Sean Paul On Why He Won’t Do Verzuz: “I Live In A Violent Society In Jamaica”
Dancehall titan Sean Paul has said it before, and is now saying it again, “I’m not up for Verzuz.”
This he told BBC1XTra’s radio host, Seani B, during a recent interview and this time around the Grammy Award-winning singer provided more explanation for his stance.
Paul’s resolve for not wanting to participate in the popular Verzuz battle came after the epic yet friendly standoff between Beenie Man and Bounty Killer last year in May . The frenzy the two Dancehall veterans created sparked interests among fans wanting to see a Sean Paul verzuz Shaggy battle.
While Shaggy was up for the challenge, Sean Paul declared he was not. The Temperature singer reportedly said in an interview with DJ Epps back in October that clashes had a negative influence on the genre and he even went as far as to refer to its longstanding existence as a “slavery mentality” within Dancehall culture.
It doesn’t seem Paul’s reasoning then has hindered the compulsions of the fans, talks are still buzzing around urging his entry onto the Verzuz stage. During this interview on BBC1Xtra, Seani B highlighted several tweets that attested he’d be an unbeatable opponent. Sean unfortunately was still not impressed neither convinced.
“I’m not up for Verzuz, I personally just don’t like the platform, I don’t like the name Verzuz. People say is not a clash and I get that but it reminds me of a clash and I’m not up into the clashing ting at all … I’m not scared of it, I just don’t agree with it,” he responded.
The Jamaican-born and raised, international superstar further went on to say that he lives in a violent society, and where music has a huge impact on the people, he doesn’t want to promote any form of negativity within the subculture, which he thinks Dancehall clashes do and ultimately what the Verzuz Battle represents in some way.
“I live in a violent society in Jamaica right now and the clash ting is to me something that is … I don’t want to say it’s causing the violence in society … but everybody is becoming complacent so my stance is to fight against that in general.”
Though he admitted to being a super fan of the biggest clashing show in Jamaica, Sting, he personally will never take any part. In essence, authentic Dancehall clashes are a cutthroat undertaking between deejays wanting to prove their lyrical wit and prowess through their music, which is typically consumed with deathly threats and acts of intimidation. In combination and in other instances, it is a competition to prove who is the better talent and has a more prolific catalog of music.
The Verzuz battles, by creators Swizz Beatz and Timbaland, were envisioned however to showpiece the latter and purely for the love and celebration of good music. Sean Paul knows this better than anyone but is evidently marred from what he explains is the first-hand experience with violence glorified in Dancehall clashes and the ever-present gun and ‘badman’ tunes that come with it.
“Being somebody who has buried my own friends because of violence, my own brothers because of a violent situation … I don’t even get the time to mourn you know. I go back into studios and hear the same lyrics, I go into the dance and I hear the same lyrics, it reminds me exactly of what happened to my bredrin – 9 shots! And I’ve had not just one person but many … this is my family here,” he said.
Paul clearly stated this as his personal reservation and what has become his stance on the clash culture but he is by no means saying Verzuz should discontinue their battles or Dancehall acts should stop clashing because he sees the positive aspects it has had on their careers.
Watch a clip from the interview here: