Lionesses On The Rise

Groundins

By: Charles H.E. Campbell


INTRODUCTION

From its inception, reggae music has been greatly influenced by musicians who are adherents to the Rastafarian faith and bring with it their philosophies and perspectives of life. This has made the music strong on social commentary against class, ethnic, religious and national oppression. Traditionally, reggae stood for equal rights and justice for all, uniting the world through peace, love, harmony and music. Over time, there have been many messengers, mostly male. Of late, however, the minstrels – those who claim to be “giving the people what they want” without an over-arching philosophy or principle, except homage on the altar of the almighty dollar – have been getting greater media prominence and airplay, mainly in Jamaica and North America. Very often it is coverage of some weird, sensational misdeed.

Recently, after my article “History in the Making at Sumfest”1 was published in the Sunday Observer and on my blog Groundings, as “Queen Ifrica, Superstar!”,2 putting forward the claim that Queen Ifrica had now attained superstar status, someone asked me if I thought her success had eclipsed Lady Saw’s. This question reveals a lack of understanding of the worldwide trends and renaissance of reggae in the major international markets. This renaissance began with Garnett Silk, Buju Banton and Anthony B in the early 1990s, followed by Luciano, Sizzla, Capleton, Richie Spice and others. They have all easily straddled both the dancehall and reggae genres, while injecting into the dancehall, lyrics that are more in keeping with Jamaican popular music of an earlier era led by the likes of Bob Marley, Burning Spear, Culture, Peter Tosh, Mighty Diamonds and Black Uhuru.

Although Rastafari-inspired songs have motivated many global liberation and emancipation movements, from Europe to Africa, one of the main internal contradictions of the movement has been its resistance to the acceptance of woman as man’s equal. Traditionally, even the Rasta woman has passively accepted the perception that “a woman’s strength is perfected [primarily] through the support that she provides for her man and family”.3 This viewpoint is consistent with the opinions of a significant segment of the Jamaican patriarchal society. It is further exemplified in our popular music by the dearth of female reggae and dancehall artistes and the instances of misogyny in dancehall lyrics.

Unfortunately, the story of reggae and dancehall music is replete with chauvinistic behaviour, meted out to young Jamaican women who aspire to a singing career in popular music. As Carol Cooper in her essay “The Wrathful Madonna” has observed, “most never got more than one 45 beyond the casting couch of lecherous and opportunistic producers”.4 Against this background, it has been even more difficult for the Rastafarian woman to make a career out of music, while still holding true to her principles. During the 1960s, for instance, the only well-known female acts were Hortense Ellis and Marcia Griffiths. In this regard, Griffiths represents the first generation of successful Jamaican women in reggae. Interestingly, during her early years, she performed with Judy Mowatt and Rita Marley as her backing vocalists.

Marcia, however, only achieved international success after she teamed up with Bob Andy and recorded the album Young, Gifted and Black (1969). Following this, the duo spent three years touring the major cities of Europe. By 1975, Griffiths, Mowatt and Marley would become collectively, the I-Three, backing Bob Marley exclusively.

Beginning with Count Ossie and the Mystic Revelation of Rastafari in the early 1960s, Rasta women, dressed in African regalia, were usually featured prominently as dancers in live performances. During the 1970s, other groups such as Cedric “Im” Brooks and the Light of Saba and Ras Michael and the Sons of Negus employed the same format. With the I-Three, however, a new precedent in reggae music was cast, as the world was presented with the first self-contained musical unit composed entirely of Rasta women. They not only backed Marley, but opened many concerts for him and went on to have tremendous success after his passing in 1981. The I-Three experience marked a philosophical transformation in both Griffiths and Mowatt, fully manifested in their biggest hits of the era, “Stepping Out of Babylon” and “Black Woman” respectively.
The next prominent visual representation of a successful female Rasta singer was the younger, more athletic and vivacious Puma Jones. She possessed a haunting chant that sent shivers up the spines of many men in the audience of the now famous Black Uhuru shows, at the peak of the group’s career in the mid to late 1980s.

As time went on, the talents of women like Pam Hall, J.C. Lodge, Sheila Hylton, Sophia George and Nadine Sutherland emerged into the limelight. All too often, however, the careers of these women fell under the management of their mates, and this sometimes stymied their potential due to their domestic, maternal roles being given more weight in their lives. Ironically, it was in the dancehall space during the 1990s that a larger percentage of females began to make a breakthrough – Sister Nancy, Sister Carol, Shelly Thunder, Lady G and Patra. Today, the most famous of these is “the flamboyantly, exhibitionist deejay, Lady Saw [who] epitomises the sexual liberation of many African-Jamaican working-class women from airy-fairy Judeo-Christian definitions of appropriate female behaviour”.5 Of course, Diana King’s “Shy Guy” catapulted her in the pop world for a time and she still remains popular in Japan. So far, however, except for Griffiths none has really been able to transform her relative success into a sustained global appeal and demand on the live music circuit.

