Cops Lock Down Jahshii’s Performance On ‘Acoustic Live’

Scores of patrons, eager to celebrate their newfound freedom after the end of the Disaster Risk Management Act restrictions on movement, flocked to the ‘Acoustic Live’ show at the Bamboo Splash Lawn at 90 Barbican Road on March 31.

They were treated to a well-produced acoustic show which ended a bit prematurely when cops locked off the event during Jahshii’s set.

Jahshii closed the show with his rambunctious, off-the-wall energy which charged up the audience. Shirtless and defiant, he hit the stage with his catchphrase ‘Nawmal, ah lie?’ and the crowd echoed his call.

“Godfather, family over everything. We represent fi the go getter, ah fuss nation, don’t ramp with the ting,” he said.

He did his combative ‘Small Mind Caan Hold Down Big Artiste’.

“You nuh see Dre island, yu nuh see Junior Reid come out fi see me,” he told the audience, before he burst into a soulful rendition of ‘Energy’ which had members of the audience singing along.

The energetic Jahshii showed incredible stage presence when he invited the bass player to the front of the stage to “give dem piece ah the bad bass” and then deejayed brilliantly to the riveting bassline. He then did the same with the guitarist, showing his command of the stage.

When the police threatened to lock off the event, he did ‘Born Fighter’ a capella with the line ‘jah jah talk to me, dem just kill me friend/ah wah dem want do me…mi a born fighter, ah me dem caan bully’.

The forward was immediate and deafening. Then the cops appeared onstage, and the show ended.

Earlier in the evening, opening acts Bernie Brown and Jukebox entertained patrons with several Mighty Diamond songs in tribute to the memory of Tabby Diamond who was gunned down earlier this week. Classics such as ‘Have Mercy’, ‘Right Time’ and I Need a Roof got an enthusiastic response from the small crowd.

At about 11:27 p.m., Yaksta, dressed in a dapper green suit, emerged. Backed by his band, Skalawagz, he performed a highly entertaining set, showing that even though he was a Bush Lawd, he was en vogue with the going ons in the dancehall, even doing the ‘Dirt Bounce’ as he declared ‘St Mary ah my ground’.

He took time to big up politician Damian Crawford and “every independent entrepreneur”.

“You see me, ah me name Bush Lawd, say Bush,” he told the audience and they cheered him on with shouts of ‘bush bush”.

He had the crowd jamming with songs like ‘Hype and Bruk’, and showed off some bad skanking on a ska-influenced ‘Boogie Woogie’ song.

Yaksta’s ‘get-wealth-through-hard-work’ philosophies and common sense musings
found their mark with the audience. He even paused to educate the audience on generating wealth through Bitcoin and NFTs.

“Mi is not a stuck up yute, mi like batty rider and short dress. Invest in women, dem is an asset. Say Assets!” he said, before ending his set with his hits, ‘Assets’ and ‘Ambition’.

One patron commented: “The dog ah work man !”

As the moon sailed the midnight sky, Yaksta closed his set with ‘Outside’ and ‘Emotions’

Next up was 10Tik with his Tower band who hit the stage at 12:34 a.m.

“For all the killers who have passed and gone, and everybody who memba somebody who dem lost. You know how long dem lock we in, and we want forward. Wah dem know bout gangsters?” 10 Tik said as he walked up.

10Tik’s songs are grimy street narratives with a hard-edged morality that resonate well with young Jamaicans. As he did songs such as The Real Way and ‘Gangsta’, the excitement level in the venue built to a high.

Yaksta joined him to do their popular song, Freedom.

“Yaksta inna him green suit, mi waan see yu dweet youth,” 10 Tik freestyled to laughter from the audience.

As they performed Freedom, the crowd sang the words of the song verbatim.

He segued into ‘We Nuh Like War’ where sweet saxophone riffs accompanied lines like ‘we nuh like war, we like kill/we like see when enemy blood spill’.

10Tik closed his set with his breakthrough hit, Roll Deep, with a female singer belting out the words of the chorus in proper English while the band played a refrain from Phil Collins’ ‘Another Day in Paradise’. Great idea. Beautifully executed.

The event will be first of many live events at the venue as there will be live showcases once a month featuring artists such as Dre Island, Marcia Griffths and others in coming months. The event was organised by Godfather and production manager Natalee Jacas.