Queen Ifrica Weighs In On Sean Paul, Stonebwoy Comments: ‘Reggae Comes From Jamaica’

Queen Ifrica has rebuked Sean Paul and Stonebwoy for re-affirming comments on Sunday, that Reggae and Dancehall belongs to Africans and not Jamaica, and that Jamaicans are all Africans due to the slave trade.

According to the Rastafarian Reggae/Dancehall singjay, both Sean Paul and Stonebwoy ought to not only educate themselves about the history of people of African descent in Jamaica, but refrain from making utterances aimed at disregarding Jamaica as the origin of the genres.

“Sean Paul an Stonebwoy.  Stonebwoy an Sean Paul.  Reggae music, Dancehall music, is indigenous to Jamaica.   With no apologies to no one pan di face a di earth.  Reggae and Dancehall music is indigenous to Jamaica like Apple Valle is to Apple; Jamaica’s Africa’s Apple Valley,” the Yad to the East artist said.

“I don’t know what big rush this is to stramp out Jamaica an everything weh Jamaica represent even for Africa.  But I think you guys are ahead a yuhselves, what you think you know about Jamaica,” she added. 

In furthering her rebuke of the two men, Ifrica zoned in on Stonebwoy’s erroneous comments that “Jamaicans are all Africans by virtue of the slave trade”, reminding him that there were black people living on the island, who were not slaves, prior to the beginning of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade in 1526. 

“Stonebwoy, I have always loved you as an artiste, but you need to know your history a likkle betta babes.  Reggae music was born out of Jamaica.  And, Jamaica is not a slave island; Jamaica was not created out of slavery.  Slavery was added to Jamaica by unscrupulous Africans who linked up with the colonial slave trade to sell their brothers and sisters.  There were free black people living in Jamaica before slavery,” she stated.

“We all are black and we all come from Africa, as black people but Reggae music and Dancehall music come from Jamaica.  And Jamaica was not a slave plantation; slavery was added to Jamaica.  We need to get wi story togedda as black people and don’t fight amongst ourselves about our truth, but research and know about our truth for real as a people,” she scolded.

Added Ifrica: “So yes, we can agree that all black people come from Africa, but we must agree especially Africa – if you know anything about the Apartheid war, and anything about Zimbabwe.  We must agree that Jamaica has a lot of firsts.  There is a lot of firsts that happen in Jamaica, and Reggae music is one of those firsts.  Reggae music helped Africa to be as independent as Africa is today.” 

Contrary to Stonebwoy’s and Sean Paul’s claims, the official repository for Jamaican history, the Jamaica National Heritage Trust (JNHT), records, show that West Africans were living on the island as far back as 1513 from the Iberian Peninsula, long before the Trans-Atlantic slave trade began.

These Africans had arrived with the Spanish and the Portuguese and were cowboys, herders of cattle, pigs and horses, servants, as well as hunters. When the English invaded Jamaica in 1655, many of them fought with the Spanish and then fled to the mountains resisting the British for many years to maintain their freedom, and became known as Maroons. 

On YouTube, where Ifrica’s video was shared, many up-in-arms Jamaicans voiced their support for her comments, pointing out that Sean Paul had no authority to speak about matters concerning Africa and Africans as he is not black.

“Sean Paul will say anything to protect his pocket inno. Second Sean you not African in any way or black Jamaican so jog on. You have no talk here,” SN An said, while another added: “Sean Paul cyaan chat fi wi… stay outta African’s business”.

In an Instagram live last Sunday, Sean Paul had rushed to Stonebwoy’s defense after the Ghananian declared that Reggae doesn’t belong to “any Caribbean society from its core” and that it “belongs to Africans.”

Paul, in an Instagram Live session on Sunday with Stonebwoy, had blamed “the media” which he accused of misrepresenting the Ghanaian, whom he said, always pays homage to Jamaica.

In an interview with the Nigerian publication TheCable Lifestyle, Stonebwoy had been asked whether he had a viewpoint on the argument posited by “many people” that Reggae is not an African thing.  

“It doesn’t belong to any Caribbean society from its core. It belongs to Africans and we are enjoying it in diverse ways,” Stonebwoy had said.

During their Instagram Live, Sean Paul went on to tell Stonebwoy that he was not wrong in making the comments, because Reggae uses African drums in its beats, and “African sounds is what we use to build our music.”

“But I am here to just set the record straight: what you said is nothing wrong to me in terms of it is African,” he said.