While dancehall opened new markets and overshadowed reggae in the mass media, in the last four to five years reggae has again won over a new generation of artistes, and they have been able to heighten the appeal of reggae, not only in the traditional markets, but in many of those countries in which dancehall music made the initial foothold. The names of three artistes stand out in this new wave of the reggae movement: Tarrus Riley, Queen Ifrica and Etana.

LIONESSES ON THE RISE

Griffiths and Jones, the first generation of women in reggae, had gained their prominence as part of male-dominated groups, and though their roles were essential, nevertheless they were in the background. As such, “the Rastafarian woman [was] an enigma to many reggae fans who have only been exposed to the rampant Rasta lions who strut on-stage with an organic banner of dreadlocks to proclaim the patriarchal prerogative”.6
In contrast:

Imagine the resplendent rage of a pieta unshackled by grief and pity; a lioness finally let loose to avenge that lamb. Imagine the Tibetan shaktis, those metaphorical extensions of India’s female saints (the yoginis with red matted hair and bodies anointed with ash) who identify with the feminine aspect of divinity because they know that the female is the power of the male. And imagine the female members of certain ascetic communities like the Essenes, about whom the historian Josephus noted that child-bearing was considered among the holiest of devotions.7

This is the context, image and traditions in which Etana and Queen Ifrica ought to be seen; they are the new prototype of the Rastafari-inspired woman – liberated, articulate, strong yet charming, exuding self-confidence and authority and, most importantly, commanding attention. Both Queen Ifrica and Etana have projected a Rasta-inspired, messianic aura with their demeanour and lyrics. Their music relies heavily on the orthodox rhythms of reggae and they bring to the genre a message that traditionally is the preserve of Rasta males only.

These two young women burst onto the scene almost simultaneously, between late 2006 and 2007. Since then, their meteoric rise, gaining not just local appeal but international fame and demand, is unprecedented in the reggae/dancehall world, for many reasons. Firstly, one of the unique features of their careers is their ability to garner support from the hardcore dancehall audiences, as well as the lovers of traditional reggae. Whereas as a sing-jay Ifrica does specialise in what would be called the classic one-drop reggae, this was an even more challenging bridge for Etana to cross, since her music draws heavily from other influences such as American R&B, jazz and African rhythms.

Secondly, these two singers are neither choosing to do the easy love songs, nor falling back on a repetitious calling of Jah, Selassie or Garvey in clichéd verse and psalms. Rather, in a relatively short period, they have each successfully released a considerable number of songs whose lyrics address issues that speak directly about universally shared life experiences; songs conversant on a variety of topics, from philosophy and religion to world affairs and human and children’s rights. Immigrant communities, racial and cultural minorities, indigenous peoples as well as residents of inner-city communities who feel alienated to varying degrees became an instant market, linking their struggles with the sentiments expressed by Ifrica in “Born Free”:

Born free and that’s all I’m gonna say
I am a descendant of the earth, I no pagan
Don’t you believe that you can take away my pride . . .
Never wanna get caught in dem corruption
A new set of young generation a rise up
And to I that is enough8

Their music counsels and motivates, and generally focuses on people in the lower-income group, women and youths in particular. Etana’s “I Am Not Afraid” was a hit because it so aptly describes the lure for instant gratification, promoted not only by marketing companies for consumer goods, but also by the gangland dons with considerable wealth, who dole this around for loyalty or services:

I see them coming after my soul
Wanting to take control
Want to give me locks,
Want to give me bling
Want to give me all the material things
I am talking about what the world has to offer
Girl, what you doing, don’t you see
What they have done to Bedward and Marcus, Jesus and all of the prophets
But I am not afraid9

Many of the subjects addressed by Ifrica and Etana have been largely untouched before by other artistes, and are normally seen as too delicate to discuss, or taboo in the sense that they might alienate segments of the target market. Etana takes on the critical issue of social prejudice and the repressive effects of living in tribalised, depressed, war-torn areas:
Tried to get a job today,
But when dem see the application dem say
If this is where you really reside, please step outside
She asked them why and they replied
We don’t want no trouble, we don’t want no trouble no day
‘Cause lady, where you come from, people die there everyday
For our safety that’s where you should stay
(“Wrong Address”)10

