Asante Amen "Infinite Heights"
B-E-M: How would you define Healthy Living?
AA: Healthy living to me is when one tries to supply body, mind and spirit with the ‘food’ that they need so that they can function properly; or in accordance with the cosmic energy that flows around us. You see how we eat, how we think and how we worship; all affect how we connect with nature and with all other living things, especially our fellow human beings. So therefore it is imperative that we maintain a balance in life so that we can achieve the most out of life.
B-E-M: In what ways do you keep yourself healthy?
AA: Well I play football 3 times a week. I pray every day. I drink a sizeable portion of water along with fruit juices, nuts and grains, raisins and a lot of vegetables. I either read some spiritual literature or listen to one of my spiritual lectures I have on tape to feed my soul. I also listen to a lot of uplifting and spiritual music. I am a little undisciplined when it comes to my deep breathing exercises, but I do carry them out from time to time. And I also try to take part in positive conversations. I see all these factors as equally important to maintaining good, overall health, and so I try to adhere to this program. My friend Tony Rebel has been trying to get me to do some jogging with him in the mornings. I haven’t gotten around to it yet, but I am planning to also include this into my present lifestyle.
B-E-M: How long have you been doing music?
AA: I have been a singer for ages. I started singing at around 13 or 14 years old. At that time I was clueless to how the music business really worked, but just loved singing, so I hung out with friends who also liked to sing and ended up forming a group. The life of that group was short lived, but it was a great experience. I then moved onto to form a duo with a good friend I had then and we did a lot of school fetes and birthday parties together and we carried on for a while until that faded. I then joined what would have been my first real professional group in 1998 called ‘FORTUNATE’. This group lasted for about 2 and half years. The experience again was good but the chemistry that was necessary for a group to work together and stay together wasn’t there. So this forced me to become a solo act. I started pursuing a solo career in 2000. I then released my first single called ‘RAS TAFARI’S LOVE’ in 2002 on the One Drop Music Label. That song led to me doing a couple Caribbean shows with Tony Rebel and Queen Ifrica in the Bahamas in the summer of 2002 as well as some other big shows in Jamaica in that year. After having that experience, I realized that I still didn’t know a lot about the business of music, nor could I play an instrument nor did I know about the art of singing, so I tried to educate myself on the whole business of music and what music was really all about. I can honestly say that I am still trying to learn all that I can because the music industry is very complicated and there are a lot of people you have to know in order to get ahead in the field and also the tide swings every day in terms of what the people are expecting from us as artistes, so I will always be enrolled in ‘the school of music’ (if you get my drift!). So overall, I have been in the music for almost half my life, because I am 29 years old now. And I feel now as if I am just about ready for the big times – where music is concerned – so I spend a lot of time recording, performing, and writing and learning reggae music. I am finishing my debut album now and hopefully – JAH willing of course - I will get the right deal for it and it will be on the shelves of all the possible record stores later this year.
B-E-M: Who were and are your influences?
AA: Well I am a reggae singer now, but I never started out as a reggae singer, so there are quite a few. But from a RnB/pop perspective: Michael Jackson, Peabo Bryson, Marvin Gaye, Chicago, Anita Baker and Mariah Carey. From a Hip Hop Perspective: The King Of Hip Hop Tupac Shakur. Rest in peace brotha….Westside 4 life!!!!!!! Yeah I got a lot of love for 2pac. But from a reggae perspective, it is Garnett Silk. He was the individual that made me really pursue my spiritual goals through music. He was a Rastafarian and a very devout member of the faith. After experiencing his spirit/energy, I was totally taken with the Rastafari movement and sought to change my direction in music. Although my full conversion to reggae never took place until 2001, I had begun writing and singing reggae music while being in the groups I was a part of and always encouraging them to look at that kind of music more. But JAH knows all things best and so now HE has me singing HIS praise through the vehicle of reggae. Other reggae pioneers of merit who have also been an inspiration to me are Jacob Miller, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Luciano and Tony Rebel.
B-E-M: What is your ethnic background and how has your background influenced the music you produce?
AA: I am Afro-Caribbean, therefore by acknowledging my African ancestry and taking steps to be true to my ancestry by becoming a Rastafarian, it has had a most potent impact on my musical output. It has made me write songs to appeal to the down pressed individual, the low in spirit and the forsaken in mind individual. My music attempts to provide redemption, upliftment and empowerment to my people primarily but also to the world at large. Rastafari and the Teachings of His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie 1st (former Emperor of Ethiopia) have guided my footsteps along a path of Righteousness for HIS name’s sake through the vehicle of music. I doubt I would have achieved this otherwise.
