Murda She Wrote: July 2023
Blaze up the summer with hot new dancehall, reggae and Afrobeats from Spice, Burna Boy & Byron Messia, Patoranking & Popcaan, and Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley.
Welcome to the heart of summertime. If you’ve been outside at all, you’ve probably figured out that July 2023 is even more blistering than usual. Climate experts tell us this month is the hottest ever recorded on Earth — or at least in the last 120,000 years or so. Third World’s “96 Degrees in the Shade” comes to mind.
July also happens to be the height of reggae festival season. From Reggae Sumfest in Montego Bay to Summerjam in Cologne, Germany, to the Far East Reggae Cruise in Japan and South Korea, fans of the music are coming together all over the world despite the soaring temperatures. Hot weather and reggae music go hand in hand, and this July the music is positively scorching. It’s Murda She Wrote time again. Can you take the heat? Let’s turn up the sound …
Spice
“WAKA (Chat Chat)”
This time last year, Spice was officially crowned Queen of Dancehall at Sumfest, Jamaica’s largest reggae and dancehall stage show. What a year it’s been since then! After a major health crisis in November, Grace Hamilton was in recovery for months. Rumors spread that she was in a coma, but in March, Spice tearfully explained to her fans that she endured different surgeries and almost didn’t make it back. But as she has told me many times, “I was born to do this.”
Her work ethic has always been second to none, but seeing her bounce back so strong is impressive to say the least. This year, she’s been dropping new tracks accompanied by sizzling music videos back to back — from her royal anthem “Queen of the Dancehall” to the rootsy single “Spice Marley” to a little something for the haters called “Jealous.” After an appearance with Busta Rhymes at last month’s BET Awards, Spice spent July rocking stages and partying with her longtime friend Missy Elliott, but she still had time to bless us with another banger.
“Me hear them a chat chat,” sings Spice on her latest single, “WAKA,” produced by YowLevite. This catchy tune is definitely something for the streets, and there’s no mincing words as Spice tells everybody sending negativity in her direction to “suck yuh mudda.” The Queen first teased the song on an IG Live from Kingston, accompanied by some of the hottest street dancers in Jamaica. TikTok is already heating up with the “Waka” dance they created on the spot. A Nigerian slang term, “Waka” came to Spice’s attention by way of Yemi Alade, her collaborator on “Bubble It.” It has a few different meanings, none of them very nice — ranging from “take a walk” to “get lost” or just plain “f— you.” Combined with the traditional five-finger salute, the meaning is clear. Some say “heavy is the head that wear the crown,” but the Queen is not having it. WAKA!
Burna Boy & Byron Messia
“Talibans II”
For the past few months, Byron Messia has been on fire. At this point, he’s easily the biggest star ever to emerge from Saint Kitts and Nevis. Just a few weeks ago, Popcaan brought him out as a surprise guest at his Wireless Festival set, where Messia shelled down the place with his breakout hit “Talibans.”
Nigerian Afrobeats superstar Burna Boy has never made a secret of his love for reggae and dancehall. The African Giant has been chilling in Jamaica this July, celebrating his birthday, recording new music at Rita Marley’s Tuff Gong studios, and popping up at Weddy Weddy Wednesday to bless the long-running street dance with some Afrobeats flavor. His month also included a blazing dancehall remix, joining forces with Messia for some transnational badness.
“Remember last Christmas / Santa Claus gimme the glizzy with the switch dawg?” Burna sings on the opening verse of this monster collab. “So some people nah go see this Christmas.” And if you’re wondering why he’s been spending so much time down a yard, Burna Boy reveals the answer: “All of the best pum pum deh yah Kingston.”
Patoranking & Popcaan
“Tonight”
The Nigeria-Jamaica connection runs deep. Many of the enslaved people who were forcibly relocated to the island hundreds of years ago were born in Nigeria and Ghana. So it’s no surprise that the musical inspiration runs in both directions. The music of Patoranking has been rocking the streets of Lagos for over a decade. Pato’s style is known locally as “galala,” a form of music and dance that’s deeply influenced by dancehall. Over the years he’s collaborated with Afrobeats megastars like Tiwa Savage, Wizkid and Davido, as well as dancehall icons like Konshens and Elephant Man.
“I work so hard, you know I don’t want no stress,” Pato says to kick off this single from his forthcoming album, World Best. It would be hard to imagine a catchier summer party tune. “Too many gal dem tonight,” Pato sings on the chorus, “so we ah go mm-mm tonight.” The Unruly Boss jumps on the breezy duet, swagging hard from the get-go. “Clean, clean and boasy,” he sings. “Rocking Dior and Clarks, yeah.” Having purchased a house in Ghana and collaborated with Nigerian stars Burna Boy and Davido, Poppy is the perfect cultural ambassador to rock Pato’s party, tonight and every night.
Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley
“My Sweet Lord”
Since the release of his Grammy-winning 2017 album Stony Hill, Bob Marley’s youngest son has been focusing on production. Jr. Gong shaped the sound of Kabaka Pyramid’s Kontraband in 2018, Third World’s Grammy-nominated More Work to Be Done in 2019, the 2020 compilation Set Up Shop, Vol. 4 from the Marley brothers’ label Ghetto Youths International, and Kabaka Pyramid’s 2022 album The Kalling, which won the Grammy for Best Reggae Album. Along the way, Damian has blessed fans with the occasional feature — collaborating with his nephew Skip Marley on “That’s Not True,” as well as Kabaka, Common, Wizkid, Karol G and Yendry. He just dropped his first solo single in a while, setting a reverent mood.
Beatles fans will recognize George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord,” which hit No. 1 in multiple countries in the early ’70s, shortly after the Fab Four broke up. The Beatles-Bob Marley connection goes all the way back to the Wailers’ Studio One days, when the vocal trio covered “And I Love Her.” “Yeah, yeah. I like reggae,” Harrison once said in an interview with the BBC. “In fact, the first time I saw Bob Marley, I was so impressed with his band and the show, I went back … I mean, I stayed for the second show, and I went back the next night and saw him again.”
Aside from reinterpreting his father’s material, Damian Marley is not known for covering other people’s songs. It’s safe to say that his decision to release this song right now is not about nostalgia. “It’s been quite a time,” he told me when I visited his studio during the pandemic. “A time of waves, ups and downs. Just missing people was the biggest thing, not being able to see loved ones. Sometimes you get so caught up in the pace of things, you don’t have the time to self-reflect and just think and meditate.”
We lost many reggae legends over the past few years — some of them Marley family friends and collaborators like Toots and Robbie Shakespeare. Then, last December, Damian’s beloved nephew Jo Mersa Marley passed away suddenly, a profound loss that is still keenly felt. “My Sweet Lord” was an affirmation of Harrison’s Hindu faith, with him singing “Hare Krishna.” Damian’s tasteful roots-reggae version substitutes “Haile Haile” in keeping with his own Rastafarian faith. When he sings, “I really wanna see you, Lord, but it takes so long, my Lord,” you can feel the sincerity in his voice. There will be more music from Jr. Gong this year and, eventually, a new album. But right now, it’s time to pray.
Source: Tidal.com. “Murda She Wrote: July 2023” by Reshma B. July 21, 2023.