Why is consciousness not popular in the dance???

[leggo rocker]

@ Jah Glu

If slackness is as I understand it; ie: not being faithful to your woman, having many children and not fathering them properly, drinking too much - then yes, I do think it is a 'wrong culture'. It will only cause problems. Many of these problems are apparent today. Fatherless children running wild. Deserted women struggling to bring up kids. Sexually transmitted diseases running out of control. Alcoholism.

If I have misinterpreted the term, then please, someone from Jamaica put me right.

And the other type of 'wrong culture' I am objecting to, and this isn't covered by slackness (If I understand the term right) is the badman posse culture. The shooting, looting, robbing and stealing - the gangster way. How can this be good culture?

I have to confess I have been a teenager ina permissive society and haven't always lived according to 'good' morals. But I have always tried to be a good father and a decent husband, as I feel this is the proper way to behave an promotes better living for all.

[leggo rocker]

@ Stepping Razor

At the Highness Sound System dances in Nottingham they play mostly roots and early dancehall. The crowd is mainly 18 - 25. They all dance - sop much so that the dancers far far outnumber those who stand by and watch.

I can't be sure if they are hearing any of the music's messages though. But then I don't know if all the audiences of the reggae sound system dances I attended in the early late 70s and 80s were listening either, they were all dancing though! What I do know is that *we* were hearing the message and we liked what it said and agreed with the message of love, equality and liberation from oppression.

[bullit]

One day i'll make it to that highness sound system dance, im gonna post up dj set i did with someone on saturday when we had a gig in the next few days, some conscious sounds.

[leggo rocker]

It's worth the trip Bullit. And it would be a bit of an RA party if MightyZ and his wife are also there.

Oh, and Highness have the Mad Professor guesting with them next month!

[Jah Glu]

@ Jah Glu

If slackness is as I understand it; ie: not being faithful to your woman, having many children and not fathering them properly, drinking too much - then yes, I do think it is a 'wrong culture'. It will only cause problems. Many of these problems are apparent today. Fatherless children running wild. Deserted women struggling to bring up kids. Sexually transmitted diseases running out of control. Alcoholism.

If I have misinterpreted the term, then please, someone from Jamaica put me right.

And the other type of 'wrong culture' I am objecting to, and this isn't covered by slackness (If I understand the term right) is the badman posse culture. The shooting, looting, robbing and stealing - the gangster way. How can this be good culture?

I have to confess I have been a teenager ina permissive society and haven't always lived according to 'good' morals. But I have always tried to be a good father and a decent husband, as I feel this is the proper way to behave an promotes better living for all.

Then you obviously dont understand slackness. Lets just take some examples:
Admiral Bailey - Punaany: All he is saying is that he wants punaany. Whats so wrong about that?
Shabba Ranks - Wicked Inna Bed: Here he is just saying that he is very good at fucking.
Imo slackness is merely talking about sex. And whats the problem with that? No, no i know they dont exactly tell it as a love story, but whats so wrong with bragging about how good you are, and that you wanna have sex? THAT is slackness for me. Talking about sex. And come on! Are you actually blaming slackness for "sexual diseases" (have never heard, "Gun inna baggy"??!?!?! or any other anti-AIDS", "alcoholism" (why?!!?!, what?!!)

And could you please refer to some songs were they sing that they roob, loot or steal?

[ital kemar]

hiya jah glu, just out of interest, in the same shabba ranks song you have named above, dosent shabba say 'pom pom lick a shot in a mamma man head' ... meaning shoot the gay in the head....would you call that slackness?

ital kemar

[stepping razor]

Shabba Ranks nah deal with no conscious vocals.
The problem with the raggamuffin stuff is it aint saying nothing conscious, there is of course some ragga that can be also rough and conscious but needs a good riddim and proper music for the vocalist to shine.

Its the same with hippity hop and that used to be very conscious music until the ragga element got involved with the hip hop and it turned into a cowboy westernisned western.
For one they are going for sales, which the USA is the biggest market and they just churn out stuff to promote warmongering and its a form of properganda that has now reached the music bizz.

Peace

[ital kemar]

hey razor, i agree with you about most ragga not being conscious. i think that was the whole point at the time (imo). the digi era heralded in a new breed of performer, youth men with a new attitude. although some had been around for a while, they found their niche with the digital riddims. consciousness took a back seat with most singers, ragga was all about the youth, clarks booty, punanny, the dancehall etc etc. it had attitude, it was exciting. a few conscious tunes filtered through too, the mighty culture even recorded a tune on the sleng teng riddim. 80s digi dancehall is different to 70s roots. 70s roots is different to ska, etc. you have to take it for what it is. i love 80s digital music. but for me the gun lyrics is the real slackness. it was the total opposite of the message that went before it.
punanny is fine, we all love punanny bad. or should do at least... its a tounge in cheek way of saying you love girls. gun talk is different, teens are impressionable, and if you have a star singer with bad man lyrics in his hit song, these same teens are aspiring to that. sad that this sh*t sells. IMO.

ital kemar

[Gee]

A lot of people I know listen to these types of songs and don't really pay attention to the lyrics...instead concentrate on the riddims. I wonder if they had a copy of the lyrics, would it change anything?

I will say I do like a lot of the new riddims & artists, but don't agree with everything they are representing.

[_Easy_]

Then you obviously dont understand slackness. Lets just take some examples:
Admiral Bailey - Punaany: All he is saying is that he wants punaany. Whats so wrong about that?
Shabba Ranks - Wicked Inna Bed: Here he is just saying that he is very good at fucking.
Imo slackness is merely talking about sex. And whats the problem with that? No, no i know they dont exactly tell it as a love story, but whats so wrong with bragging about how good you are, and that you wanna have sex? THAT is slackness for me. Talking about sex. And come on! Are you actually blaming slackness for "sexual diseases" (have never heard, "Gun inna baggy"??!?!?! or any other anti-AIDS", "alcoholism" (why?!!?!, what?!!)

And could you please refer to some songs were they sing that they roob, loot or steal?

What kind of conscious message is that? Sex is a problem in all cultures. Prostitution, rape and STDs, are not good things...and i mean if people are singing about sex and all that...people are going to hear it and start thinking the way you are thinking...just not caring. And i think that is a problem in itself.