Bounty Killer Says Trap Not “Drowning Out” Dancehall, But Is Pleased It’s Making A Mark
In response to questions as to whether Trap songs are “drowning out” the Dancehall sound, Bounty Killer says that there was no competition, as the two genres are not in contention, but affirms that he is pleased that Trap artists have been blossoming.
“I don’t know nothing bout dat. Nothing nuh drown by trap. Trap have it own little audience. I have never seen a Trap song on the Billboard that stays. Skillibeng hit the Billboard likkle bit and it came off back. It never create much impact to say Trap watering down or drowning out nothing,” he stated during an interview with Television Jamaica’s Anthony Miller on The Entertainment Report which was aired on Friday night.
“Trap is trying to make its mark and leave it. Let it do its thing. But there is no competition with Dancehall and Trap. No. But Trap is doing its thing and it’s making its mark. Si Skillibeng guh a England guh deal wid it wicked; yuh si Skeng guh up and deal wid it wicked. Suh wi just hope it sustain and continue to grow and build. And wi haffi accept weh di yute dem feel fi do, despite how we feel about it. I feel this way about it, but I don’t have a problem with it,” the Coppershot artist said.
During the interview, Bounty was asked to elaborate on a recent Instagram post made by him, denouncing those Jamaicans he describes as “wannabees and “sellouts” in the music industry, who constantly elevate other genres above Reggae and Dancehall.
The Warlord doubled down on his stance that Jamaican artists who have never recorded any Dancehall or Reggae songs in their lives, ought not to be labeling themselves as “Dancehall artists”, but as of the genre which they exclusively voice under, for example, Trap.
“So I am saying the people who have never done Reggae, you can’t be a Jamaican artiste and you have no Reggae song. You can’t be a Jamaican artiste and you have no Dancehall songs. And den you say you a Dancehall artiste pon top a it. How dat work?” Bounty emphasized.
“Di type a music weh you do, you are dat type a artiste. Suh if you are doing Trap you are not Dancehall artiste. You are a Trap artiste – inna Dancehall,” he stressed.
He added: “I said artistes who is not doing our genre. Do I have more Hip Hop songs dan Reggae and Dancehall. My biggest song is a Hip Hop or a Pop song? Nope. My biggest songs are Dancehall and Reggae songs. And I do a few likkle Hip Hop and Pop songs because I am diverse and versatile.”
A few weeks ago, following the Grammy Awards, Bounty Killer had said that while foreigners embrace the country’s genres, some Jamaican musical ‘traitors’ were depriving children of the music of their forefathers and that he was hearing more Rap, Trap, Afrobeat and Drill than reggae in Jamaican parties.
“Wannabes, sell out Jamaicans helping extinct dancehall directly and indirectly no root without the roots. Learn that lunatics. Our kids aren’t into reggae but kids and younger over the world is studying and practicing our music and culture while we here forming fools. Still Soja album didn’t better than Gramps/Etana/Jessy since it was a reggae battle but it tells the plot; wise up Jamaicans🇯🇲💫🥳,” he added.
In another post, Bounty had also doubled down on his stance that he was not in support of the dilution of, or any attempts to replace authentic Dancehall music with Trap sounds.
“Unuh overlooked good music that is to inspire and encourages the younger ones to stay posted then unuh turned around complaining about the state of the music that’s why the youths them just a gwaan Chop It and Trap It👈🏿,” he had noted.