In one of her biggest hits, “Daddy”, Ifrica addresses the subject of incest, which is usually hushed up or goes unexposed in most societies, including Jamaica:

Daddy don’t touch me there
I’m gonna tell on you one day I swear
Can’t you see I’m scared
You’re supposed to be my father
Everyday I wonder why my daddy had to be the one to take away my innocence
Oh, sometimes I wanna die, feels like no one cares for me
And it’s evident that something must be wrong with me
I’m not as happy as I seem to be
The long showers I take don’t wash away the memory
Why do I have to face this tragedy11

From the housing projects of Obama’s hometown of Chicago to the barrios of Panama, Puerto Rico and other South American countries, from Afghanistan to the Gaza strip of Palestine, Ifrica’s lyrics are very relevant and have struck a chord, propelling her popularity.

Streets are bloody, they just killed somebody
Another mother cries, tears keep rolling from her eyes
Downright folly, they just killed the daddy of an unborn baby boy
(“Streets Are Bloody”)12

For such issues to be raised by women who project themselves as identifying culturally with Rastafari, and for these women to gain broad acceptance, is in itself no mean feat, given the traditional prejudices against Rasta from all classes of Jamaicans.

A third way in which their rise is unprecedented concerns their way of dress. What we have become accustomed to, especially in the dancehall, is the female diva displaying as much flesh as can pass public decency codes, in order to bolster her live performances. Both Ifrica and Etana perform in elegant fashion, whether in pants, long, swaying skirts or full-length gowns, appearing majestic, but still oozing sex appeal. While these women are resolute in the firm principles which govern their careers, it is a difficult road to tread and therefore a significant achievement for either of them to have garnered such a wide fan base, in a relatively short period.
A cursory exploration of their backgrounds goes some way in explaining how these two artistes have climbed the pinnacle and arrived where their careers are at today.

While their lives began in two unconnected and vastly different social environments, there are some poignant parallels. Etana was born in August Town and grew up during the 1980s when it was one of the many communities being ravaged by entrenched political tribalism and full-scale gun warfare. At the time, the national headlines were repeatedly filled with gruesome, barbaric multiple murders that frightened the country. Meanwhile, a young Ifrica was growing up in Killancholy, in deep rural St Mary. Both women spent their infant years with their grandmothers and they each will readily reel off Jamaican proverbs, religious ditties and tales from the folklore learned from their grandmothers.

Interestingly, at age ten both left their early childhood homes and migrated to larger cities, where their mother’s presence would become the major influence in their lives up to adulthood. Etana and her mother migrated to Florida. There, Etana attended various Christian churches in a search for spiritual affinity. She says, “I have explored and adopted many central precepts from religions like Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, but culturally, I connect most closely with Rastafarian value systems.”13 While attending college, Etana grew passionate about creating her own music, yearning to experiment with genres such as reggae, jazz, pop and hip hop, to which she had been exposed throughout her life. With dreams of becoming a mainstream star, in 2000 she dropped out of college and joined a pop girl group called Gift, but found the experience unfulfilling. It was not until she returned to Jamaica and became a backing vocalist for Richie Spice in 2005 that she truly felt spiritually liberated and indeed began to redefine her persona, her music and her message.
Ifrica went to live in the hills of Montego Bay.


I went to live with my mother and that’s where my Rastafarian realisation took place, actually in Montego Bay, growing up around that environment, where my mother and my stepdad were living as Rastas.14 She’s very spiritual, very aware. She was a teacher before she became Rastafarian, so she had that balance of knowledge and therefore she was able to pass it on to us. She is a rebel – she’ll wear pants and tell the Rasta community that to do this does not make her any less of a Rasta woman. My stepfather’s experience in the Coral Gardens incident was an influence in terms of coming close to Rasta and to what Rasta represents, especially in Jamaica, and where it was coming from.15 That’s what brought me to where I am now, having that realisation from such an early age and getting so close to the core of Rasta.