B-E-M: What do you want the world and more specifically the black community to get out of your music?
AA: That there is always a way out. Life is filled with ups and downs, today we’re here and tomorrow we’re gone. Hence we have to do our best while we are here. We have to acknowledge the Most High in spirit and in truth in all that we do. It is not enough to chase down the fancy candies of the world at the expense of your own soul. So I try to strengthen my people in this regard through music. We as a people need to be less caught up on lust and worldly desires and selfishness and more on Divine love, communal living and spiritual cultivation. I want my music to be all this and more to them. They must be able to find a topic that is affecting them in my music and also a solution hopefully to their problems embedded within it. I want it to be a source of refuge for my people.
B-E-M: How do you view dancehall reggae and other forms of commercial music?
AA: Well, to be honest, dancehall music to me is not where we as a people need to be right now. Dancehall music and Rap/hip-hop music have an edgy side to them, and so does the contemporary R&B songs, and this is precisely what our people don’t need right now. The problems of the Caribbean community are also the problems of the Afro-American community i.e. sex, guns, drugs, mayhem, violence, prostitution, lack of education and low levels of spiritual reverence. These vices are slowly killing our people off. Hence I can’t side with the man/woman who is going to sing about how big their gun is and how he is going to kill somebody, or what a gun can do to you if you get shot by it; or with the man/woman who sings about sex in the most grotesque way and as if it is something that cannot have serious consequences and as if it is something you should just have every day like a vitamin tablet. Our people need to be taught the consequences of certain actions, the negatives of getting involved in certain behaviors and penalties for others. Dancehall music and these other forms of commercial music are not doing enough to address these issues. They are unfortunately helping to exacerbate the situation with their glorification and endorsement of certain practices and the endorsement generally of a lifestyle that is damaging to us as a people. And what is worse is that the practitioners of these genres don’t want to take responsibility for the role that they are playing in the corrupting of our people. I don’t for a second expect all of us to be singing about Righteousness, but at the same time we have to use our common sense and take a real hard look at what is happening around us. And if those who do hard-core dancehall, rap, hip-hop and R&B, cannot see that they are helping to send their people deeper into disillusionment, then we as a people have a very very serious epidemic on our hands that we might never find a cure for: the self-destruction of the African Diaspora.
B-E-M: What advice would you give aspiring artists?
AA: To understand the field their getting into. Acquire an instrument and learn the rudiments of music. For those who have an aspiration to sing, develop the vocals by getting training in addition to learning how to play an instrument. Try to know the business of music at even the basic level, so that you’re not at a loss as to what is happening around you when things begin to take off. But most of all BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. Maintaining confidence in your ability to succeed in the business can be difficult when there doesn’t seem to be a lot happening for you. But despite that, you have got to believe that it can happen. The more you doubt, the more that energy will get out there and be received by world and further help to stop your progress. I know just how difficult it is to not have support for your craft or have people show interest or faith in your ability or even give you a helping hand when they realise just how much potential you have. But it is for you to be your own biggest fan and visualize with your mind’s eye what it is you want, and never give up on that until it manifests. Oh, and please pray about it too, it would help.
B-E-M: What community service projects have you been involved in or what projects would you like see in your community?
AA: When I was an active member of the U.N.I.A (Universal Negro Improvement Association) founded by Marcus Garvey and the Marcus Garvey Movement (another organization), I was involved in a lot of community based projects for example, summer school teaching projects, tree planting, planning of public forums and concerts, the organizing of treats for handicapped children etc. However, in more recent times I have been a little dormant in that area as a result of pursuing my goals. I however do take part in interviews or panel discussions from time to time that are community based to help feed the mind of our people as well as to do performances for community events e.g. benefit concerts. I however, would love to see more free community mentorship programs being conducted, especially from an artist point of view, as it is obvious the sort of impact that we as artists have on the wider public; more specifically the youth. I would also like to see more community teaching programs going on so that those who cannot afford a mainstream education can still have a chance of acquiring some form of knowledge. That venture I know will take a lot of resources to keep afloat, but it is a necessary intervention. Finally, I think organizations such as the U.N.I.A should be in every community, as it could function as a catalyst for moulding the African Minds (both the mature and the young and impressionable one) around it into the kind of minds we as a nation of people are desperate for at this time. A movement such as that in every community could also be the body through which the suggestions I have mentioned can be channelled in order to give it more grounding within the community.
B-E-M: In what ways do you take care of the earth, for example: Do you recycle?
