How July became the music MVP of quarantine
Astrologers will have their own
summations of what July symbolises but for music lovers, July proved to be the
saving grace Jamaican music needed since “Miss Rona”.
With COVID-19 disrupting the
usual flow of the entertainment industry, several selectors and producers
questioned if the annual ritual of crowning a summer song would be feasible.
Just when we thought it wouldn’t get any better than Dexta Daps’ Breaking News, Govana’s HAMANTS Convo Pt 2 or Skillibeng’s Mr Universe, July pulled up to the lot
and gave us more than we bargained for.
The heavy-hitters were definitely
Koffee, Jada Kingdom and Chronixx. What started out as producer Dane Ray and
Koffee just vibing at Popcaan’s studio, turned into Koffee’s first love song,
and an anthem for several people questioning how life will be after the
indefinite corona-induced quarantine. During a recent interview with Vibe Magazine, Koffee admitted, “Wenever think it woulda reach this fast…this is so crazy right now.”
The track and accompanying
countryside visuals soared to the top trending spot on YouTube in the region, where it stayed for several days until JadaKingdom’s Win picked up steam.
Like Koffee, Kingdom revealed she
too was surprised at the overwhelming support of the song, and said the
motivational track is also a symbol of her ‘East side’ pride.
“Mi find di right set a
confidence fi really represent fi where mi come from di right set a way, which
a outta East side, 7 Miles, Bull Bay, mi born and grow,” she said in a recent
online chat with Protoje. “People from round the area never did too believe
inna mi ting…mi grow a mentality fi mek dem gwaan but really a unity mi
shoulda a push from long time cause no money nuh really deh inna di beef
sh*t…. so when mi seh win mi nah stop try til mi win cause mi haffi win.”
Helping to navigate these
amazingly sappy feelings is Chronixx, whose Cool As the Breeze/Friday
joint makes anyone want to grab a pair of sunnies and head to the beach or
cruise the coast before curfew beckons.
Also filling our playlists with
some normalcy of summer (besides the unsparing heat) are early July releases
like Aidonia’s Look, Govana’s Likkle Bit A Money, Masicka’s Just A Minute, Protoje’s Same So and Kingdom on Skillibeng’s Shake remix.
Closing off the month was the
musical mastery of Sevana’s Be Somebody
EP (which includes Mango and If You Only Knew) and Tarrus Riley’s The Fresh Prince of JA, a funky yard
spin on Will Smith’s 90s sitcom theme song.
