Protoje is under scrutiny from dancehall fans for seemingly shading Buju Banton.
Buju Banton scold reggae/dancehall artistes in his new interview OnStage last weekend when he weighed in on the state of the industry. It seems Protoje isn’t feeling his argument at all, even though he didn’t mention him by name. The “Who Knows” singer decided to call out those major players who have been in the industry for a number of years but have not brought any new artists to the forefront. “Personally no artist Wah in a the business over 10 years and don’t give another artist a platform or help buss somebody can’t say anything to me about the state of the industry,” Protoje tweeted.
Diggy’s comments arrived at a very strange time, only a few days after Buju Banton’s first Jamaican interview was aired. During the 45 minutes On Stage interview with Winford Williams, the previously incarcerated dancehall deejay expressed that when it comes to quality, he has not noticed any growth in the country’s musical output, especially when it comes to the youth who are dominating the forefront.
Buju Banton mentioned that Vybz Kartel was still the man holding the reigns of dancehall, “Mi come outa wuk house, and a Kartel mi hear a run di place same way,” mentioned the Gargamel who continued, “Me hear other people. Mi nah seh mi nuh hear and nuh think mi nuh listen but mi know music when mi hear music.” Choosing not to address Kartel’s provocative lyrics, he mentioned, “His lyrical content, that’s not my subject. His relevance – that’s my argument.”
Personally no artist Wah in a the business over 10 years and don’t give another artist a platform or help buss somebody can’t say anything to me about the state of the industry.
— KingDigg (@Protoje) March 17, 2020
Spragga Benz gives credit to Buju for his early exposure. Agent Sasco's very first recording opportunity was at Gargamel studios and he gives Buju credit for teaching him things that have been critical to his development. These are two significant artists that Buju helped buss
— tunde (@tunde_arekemase) March 18, 2020
This is a throw wud tweet. Then followers start call a bag a man name ..stop throw wud bredda .if yuh have issue man up and call name or shut up and stop throw wud
— MsChristiesSon (@MsChristiesSon) March 18, 2020
Vybz Kartel, through his Gaza/Portmore Empire imprint, has brought a number of talents to the forefront. The likes of Black Ryno, Popcaan, Jah Vinci, Gaza Slim, Rvssian, Notnice, and many other acts have all credited Vybz Kartel with providing them with a golden ticket. Bounty Killer had been doing something similar through Alliance, which brought about acts such as, Vybz Kartel, Mavado, Busy Signal, Bling Dawg among others. Protoje is the founder and head honcho for the In.Digg.Nation Collective, which houses a tremendous flurry of females acts charging forward, waving the flag of the new reggae revival. His work has been recognized by fans who have hailed him for his consistent support. “I do respect how u have implemented more female voices in reggae and provided consistent support to them,” wrote one supporter below his post.
Sadly, there are not many other local artistes who have invested their time and energy into developing the talents of the younger crop of artistes. The accusations could be wrong, and it could be that things are being done behind the scene.
With the recent interview in mind, many persons have speculated that Protoje is throwing shade at the Gargamel. One person quickly pointed out that before Vybz Kartel became a household name, Buju Banton disrespected him on stage, clearly not embracing his idea, he now preaches of showing support for young artistes. Buju’s fans quickly rallied mentioning, “Spragga Benz gives credit to Buju for his early exposure. Agent Sasco’s very first recording opportunity was at Gargamel studios and he gives Buju credit for teaching him things that have been critical to his development. These are two significant artists that Buju helped buss.”
Protoje did not name Buju Banton as the specific target of his Tweet. Instead, he left his fans to name who they think should be doing better to raise the quality of Jamaica’s music by influencing the younger generation.
In case you think that Protoje and Buju Banton got beef, watch this interview.