AA: Jamaica has a very poor recycling record. It is a concept that is catching on here, but it is slow in becoming a way of life. For myself I try to recycle some stuff (e.g. bottles) but my efforts could be greater. We care for the earth in other ways however, like not contributing to the burning of domestic rubbish (pollution); tree planting, walking/car-pooling rather than driving sometimes (reduce carbon monoxide emissions); and the minimal use of animal based products (I could be a lot tighter in this area, but for the most part we try). As a Rastafarian I don’t promote the killing of anything so I have a pro-life life stance. To be honest though, my only weakness in this area is fish (smile) I have a problem with getting over how good they taste, but other than that NO FLESH. Like everything else, there is more that I can do, and so as time progresses whatever else I see that needs improving in my life I will do so.
B-E-M: What is your favorite part about being an artist?
A: The response of the audience. When you can leave a stage and have people come up to you and tell you they enjoyed your performance, or they like your voice or that they really felt something from you while you were performing, that makes my day. That is reward enough most times. I sing and perform for the soul purpose of fulfilling My Father’s (JAH) will. That is my main reason. I love JAH with all my heart, and so when I see people respond in the positive to me, I have to give praises because that was the reason why I went up there in the first place: to share the message and joy of my Father with my people. Also, I love when I write a good song. When I have a song that I really feel JAH has inspired and I go to record it and the response is good, I feel good. It gives me a rush.
B-E-M: What is the most difficult part about being an artist?
AA: Keeping the faith. When you’re still trying to become a house-hold name (like me) you always have to find ways of keeping your head up. Whether it is from a financial point of view, spiritual or motivational stand point etc. it is very difficult to maintain that psychological balance sometimes. On the other hand, when you begin to get the attention and success you were looking for then there is the issue of remaining true to your original objectives, your faith and yourself. On either side of the fence there are obstacles to face, but I believe the key is to never leave thy God behind, always keep Him/Her in front and one should be able to ride the rough seas.
B-E-M: What are some of your plans for the future?
AA: Finish the album. Having a finished product is essential to any man’s/woman’s craft, so we need to complete that right now and JAH willing we will get the support to do so and also get a deal for the album. Continue recording more quality singles and songs generally for my people to receive strength from. Continue being a Messenger for JAH and adhering to the principle of Spiritual discernment i.e. always seeking to understand thy Creator’s nature and will, as well as a plethora of other things all to do with the development of my craft and my faith and myself. Give thanks.
AA: Healthy living to me is when one tries to supply body, mind and spirit with the ‘food’ that they need so that they can function properly; or in accordance with the cosmic energy that flows around us. You see how we eat, how we think and how we worship; all affect how we connect with nature and with all other living things, especially our fellow human beings. So therefore it is imperative that we maintain a balance in life so that we can achieve the most out of life.
B-E-M: In what ways do you keep yourself healthy?
AA: Well I play football 3 times a week. I pray every day. I drink a sizeable portion of water along with fruit juices, nuts and grains, raisins and a lot of vegetables. I either read some spiritual literature or listen to one of my spiritual lectures I have on tape to feed my soul. I also listen to a lot of uplifting and spiritual music. I am a little undisciplined when it comes to my deep breathing exercises, but I do carry them out from time to time. And I also try to take part in positive conversations. I see all these factors as equally important to maintaining good, overall health, and so I try to adhere to this program. My friend Tony Rebel has been trying to get me to do some jogging with him in the mornings. I haven’t gotten around to it yet, but I am planning to also include this into my present lifestyle.
B-E-M: How long have you been doing music?
AA: I have been a singer for ages. I started singing at around 13 or 14 years old. At that time I was clueless to how the music business really worked, but just loved singing, so I hung out with friends who also liked to sing and ended up forming a group. The life of that group was short lived, but it was a great experience. I then moved onto to form a duo with a good friend I had then and we did a lot of school fetes and birthday parties together and we carried on for a while until that faded. I then joined what would have been my first real professional group in 1998 called ‘FORTUNATE’. This group lasted for about 2 and half years. The experience again was good but the chemistry that was necessary for a group to work together and stay together wasn’t there. So this forced me to become a solo act. I started pursuing a solo career in 2000. I then released my first single called ‘RAS TAFARI’S LOVE’ in 2002 on the One Drop Music Label. That song led to me doing a couple Caribbean shows with Tony Rebel and Queen Ifrica in the Bahamas in the summer of 2002 as well as some other big shows in Jamaica in that year. After having that experience, I realized that I still didn’t know a lot about the business of music, nor could I play an instrument nor did I know about the art of singing, so I tried to educate myself on the whole business of music and what music was really all about. I can honestly say that I am still trying to learn all that I can because the music industry is very complicated and there are a lot of people you have to know in order to get ahead in the field and also the tide swings every day in terms of what the people are expecting from us as artistes, so I will always be enrolled in ‘the school of music’ (if you get my drift!). So overall, I have been in the music for almost half my life, because I am 29 years old now. And I feel now as if I am just about ready for the big times – where music is concerned – so I spend a lot of time recording, performing, and writing and learning reggae music. I am finishing my debut album now and hopefully – JAH willing of course - I will get the right deal for it and it will be on the shelves of all the possible record stores later this year.
