INTERVIEW : MIGHTY CROWN
Interview by : Benoit Georges
on Monday, October 10th 2005 - 13 580 views
The first "foreign" sound to win the World Clash trophy on the yardies' home turf, the Mighty Crown sound system from Yokohama has carved out a place in the ruthless world of international sounds. Mighty Crown is more than a sound system: for twelve years now a true driving force of the Japanese reggae scene, they also run a radio show, a fanzine, a clothing line and a label. Masta Simon, selector and founder of the sound, looks back on this Japanese phenomenon that has revolutionised the "clash business".
Reggaefrance / Can you tell us about the early days of Mighty Crown?
Mighty Crown / Masta Simon: We created the sound system in 1991 in Yokohama. We were friends passionate about reggae; we started playing in clubs and getting known through mix-tapes. Part of the crew left for New York some time later and settled in Brooklyn, to be as close as possible to the vibes of Jamaica. After building our speaker system, we clashed every sound in Japan to become the champions of Japan.
Were you already playing in New York at that time?
When we arrived in NYC, we started playing in a few clubs and various juggling sessions in Brooklyn, but at that time we weren't ready for international clashes. We still had a lot to learn from the big sounds we went to see in Brooklyn, notably at the memorable clashes at the Biltmore Ballroom.
After your unthinkable victory at World Clash 99 in Brooklyn, you'd have thought you had proved yourselves, but it was obviously only the beginning.....
It's true that winning our first international clash against a sound like Killamanjaro surprised a lot of people. It earned us respect but also a lot of criticism. That's when we were really able to show the quality of our sound system by going to clash every sound, on every continent, and we've done so since 99.
What is the first Jamaican dubplate you recorded? Which artists are your favourites in your dub-box?
Our first Jamaican dubplate was recorded in 1992 with Nicodemus in Brooklyn. We love all the Mighty Crown dubs, but, for example, some of our Jah Cure or Buju Banton ones have become anthems of our sound.
You played a 50 Cent dubplate at World Clash 2003. What are your hip hop references?
We've been listening to rap since the 80s, even before we listened to reggae. We respect old-school artists like Run DMC, Eric B & Rakim, Pubilc Enemy, KRS-One, and rappers like Nas, Notorious Big, Tupac, Jay-Z...
Speaking of which, how did you get into reggae?
We had friends from our town who hung out in reggae clubs. We were teenagers at the time and, like a lot of young people, we thought it was cool. So we ended up throwing our own nights.
How do you manage to play in the United States, Jamaica and Japan at the same time? How many of you are there in all?
Basically, we have selectors who play at the same time in different parts of the world. There are five of us: myself, Masta Simon, founder and MC of Mighty Crown, Sami-T (selector and MC), Super G (selector and MC). There's also Cojie in Japan, who plays foundations, and Ninja, who mixes in a juggling style.
How is the reggae scene doing in Japan?
The Japanese scene is still developing. Ten years ago reggae was very present, with big events like Japan Splash, but it fell away. We never stopped promoting the scene. Since our victory in 1999 it has exploded, and I think the scene is doing better and better.
You have been working with Japanese artists for a long time now. What are the projects?
We manage artists like Fireball and Papa B. We also have our own label, Lifestyle Records, and every time we release a track, it ends up in the Japanese top 30. We plan to devote a bit more time to our own productions, collaborating with foreign artists. We would also like to export ourselves to the United States, Europe and Jamaica. After 12 years of activity, we feel we are still growing, still learning. We hope that one day music will simply be about the music and not about where you come from. We want to promote top-level reggae so that it can be accepted everywhere.
How did your first stay in Jamaica go?
Our first trip to Jamaica didn't go very well. We stayed in the wrong hotel at the wrong time. It was a real culture shock: everywhere we went, people asked us for money just because we were Japanese. Everybody was trying to sell us something. We were thinking, “what is going on with these people?”. Over time we learned to understand Jamaican behaviour and now everything goes well: we generally go to Jamaica four to five times a year. We stay between a week and a month.
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