soundtrack of the current COVID-19 pandemic is compiled, Mask Out , a song by artiste Crazy Fox, will definitely be among the music of the period.
The song, which samples the popular song Mass Out by 80s dancehall act Pinchers, first came to the attention of the wider public after Crazy Fox dropped a video on social media with his humorous, uncut, not-fit-for-airplay version, which quickly went viral. The release was in sync with the stay-at-home orders issued by Prime Minister Andrew Holness, and the ‘tan a yuh yaad’ tag line.
However, Crazy Fox, whose given name is Vassell Neil Cole, is now being accused of playing politics since recording a radio-friendly version of the song to include the Prime Minister’s moniker Bro Gad as well as a cameo by the prime minister in the accompanying music video.
“The fact that the prime minister like the song just make me grateful. There is nothing about politics in this coronavirus and mi just a line ‘Bro Gad seh’ . The truth is if any other prime minister was up a Jamaica House mi woulda do the same. I am just delivering a message, nuh politics nuh inna dat. But You know people will always have something to say,” he told the Jamaica Observer’s Splash.
Crazy Fox asserted that he didn’t do the song to earn recognition, but rather to bring awareness to the serious nature of the pandemic and encourage Jamaicans to do all they can to flatten the curve and reduce the numbers of those affected by the coronavirus.
“Mi never do it fi buss the place. I just want to enlighten my people so they can wise up and protect themselves and others from this coronavirus thing. Sometimes is like people tek this thing fi a joke. Everybody into social media these days so I just want to take the message to them… bring it to this with music that everybody love,” he said.
The Corporate Area resident has longed for a career in the music industry, and while he does not want people to miss the message in his current song, he hopes that it will open doors for him in the future.
“I’m just a humble, caring guy who has been doing small, community shows over the years. I really want my career to go to the highest heights as I have three children and my mommy that I really need to take care of… I just want to uplift then,” he noted.
Mask Out is his first recording apart from a number of dub plates he has cut over the years, and was facilitated by recording artiste Ce’Cile.
“After I put the song on the net I was getting a lot of calls from all over the world from people who know me. Then I get a call from a bredren who say certain people including the prime minister see it and interested. I was taken up to DownSound Records and that’s where it all went down.” he stated.