B-E-M: Who were and are your influences?
AA: Well I am a reggae singer now, but I never started out as a reggae singer, so there are quite a few. But from a RnB/pop perspective: Michael Jackson, Peabo Bryson, Marvin Gaye, Chicago, Anita Baker and Mariah Carey. From a Hip Hop Perspective: The King Of Hip Hop Tupac Shakur. Rest in peace brotha….Westside 4 life!!!!!!! Yeah I got a lot of love for 2pac. But from a reggae perspective, it is Garnett Silk. He was the individual that made me really pursue my spiritual goals through music. He was a Rastafarian and a very devout member of the faith. After experiencing his spirit/energy, I was totally taken with the Rastafari movement and sought to change my direction in music. Although my full conversion to reggae never took place until 2001, I had begun writing and singing reggae music while being in the groups I was a part of and always encouraging them to look at that kind of music more. But JAH knows all things best and so now HE has me singing HIS praise through the vehicle of reggae. Other reggae pioneers of merit who have also been an inspiration to me are Jacob Miller, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Luciano and Tony Rebel.
B-E-M: What is your ethnic background and how has your background influenced the music you produce?
AA: I am Afro-Caribbean, therefore by acknowledging my African ancestry and taking steps to be true to my ancestry by becoming a Rastafarian, it has had a most potent impact on my musical output. It has made me write songs to appeal to the down pressed individual, the low in spirit and the forsaken in mind individual. My music attempts to provide redemption, upliftment and empowerment to my people primarily but also to the world at large. Rastafari and the Teachings of His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie 1st (former Emperor of Ethiopia) have guided my footsteps along a path of Righteousness for HIS name’s sake through the vehicle of music. I doubt I would have achieved this otherwise.
B-E-M: What do you want the world and more specifically the black community to get out of your music?
AA: That there is always a way out. Life is filled with ups and downs, today we’re here and tomorrow we’re gone. Hence we have to do our best while we are here. We have to acknowledge the Most High in spirit and in truth in all that we do. It is not enough to chase down the fancy candies of the world at the expense of your own soul. So I try to strengthen my people in this regard through music. We as a people need to be less caught up on lust and worldly desires and selfishness and more on Divine love, communal living and spiritual cultivation. I want my music to be all this and more to them. They must be able to find a topic that is affecting them in my music and also a solution hopefully to their problems embedded within it. I want it to be a source of refuge for my people.
B-E-M: How do you view dancehall reggae and other forms of commercial music?
AA: Well, to be honest, dancehall music to me is not where we as a people need to be right now. Dancehall music and Rap/hip-hop music have an edgy side to them, and so does the contemporary R&B songs, and this is precisely what our people don’t need right now. The problems of the Caribbean community are also the problems of the Afro-American community i.e. sex, guns, drugs, mayhem, violence, prostitution, lack of education and low levels of spiritual reverence. These vices are slowly killing our people off. Hence I can’t side with the man/woman who is going to sing about how big their gun is and how he is going to kill somebody, or what a gun can do to you if you get shot by it; or with the man/woman who sings about sex in the most grotesque way and as if it is something that cannot have serious consequences and as if it is something you should just have every day like a vitamin tablet. Our people need to be taught the consequences of certain actions, the negatives of getting involved in certain behaviors and penalties for others. Dancehall music and these other forms of commercial music are not doing enough to address these issues. They are unfortunately helping to exacerbate the situation with their glorification and endorsement of certain practices and the endorsement generally of a lifestyle that is damaging to us as a people. And what is worse is that the practitioners of these genres don’t want to take responsibility for the role that they are playing in the corrupting of our people. I don’t for a second expect all of us to be singing about Righteousness, but at the same time we have to use our common sense and take a real hard look at what is happening around us. And if those who do hard-core dancehall, rap, hip-hop and R&B, cannot see that they are helping to send their people deeper into disillusionment, then we as a people have a very very serious epidemic on our hands that we might never find a cure for: the self-destruction of the African Diaspora.
B-E-M: What advice would you give aspiring artists?
