He's the Prophet and him neva inna no illusion. One of the real heavyweights in Reggae Music. Nadine tried to find out, why the fire caan cool and talked with the man from St. Mary about women, Sodom and Gomorrha and the 'no' feud with Beenie Man.

Germaican Observer: You have been around for a long time, one of my earliest songs from you is 'Buggerin,' why the drastic change to the new Capleton 'Fire Bun' image?
Capleton: Well yuh know at one point in life yuh is a kid and growing up and yuh know yuh have kid changes and yuh reach maturity... is the same way in the music it all started from Dancehall and then it break to a different thing, which is more international which is the Reggae yuh understand weh mi a say, which is really the message. Dancehall a more of a style, pattern, a clash competition thing… Reggae is all about the message, keeping the roots of the music, so at one point you reach to a level where yuh haffi mek changes and yuh have to move from stage to stage, to the betterment of even yourself, humanity and even yuh people, yuh understand?

G.O.: In your own words what does 'Fire Bun' mean?
C.: Fire is all about being yourself, knowing who you are and knowing where you're coming from in order to know where you 're going… fire is all about stay focused and know what your goals are and reach out fi dem… fire is all about rastafari coming through the nyabinghi, meaning patience, faithfulness, self esteem, self reliance, self control, self employment.
So when we say 'fire' is not really on a destructive level like go out there and light the place or catch someone a fire no, fire is all about being yourself and knowing who you are, stand up for what you believe in… don't accept the stupidness, don't stoop to the limitation in Babylon… analyse for yourself, calculate for yourself, run your own survey and find your own truth yuh know weh mi a say…. is not everything that you get out there you must accept and say yes it is all good, yuh understand.
Yeah, so, just like a man will say what is good for him is bad for you and what is life to him is death to a next man so is all about being yourself and know who you are… nothing but ourself can free our mind.
Fire, which ever level yuh look pan the fire from then, fire is really the main source of life. If people wanna get evil like, people wanna being ridiculous or act like they don't understand or acknowledge what you're really saying cause any level that you going to see the fire pan, then fire is the ultimate.
If we see fire from a biological point of view then human beings species depend on certain amount of fire, because The Bible tells us that if a woman's body don't consist of certain heat or body temperature she can't conceive a child, that means none of us wouldn't be here.
If we see it from a geographical aspect, then the earth itself will be emergerd from the Icreator or The Creator… we talking about volcanic activity, we a deal with lava, we talking about the hottest element. If we see it from a biblical point of view Jah say him nah return with no water, it's brimstone and fire… Moses saw Jah in a burning bush… the prophet Isaiah caught up in a chariot of fire… naturally the sun is the hottest element to rise up in the morning, if no sun no shine, no rain no fall, no plant no grow we no have no energy fi humanity. So fire is still the ultimate whichever level you wanna take it from.

G.O.: From just listening to you I know that you are very educated, not the type from just reading books and going to school, but you think a lot, how did you become the person that you are?
C.: Just being myself, yuh know what I mean and just trying to live by the natural aspect of life, because whatever nature teaches you then it has to be reality, it can't be no illusion. Everthing in life projects its own energy, it's only if you want to get misled or if you want to fall prey to whatever babylon infiltrate or expose to destroy you pan a destructive level, yuh know wey mi a say, whichever way whether physically, mentally or spiritually whatever way they can get to yuh, yuh understand… so we have to read between the line so we can know what is above the line, around the line and what is between the line, what is beyond the line, what is beside the line and what is left behind the line, yuh know what I'm saying.
Mi just keep it real, mi just keep it positive, is two force create the world the power of thoughts and the breath of life. The power of thoughts is the thinking ability, I call it
'the inner man' and the breath of life is really the words verbally speaking… for instance The Almight created the earth and him neva just get up and create the earth so, He did have to think about the earth, the earth had to be premeditated with the power of thought and then He said "let there be earth," with the breath of life.
The way how we think and how we feel that is our emotion and we do create our physical experiences with the way how we think and how we feel… we have to know how we think and how we speak because whenever the word transfer and go out there, the word take on to itself flesh and that manifest and that create life so. So we have to know how we think and how we speak because if we think positive and speak positive we a go see positiveness in fulfillment then, if we speak of negative things that's what's gonna happen or if we meditate of evil, evil is gonna befell us… we have to just keep it positive and keep it real.

G.O.: Do you write your own songs, and are the songs that you sing a part of your daily life?
C.: Well, definitely yeah, my songs is like what I see in front of my eyes, that's why them so real and so natural and that's why they durable yuh know weh mi a say it have longevity and people always wanna hear it because it's the strength.

G.O.: Are you somebody who is easy to get along with?
C.: Most definitely, the humility have to up there yuh understand…

G.O.: So if somebody was to come to you with like painted nails, false hair and things like that, do you judge them from their outside aspect of looking or from the things they say?
C.: Well, everyone have their own art and their own mind and their own meditation to do what they wanna do, yuh understand… it's up to you to know what is right and what is wrong, what is false is false, what is real is real, it is right in front of your eyes, it's up to you to accept it. We nah go judge people by the hair or what dem wear, it's all about the heart and from yuh have a clean heart yuh will see The Most High.

G.O.: Do you think that ganja should be legalised in Jamaica?
C.: Most definitely, some people see it maybe not because it may drop the value or some people feel say it will be more better… ganja no fi legalise just inna Jamaica, ganja fi legalise all over the world. When it even legalise it will still hold its standard, yuh know weh mi a say.

