Jamaican-Born Hollywood Actor Marcos James Talks Dancehall
Jamaican-born Hollywood actor Marcos James says he hopes more dancehall and reggae acts use their influence more positively.
“I think Jamaican music has become a lot more globally accessible and with that, the image of dancehall has changed. It’s more polished and Americanized. More artists are signed internationally, so there’s somewhat of a hip hop element being incorporated into dancehall (music) now,” he told World Music Views.
“On the flip side, some artists here (in America) are taking to Dancehall as well so there’s kind of an exchange happening. Hopefully, we can focus on positive music for the youth. We need to be careful to foster a positive society and that’s how I hope Jamaican music will evolve.”
A past student of Calabar High School and the University of the West Indies, Mona, James has had his fair share of involvement in music and the performing arts. He was a part of Cathy Levy’s Little People, Teen Players Club, The Ashe Company, The University Dance Society and L’acadco.
These days, his main focus is acting, having played the role of White Rat in the highly successful HBO series Game of Thrones, and most recently starred in Lifetime Movie Network’s Keeping Up With The Joneses as William French alongside Vivica Fox. Filming in such a demanding industry can be rigorous and James revealed that on many occasions, he listened to local music to get himself in the right frame of mind.
“There was no break really on Game Of Thrones—it was super fast paced. Keeping Up With The Joneses was filmed in record time, so there wasn’t much break there either. I tend to listen to music before I get on set. I listen to a dancehall mix on Spotify or I’ll throw in some gospel. If I wanna get in the mood or hype, I listen to dancehall music. Sean Paul is always a good go to, as well as Bounty Killer or Beenie Man,” he explained.
“I listen to Konshens, Spice, Rvssian, Dexta Daps, Skillibeng and Shenseea. She (Shenseea) is in the media up here a lot. I love her song Blessed,” he added.
Even though he doesn’t reside in Jamaica, James is well aware of the new acts and those he expects to take the industry by storm.
“Skeng, 10Tik, Caano and Amanyea are super talented. I’m sure there are many more up and coming artists out there that I haven’t heard, but based on what I have, these people are definitely on the right path,” he said.
James added that his love for music began as far back as he could remember. His father was a huge fan of old-school music, so the actor grew up on Bob Marley and Beres Hammond. As an ode to his parents, who both passed away recently due to complications from the coronavirus, James performed Marley’s Redemption Song at their memorial service on November 19.
He said he listens to a mixture of old and new school reggae and dancehall because it reminds him of his roots.
“I just like the vibe and the hype. It reminds me of my parents. Any song that has a good beat or rhythm attracts me. People who grew up with me would know that I am really into music that brings great vibes,” James said.