AA: To understand the field their getting into. Acquire an instrument and learn the rudiments of music. For those who have an aspiration to sing, develop the vocals by getting training in addition to learning how to play an instrument. Try to know the business of music at even the basic level, so that you’re not at a loss as to what is happening around you when things begin to take off. But most of all BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. Maintaining confidence in your ability to succeed in the business can be difficult when there doesn’t seem to be a lot happening for you. But despite that, you have got to believe that it can happen. The more you doubt, the more that energy will get out there and be received by world and further help to stop your progress. I know just how difficult it is to not have support for your craft or have people show interest or faith in your ability or even give you a helping hand when they realise just how much potential you have. But it is for you to be your own biggest fan and visualize with your mind’s eye what it is you want, and never give up on that until it manifests. Oh, and please pray about it too, it would help.
B-E-M: What community service projects have you been involved in or what projects would you like see in your community?
AA: When I was an active member of the U.N.I.A (Universal Negro Improvement Association) founded by Marcus Garvey and the Marcus Garvey Movement (another organization), I was involved in a lot of community based projects for example, summer school teaching projects, tree planting, planning of public forums and concerts, the organizing of treats for handicapped children etc. However, in more recent times I have been a little dormant in that area as a result of pursuing my goals. I however do take part in interviews or panel discussions from time to time that are community based to help feed the mind of our people as well as to do performances for community events e.g. benefit concerts. I however, would love to see more free community mentorship programs being conducted, especially from an artist point of view, as it is obvious the sort of impact that we as artists have on the wider public; more specifically the youth. I would also like to see more community teaching programs going on so that those who cannot afford a mainstream education can still have a chance of acquiring some form of knowledge. That venture I know will take a lot of resources to keep afloat, but it is a necessary intervention. Finally, I think organizations such as the U.N.I.A should be in every community, as it could function as a catalyst for moulding the African Minds (both the mature and the young and impressionable one) around it into the kind of minds we as a nation of people are desperate for at this time. A movement such as that in every community could also be the body through which the suggestions I have mentioned can be channelled in order to give it more grounding within the community.
B-E-M: In what ways do you take care of the earth, for example: Do you recycle?
AA: Jamaica has a very poor recycling record. It is a concept that is catching on here, but it is slow in becoming a way of life. For myself I try to recycle some stuff (e.g. bottles) but my efforts could be greater. We care for the earth in other ways however, like not contributing to the burning of domestic rubbish (pollution); tree planting, walking/car-pooling rather than driving sometimes (reduce carbon monoxide emissions); and the minimal use of animal based products (I could be a lot tighter in this area, but for the most part we try). As a Rastafarian I don’t promote the killing of anything so I have a pro-life life stance. To be honest though, my only weakness in this area is fish (smile) I have a problem with getting over how good they taste, but other than that NO FLESH. Like everything else, there is more that I can do, and so as time progresses whatever else I see that needs improving in my life I will do so.
B-E-M: What is your favorite part about being an artist?
A: The response of the audience. When you can leave a stage and have people come up to you and tell you they enjoyed your performance, or they like your voice or that they really felt something from you while you were performing, that makes my day. That is reward enough most times. I sing and perform for the soul purpose of fulfilling My Father’s (JAH) will. That is my main reason. I love JAH with all my heart, and so when I see people respond in the positive to me, I have to give praises because that was the reason why I went up there in the first place: to share the message and joy of my Father with my people. Also, I love when I write a good song. When I have a song that I really feel JAH has inspired and I go to record it and the response is good, I feel good. It gives me a rush.
B-E-M: What is the most difficult part about being an artist?
AA: Keeping the faith. When you’re still trying to become a house-hold name (like me) you always have to find ways of keeping your head up. Whether it is from a financial point of view, spiritual or motivational stand point etc. it is very difficult to maintain that psychological balance sometimes. On the other hand, when you begin to get the attention and success you were looking for then there is the issue of remaining true to your original objectives, your faith and yourself. On either side of the fence there are obstacles to face, but I believe the key is to never leave thy God behind, always keep Him/Her in front and one should be able to ride the rough seas.
B-E-M: What are some of your plans for the future?
AA: Finish the album. Having a finished product is essential to any man’s/woman’s craft, so we need to complete that right now and JAH willing we will get the support to do so and also get a deal for the album. Continue recording more quality singles and songs generally for my people to receive strength from. Continue being a Messenger for JAH and adhering to the principle of Spiritual discernment i.e. always seeking to understand thy Creator’s nature and will, as well as a plethora of other things all to do with the development of my craft and my faith and myself. Give thanks.
