Greetings reggaemuffins!
The task is mine to give you my views and reviews of the song Prime Time which was released about a year ago by a young , talented but controversial artiste who goes by the name “Intence.”Can you believe - I couldn’t find the man’s “government” (given name) anywhere on the www dot?
The song is that I’m sure resonates with a lot of people who grew up in the Jamaica ghettos or who have knowledge of that way of life. In it he highlighted how his life was hard - living in a single room house with his mother and siblings. He stressed the distrust of the police and so called friends around him. Surprising he mentioned the practice of wearing a “Guard ring,” as mentioned here “Guard up and no take mi eye affa dem
Ring pon mi finger it squeeze mi ah wear it ,” which is frowned upon by a lot of Jamaicans but is practiced by many in the society. Obeah or voodoo as you might know it is a taboo topic but many dabble in it secretly. The guard ring is given by the obeah or woman and is supposed to “Guard” against or warn of danger. I will probably talk about this later in another piece on cultural practices.
The song basically is a story about the hardships of life in the deep inner city or rural ghettos. However, it’s also a celebration of those hardships that have made the artist the man he is today. As in the chorus above he credits his success to his circumstances , he and his mother’s determination as well as the trust in the Lord.
[Chorus]
A ghetto mi born and a ghetto mi grow
When you n'ave mother and some n'ave father
Put mi trust inna di Lord, ah him alone mi call pon
And all ah pray mi ah pray, is like ting only harder
Ghetto mi born, ah ghetto mi grow
Tings weh mi do, yute, you wouldn' even know
Nuh put mi trust inna you, nuh put mi trust inna you man
Could ah man n'ave room man, and bredrin weh yuh ah do m
“Intence” is from Tavern St. Andrew and perhaps got his earliest influence in music from his papa who was a yard dj who did things similar to what we did on the Riddim up contest.
Intence is signed to the Boasy record label . “Intence’s first song was Jet Life life which has done well locally and overseas. He often works in collaboration with Iwaata as they are from nearby communities and are signed by the same label. They have formed a energy duo that often comes on stage in the early morning to keep the people going.
Even before his arrival on the big stage he was well known on the ground as he promoted himself by going to all the street events meeting the people on the ground . His reasoning for this is that “The people on the street decide what records sell in the dancehall.” Since his debut at Reggae Sumfest he has had by June this year about 6 songs going hard. His next major show will be the Ghetto splash.
According to the artiste in his interview on the popular entertainment programme “Onstage” with Winford Williams this June, “He works with a team, “ which helps him to perform well on stage. Though he’s relatively new to the business he has performed in the UK, USA and all over the Caribbean. This is speaks to his growing popularity.
Some prominent people seem worried about his lyrics and seem fearful that he might trod the path of some popular musicians who are now incarcerated due to their alleged activities when they were away from the microphone. The young star agrees that his lyrics are edgy but argues that he is there not to hide the realities in society . He sees himself as someone highlighting the inconvenient and unpleasant truths and vows not to change his style as that’s how he has built a name for himself. The host of Onstage on CVM tv had some advice for him which I wholeheartedly endorse.
“Embrace life... di ppl love unnu, a dat unnu fi focus pan, cuz love nuh easy fi get inna music.”
“ Some a dem man is all about music and it should always be that bredrin...”
Until next time keep it jahming
J.R.J
Credits
Quotes were taken from interview aired on CVM TV Onstage August 20,2019.
Pictures: were taken from IG
jetlife