Amlak RedSquare: Family Man, Free Thinker, Versatile Messenger
Amlak RedSquare is a man on a mission: to be as much a formidable force in reggae & dancehall as an example of excellence.
The rising act, whose real name is Omar Gordon, caught up with DancehallMag to discuss his 2021 trajectory and everything that’s led him to this point. Very few people can boast that they grew up in the same household with reggae icon Spragga Benz or that they look up to him as a “father”. The veteran’s nephew talked to us about his uncle’s guidance, Rastafari’s influence as well as being shaped by the deeply-rooted RedSquare label.
These days, Amlak is promoting his buzzing “semi-conscious” track Same Thing crafted by Grammy-winning producer Delly Ranx and is gearing up for season 4 of his music and marriage podcast with his partner of 19 years, Nickeeta Gordon. In this interview, edited and condensed for clarity, find out more from the family man, free thinker, and versatile messenger.
RedSquare is the name of the label/crew, but can you tell us the meaning behind your full name?
‘Amlak’ is actually Amharic and it means ‘God’. I chose the name Amlak because one day I was sitting in the basement in New York reasoning with my uncle telling him that I wanted to become an artist. At that time I was searching for Rastafari. With RedSquare being a dancehall column in the industry, I wanted to be different, I wanted to be more cultural with my music, you know, and not so hardcore. Reasoning with him on a deeper level, we were talking about creation and God and how we see God in ourselves as human beings and that’s how the name came up. I wanted to use Amlak as a representation of the Creator in the works that I do.
How would you describe your sound to someone who’s never heard your music before?
My sound is unorthodox, I’d say that’s probably the best description. It’s a mixture of singing with a lot of hardcore conscious lyrics, conscious dancehall is what I like to call it.
Name a few of your influences that have impacted your music.
Naturally Spragga, he’s my role model yuh know, the one I look up to. I really love Sizzla Kalonji also. Capleton, he’s one of a few artists that has that kinda vibe I love and try to emulate. Also, I Wayne. I listen to a lot of The Beatles also, my favourite is Michelle.
Your songs are laced with parables without sounding preachy (“Not every helping hand come with a simple plan/ it’s what you want but not really what you need” – My Experience), or conversational and fluid. Is this a conscious effort to be able to better relate to fans?
Yes it is, it is. Because if you can’t relate then people won’t be able to grasp what you’re trying to do with your music and your message. I feel like as an artist you have to be relatable but at the same time be in a space where a listener might feel like, this is a touch above the rest, you know what I mean. When you put your work out there in the forefront, you want people to be in awe of it, and also be able to relate to it. I write a lot and that’s what I really try to do when writing music.
To keep fans engaged with your elevated lyrical content?
Right, it’s important, and I try to differentiate myself in that way because you know as a ghetto youth, people expect to hear the jargon of the ghetto so to speak, so I have to try to bridge that gap and be a bit more.
Tell us about your new EP “Square Rooted”. How did you arrive at the intriguing title and what can fans expect?
So Square Rooted is basically my brainchild. It’s a reflection of where I am in life right now. I grew up in Dunkirk, Kingston 16. I no longer live in the community, but I’m still a part of the community in every way possible, in trying to show the youths that it is possible to transcend all the borders, boundaries and shackles that they put on you, or when they tell you that you can’t reach further than you are. The music on the EP will reflect that type of vibration. It will talk about things that happened, things that are happening and things to come. It’s me (Square) remaining rooted in everything that I do regardless of the fact I no longer live in the community.
On that note, what’s one thing the pandemic has taught you?
The pandemic has taught me that no matter what happens in this world, you have to keep going (laughs). Terrible things will happen, we cannot stop these things. There are people out there that are hell bent on destroying the world and yuh have the other side, people who are Heaven bent on making things better for everyone. So you cannot stop, you have to keep moving no matter what.
Are there any upcoming plans for the summer now that there’s an ease on lockdowns?
Yeah man, we have a track produced by Delly Ranx, Same Thing on the Ginger Beer Riddim.
We’re trying to use this as a catalyst to bring some awareness to what we’re doing in terms of dancehall because in the past I never really focused my energy on dancehall music. Most of the work I’ve done the last couple years has been centered in Europe. I’ve done a lot of touring in Europe, and that audience likes to hear conscious music. Usually in the summer it’s all about reggae festivals there, but now that there’s no shows or promotions, I decided that this summer we’re going to be in Jamaica so why not try to get inside the dancehall so to speak, and this song is the springboard. So that’s the plan for the summer (laughs).
Same Thing (Delly Ranx) and Run Di Place (Suku Ward) are more dancehall-oriented tracks, but even your rootsy songs have a hard-hitting flow. How do you bridge the gap between the two styles and do you prefer one over the other?
I have no special preference, I love the music overall. Coming from a dancehall school of music which is RedSquare [Productions], it’s not hard to do. A lot of people would think that would be my first preference coming from that, but it’s not that hard to do and I enjoy it. Dancehall music should have a balance, and we have to be able to strike a balance between painting a picture of what’s happening in society and glorification of the ills of society. That’s essentially what is happening now in dancehall. A lot of the artists are glorifying the wrong instead of painting a picture of what’s happening. My intent is to show that we can speak about certain things without glorifying it.
You’ve had a handful of notable performances so far, from Guyana (Guyana Music Festival) to Germany (Reggae In Wulf Festival). Is there anywhere you’re looking forward to performing especially once COVID is behind us?
I’ve been getting a lot of good traction in Ghana and I think that in the near future we’re definitely gonna be going to Ghana. We’re looking forward to that.
You grew up with a famous uncle, and your own family (wife and kids) makes regular cameos in your videos. What’s it like when work is a family affair?
It’s very important because I realised that if what we’re doing is not done as a unit, then it’s harder to prosper. Not saying it can’t, but it’s harder because we’re not moving together as one. As a man that has a family, as a king, we haffi mek sure that we family good.
The work is easier, and there’s the understanding of what is required to become successful in what we do. It takes togetherness and it’s a joy to have a family to enjoy your work that you’re doing. They like the whole energy and vibe of the whole scenario of our careers. Also it speaks to the fact that as a youth coming from the ghetto we can have families and still be succesful in what we do, you know what I mean?
Any final thoughts for your fans?
For the summer just be safe, you know, the pandemic is still going on. We have more pre-EP stuff coming, a few more tracks with Delly Ranx as well as one with local disc joc Fire Wayne so they can look out for that. Just reminding the people to be responsible and I hope they enjoy the summer with some Amlak RedSquare music.
Amlak RedSquare’s Square Rooted EP is set to be released later this year and will feature Spragga Benz, Warrior King, BittahSoSicka, and more. His first single of 2021, titled Realness with label mate Xyclone was met with largely positive reviews.