Agent Sasco On His New EP, The Success Of ‘Hope River’ & Growth Of His Music

As a titan in Reggae and Dancehall music, Agent Sasco is a prime example of the transformation and growth that is possible for the genre’s most raw and gritty.

His initial Assassin moniker, a true symbol of his early persona, was one that met acclaim and infamy. Nowadays, Sasco spends most of his time in his home studio, or building his backyard Garden as per his YouTube show Modern Builder. A stark contrast to the Assassin of old and yet Sasco reminds us that he “still a kill dem”.

His upcoming release is an EP, expected on November 19, that furthers the story of this continued growth with a cursory glance into his past laden with lyrical slaughter. DancehallMag sat down with the legend to discuss his latest release and other musings.

This is an extended play, but it’s the first body of music since Hope River in 2018. First of all, how do you feel about Hope River in retrospect, how has it aged for you? 

At this stage in my development, I aim to create music that is sincere more than anything, and like they say the truth is always the truth so it’s gonna age as well as you can hope.

Because like I say, Hope River is talking about a lot of my experiences growing up along the Hope River. So it’s always going to be like that. As a matter of fact, there is no aging, it’s just the truth.

Yeah even though it’s the most recent album, and it’s hard to even grade but–

No, go ahead and say it. Don’t fraid fi say it.

It’s definitely one of my personal favorites.

But then my bredrin. The main objective in music and anything is to always be improving and ascending. And so if I’m pursuing continuous improvement, it means that my last work better be my best work. I’m happy to hear that and I feel so too.

For many reasons. For me on the artiste side of things, Hope River has gotten the closest to what I’m trying to do with my music in terms of the tempo, texture and topic. The three Ts. So, what am I saying? How am I saying it? How are people going to receive it? Do I have a particular feel and sound? So I think Hope River has gotten me closer to what that is supposed to be. Working on this EP now, I was able to take what aspects I wanted to mirror from Hope River and add it to where I want to do something a little bit different.

I definitely got that from Hope River as well in terms of even texture, it feels alot more complex than just a beat and lyrics, there’s uniformity–

Yeah, so right where you’re sitting now Diamond Studios, that was the first project outside of this situation. One of the things that was key to building the studio was to have that place where you can really try things out and revisit things. Just to have a more integral role in the actual process and not just– usually I just sing my part and that’s most of where my input would be but the studio now, as you can see I’m here editing a song, which wouldn’t usually happen without this situation. You get to really pay attention and get involved in a more real way.

Does this EP mean that another album is on the way?

Yeah so I was prepared to add a few more tracks and let it be an album but Corona just throw off a lot of things and instead of just waiting for next year to drop an album, I said let me give my people something to gwaan hol a vibes with and then we think about the album when things are looking like it’s ready, or something that look like we can go out, meet with the people and share the work with them. 

Loco has been out for some time now so how long has this EP been in the making?

So yeah this should have been– we were thinking much earlier in the year we would have had a release but again covid and then I had to just reshuffle plans. 

Sasco vs Assassin seems very reflective and it sounds like you’re using a meditation on yourself to reason out and find understanding in what’s going on in dancehall right now with younger artists.

Well what’s going on in dancehall with younger artists, I have to tell you, has nothing to do with me.

I say that to say, I was born in the 80s and I remember falling in love with reggae and dancehall at that time. It seems to be a recurring thing where the previous generation thinking that the current generation is coming to screw things up or whatever. That was also the case with my generation, the generation before were saying; “a weh dem yute ya deal wid?” Even the name Assassin, the things that I was doing and saying at 16 when my career started, that’s not how I think or what I represent now. For me, I just appreciate the fact that you have a new generation that want to pursue the art form and I understand that where they are in their development, they have to represent that. Also, the audience that they are serving; dem and di audience haffi work out that. Mi nah get involved innna dat.

Yeah probably if you look back, the only thing that has changed is that the music has become more graphic.

But mi bredrin–alright so watch dis now. Once again, like I said, the artist and the audience haffi always reconcile wah dem a deal wid. If the audience nuh like weh yaw do, dem fling tings, or nuh play your music and nuh pay you nuh mind. So the fact that the content is getting more graphic while still getting acclaim and recognition means that society has gotten more graphic. Just so it go. So I’m not gonna be here fighting the youngsters, dem and the audience have to work out dat I have a responsibility to myself, my values and where I am in my development, to not follow them. That would be the big travesty.

With this project I’m representing my values, how I see the world, so I won’t be saying the same kind of things that I would be saying when I was seventeen. That’s just that. I embrace the yute dem and I hope for the opportunity to see them grow and if anyone cares to ask my opinion I give it to them sincerely and objectively. I’m here to offer whatever I can in my capacity to see the thing move forward, not to challenge them, beat dem down or judge dem, because as mi say di man dem have to represent where they are in their development. Also, we as the older generation and as a society have to acknowledge that what we see is what we have produced. 

So let’s talk about some of the people who helped to put the project together in terms of production.

Alright so producer wise, there is Toddla T, Tropkillaz, some yute from Brazil. There is Finatics out of the UK. There is my bredrin Riff Raff, and Teflon of course with Loco. A couple of the tracks Diamond Studios co-produced. 

Name 1-3 books that have greatly influenced your life.

The Secret and Angela’s Ashes.

How do you think this pandemic will be resolved? What’s the most realistic scenario where we are outside again, able to commune, and break bread ?

I would be the first to admit that I’m not going back to the way things used to– let’s say everything done a morning corona, everything done; I am not going to be going back to the exact way of doing things and I imagine that will be the same for a lot of people. A post corona life to me, is freedom of movement, freedom to assemble so we can party and hol a vibes. Dem say di cow nuh know di use a him tail; I think since we haven’t been together for such a long time; I would hope that people would appreciate it and don’t spoil the fun when it’s time to do so.