As a young Rastafarian woman, Ifrica demanded her right to sing in the tabernacle, and in so doing broke down a long-established tradition which held that a woman cannot perform those rites. “I would be like, why can’t I sing in the tabernacle? Why don’t I have the right to sing? I was given a voice, I come here to praise, so who are you to tell me that I can’t? And I noticed that there would be women saying to me strongly, ‘We’re the daughters, you know, so we have to just be the weaker vessel.’ I’m like, ‘I’m no weaker vessel, come on.’”16 She became a professional singer in 1998 when she was signed to Flames Productions. There is a correlation between worldwide trends and the growing acceptance of woman power by the Rastafari movement. The demands being made by Rasta women for more freedom within the religion are akin to the demands of Middle Eastern women for more freedom within Islam. The US Labour Department recently released statistics showing that, for the first time in US history, women outnumber men in the workplace. Therefore, these two young women, representing the new prototype of the Rastafari-inspired woman, are essentially part of a global movement by women demanding more of the world that could not exist without their power.17

Etana and Queen Ifrica have assimilated and synthesised their experiences and the relationships of their youth, and more importantly, they remain grounded in their communities. The greatest strengths of their songwriting are their ability, firstly, to empathise and, secondly, to transmit their message in a palatable, unaggressive manner. Listeners to their music, therefore, are not offended by their thought-provoking lyrics because they have the knack of projecting them in a toned-down, yet uplifting and inspirational way.
Nevertheless, onstage they are up front, the centre of attention, in charge of the band and all the supporting production personnel. Furthermore, while Etana has a booking agent and a personal manager, it is to her own company, Free Mind Music, that her backing musicians and singers, and all the other allied service providers, are employed.

These two women have been ably plying their trade for at least ten years, thereby gaining tremendous experience along the way. They also have shown substantial consistency and connectivity in their creativity, by releasing what is already a considerable catalogue of hit songs. They did the work and set the table and are now demanding their rightful seat at the table – “once the rules remain the same”.18
The lionesses are on the rise. The coming to power of women in the Rasta movement is a logical progression of the Rasta men freeing themselves from the shackles of Babylon. Having seen the men free themselves, the women do not want to remain slaves to these newly freed men. They have arrived at a most opportune time in world history, where new, more inclusive and effective solutions to persistent problems are being demanded by the people, led in many instances by women. In circumstances where our music has continued to penetrate ever-widening markets recently, due to the popularity of artistes like Shaggy and Sean Paul, their message has resonated with multiple cultures, ethnic groups and critical population segments across nations.

They have already done a lot of the groundwork, have diligently honed their art and are poised to take their careers to the next level. Right now, especially for Queen Ifrica, with two studio albums under her belt, the world is at their feet. It is for them and the team around them to convert the latent appeal and star power into long, sustained careers, the way Marcia Griffiths has.

Notes

1. Charles Campbell, “History in the Making at Sumfest”, Sunday Observer, 2 August 2009, http://jamaicaobserver.com/magazines/Entertainment/html/20090801T210000-0500_156545_OBS_HISTORY_IN_THE_MAKING_AT_SUMFEST.asp
2. Charles Campbell, “Queen Ifrica, Superstar”, Groundings, 2 August 2009, http://checampbell.blogspot.com/2009/08/queen-ifrika-superstar.html
3. Puma Jones, quoted in Reggae International, ed. Stephen Davis and Peter Simon (London: Thames and Hudson, 1983), 140.
4. Carol Cooper, “The Wrathful Madonna”, in Davis and Simon, Reggae International, 138.
5. Carolyn Cooper, Sound Clash: Jamaican Dancehall Culture at Large (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004), 99.
6. Davis and Simon, Reggae International, 137.
7. Ibid.
8. Queen Ifrica, “Born Free”, Fyah Muma, CD, Flames Productions, 2006.
9. Etana, “I Am Not Afraid”. The Strong One, CD, VP Music Group, 2008.
10. Etana, “Wrong Address”, The Strong One.
11. Queen Ifrica, “Daddy”, Montego Bay, CD, VP Music Group, 2009.
12. Queen Ifrica, “Streets Are Bloody”, Montego Bay.
13. Etana, interview by the author, 12 October 2009.
14. Queen Ifrica’s stepfather Ras Iyah figured prominently in the movie Rockers, as the Rasta elder in the hills with whom Horsemouth sought solace after he was beaten.
15. Ras Iyah was also one of the Rastafarians who was beaten in the Coral Gardens incident of Good Friday,12 April 1963.
16. Queen Ifrica, interview by the author, 2 October 2009.
17. In more recent times, a few prominent male members of the Rastafari community, including Mutabaruka and Dr Clinton Hutton, have publicly supported the ongoing struggle for the equal rights of women. They reflect an influential but minority view within the Rasta fraternity.
18. Queen Ifrica, “Lioness on the Rise”, Montego Bay.