Skatta Burrell Says Don’t Blame Dancehall Artists For Violent Songs. Blame Producers.

Acclaimed Downsound Dancehall/Reggae music producer Cordell ‘Skatta’ Burrell is insisting that present-day Dancehall artists who are voicing gun songs with impunity, ought not to be blamed for their content and that the condemnation be placed squarely at the feet of irresponsible music producers.

Skatta said music producers are the ones who have the responsibility to provide guidance to the artists as to the lyrical content of the songs they are putting “out into the atmosphere”, but in many cases, they have failed the artists by keeping them one-dimensional.

The reckless attitude of some producers, he said, has resulted in artists coming under intense scrutiny and being berated by the public for their lyrics, with some even unwittingly having their careers stifled, even though they have the capacity to pen and record songs that have mainstream potential.

“A good producer knows what he wants and know how fi impart dat information to a artiste.  Some man gi artiste riddim an jus seh ‘duh weh yuh feel.  A good producer seh: ‘hear wha now, yuh si dah beat yah, it a talk to I dah way yah and yuh si through mi a di producer, mi waan yuh use your creativity fi spell out or sen out dis type a message’,” Skatta said in a his Instagram Live feed a few days ago.

“And dats what producers do and that is what is the problem with the music nowadays.  No one is actually producing music; dem just a gi artiste riddim and artist deejay anyting dem want and sen come gi dem and dem mix it off and seh dem a producer,” the Coolie Dance riddim’ producer added.

The Calabar High School old boy’s feed which was aimed at explaining why he had recruited upcoming artist Fully Bad, who is known for violence-laced songs, to voice on the first riddim he created since resuming music production late last year.

Skatta explained that after he sat the artist down and explained the caliber of songs he wanted on the riddim, the Cassava Piece native amazed him a week later with the song We Nah Smile Again whose lyrics were so conscious, that he immediately recognized it as a potential Dancehall anthem.

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“Mi shout him couple days ago and di man forward.  When di man forward wid dah song deh, mi couldn’t believe and mi seh: ‘Weh yuh fine dem words deh from yute?’ An di man seh ‘Skatta, mi guh study’ and mi seh why yuh did haffi study?’ and di man seh becaw nobaddy neva yet sit mi dung and tell mi seh  ‘yow, dis a weh mi waan from yuh.’  An mi realize seh yuh tell mi seh ‘yow, dis a weh mi waan from yuh.  It mek mi feel like seh mi fi challenge myself fi guh research,” Skatta explained.

“An di reason meck mi duh dah live yah a fi meck oonu know she oonu uh fi too pressure di yute dem weh a duh dem song nowadays and a duh bout bullet inna face an rifle dis an ray tay.  Oonu don’t pressure dem.  Because dem hav di ability fi duh odda music,” he cautioned.

Skatta surmised that many of the young artists without the proper guidance are doing violent songs to make ends meet, and, because they see violent lyrics being glorified, decide to take that approach, even though they have the ability to write songs with better content.

“But when somebody now, who is of influence forward an seh ‘yo, dis a weh mi want from yuh, an a dis mi a support from yuh, a man wi teck di time off.  But di producer dem naw reach out to di artiste dem an seh: ‘mi want a reality song’.  Which producer a guh sen a riddim to anyone a di 6IX dem now, seh mi ‘want a reality song’?  Which producer a go sen a riddim to Skillibeng now an seh: ‘mi want a song, a conscious song?’  None,” he argued.

“Stop blame di artist dem, becaw originally a producer dictate wha kind a music go out deh.  A producer, when a artist come a studio wid weh him have waan deejay and when him leave him a leave wid suppm totally different,” Skatta said.

Skatta also pointed out that even though he is a lover of Reggae music, he is not denying hardcore Dancehall, but was cognizant of the fact that a balance needs to be struck.

“So if a producer naw look inna himself and seh meck mi help create a balance, yuh is not a producer; yuh is somebody a weh a rape di music and rape di culture.  Becaw a producer is supposed to direct di artiste on what to deejay,” Skatta said.

“A artiste is like a chameleon.  A artiste can deejay any type a song.  Real artiste dem can do girl song; dem can duh gun song; dem can do reality song and so forth.   But these days no producer is challenging di artiste dem and seh ‘gimme a conscious song weh speak about yuh life and certain tings’; hardy,” he added.