G.O.: Do you think that the women in Jamaica are treated with the respect they deserve, because when you listen to songs and how they sing about them…?
C.: Not only women in Jamaica, women all over the world… even through The Bible women don't get a certain ratings, she cannot go on the altar, she cannot do this, she cannot do that… that's why the world never like Haile Selassie because Haile Selassie crown the empress beside him 1930 and show that this is the way the world should be, is a man and a woman come together and make everything happen fi humanity, mother and father and child… anytime we try go roun' that it a go lick up, because anything wey a divide or a defile nature or against humanity or against The Almighty then is destruction and we don' want anymore Sodom and Gomorrha roun' here, yuh understand. A righteousness we a deal with to the fullest fi di youth dem, fi the betterment a humanity… humanly, not just my people dem roun' my side or my corner, me a talk bout universal, globally.

G.O.: Speaking of Sodom and Gomorrha, most people here in Germany can't understand why Jamaicans are so against homosexuality, can you explain it to them?
C.: Well, obviously we are not exposed to certain things and we weren't grown up a certain way even though Babylon try to force it in through TV, yuh know weh mi a say… in a our side of the earth where we grow we don't know bout certain things, we know bout the rooster and the hen and is that we live by, we live by nature and whatever nature say. Then the Bible, Leviticus 20, verse 13 is there to prove, it is in The Bible and these people live by The Bible and The Bible say this is wrong, yuh have The Bible as a guideline and yuh read it everyday in terms of guidance. So if it says that is wrong, then it is wrong.

G.O.: Is there really a feud between you and Beenie Man?
C.: We don't really have a feud, but Jah say 'blessed is the man who walketh in the counsel of the Almighty nor standeth in the way of sinners'… if someone is trying to draw yuh out and trying to confuse yuh and trying to cause anymosity and verbal controversion, then yuh have to stay wide from such person if yuh want any betterment fi di music in terms of the competition and artiste a fight against artiste and man a tell man to do all kind of things wid dem mother and the whole lot a derogatives and the looting, fighting against each other… cause that's what they teach us that we must fight against each other and I'm not being a part of that and people all over the world know that most of the things that he come on the national TV, national radio and in the newspaper and say these things people the four corners of the earth know that nothing don't even go like that, he do these things to get hype and gain popularity and get fame, that's how he is and I wasn' t encouraging it.
No one ever heard Capleton call Beenie Man name on a stage or in my music or say anything about Beenie Man no where in the world, so who is the aggressor, I wanna ask the people.

G.O.: You recently donated a million Jamaican dollars to a school in the community that you were born, have you made other donations and are you invoved in charities?
C.: A lot of charities, yuh know weh mi a say, most of them no really get publicised still… I always give to charities and I always help people the four corners of the earth, whether shelter, education or food which ever way I can help them I will always do it and that's why The Almighty really restore the strength and the blessing… give I and I the energy and the courage to really carry on to motivate the youth dem and uplift the works fi mek a better way fi humanity.

G.O.: You met with Jamaica's Prime Minister, how do you feel about the type of politics that is practised there?
C.: This politics thing is not only Jamaica, this thing is a universal thing, politics is to divide the people and ask them to fight against each other because if the people get too collective they gonna get too strong and they gonna realise and they gonna acknowledge, they gonna know what time it is… Babylon don't really need that, they want the people to fight against each other, they encourage murder amongst themselves, they don't really care if you kill off yuh sister and yuh brother they love that. Crime never decline, the biggest investment throught the world is crime, everyday they will have rumours of war and people fighting against each other, because that is the way how they design it to be… they neva listen to Haile Selassie fi mek dem know say equal rights and justice for all no matter who yuh be, no matter what colour. The system force you to give up, is up to you to know well I have t o hold my faith, I have to stay focused, I have to know what my goals are and I have to reach out for them.

G.O.: When you perform on stage your performance is always so energetic and exciting…
C.: Well, when I perform is a message I'm sending across and I mek sure the people dem get it and have a good time. The energy is just there and mi caan really explain it.

G.O.: You recorded a song with german SingJay Gentleman for his album, tell me about that…
C.: It was all natural yuh nuh, we just inna the studio and we just vibe and it happen real… music is so authentic that it is the mystic that just blow through the wind weh yuh have to just listen clearly and carefully and then yuh will just hear yuh nuh… it wasn't complicated, it wasn't no if and but, nor no push and shove, it was just natural vibes.
Not because through is a white man yuh know weh mi a say it was all real, everything was great… everything was right and the studio was overwhelmed with joy, just righteousness to the fullest yuh know weh mi a say… a even more joy fi even see a white man a bun di fire, fi show humanity say the fire no really partial, it unpartial, yuh understand.

G.O.: What can you tell us about your latest album Still Blazin?
C.: Well it's all good, it's all more blessing and more love… just mek the people dem know it's all about Still Blazin, this album is all about the Roots, it's all about live instruments, it's all about yuh know weh mi a say maintaining the real vibes in the music. I just want the people dem go out and support it, it's all about upliftment in terms of the people always, it's all about the woman dem same way, love and encouragement to humanity… it's all about the fire because it name Still Blazin, it never cease, it never stop, more fire it caan cool.. more fire still blazin alright.

G.O.: Thanks Capleton, it was a pleasure…
C.: Yeah mi sistren, love and bless.

Nadine Reid
G.O. Crew Leipzig/SN., Germany

Image source: www.vpcapleton.com

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