INTERVIEW : U-ROY
Interview & pictures : FX Rougeot
on Monday, October 22nd 2012 - 14 933 views
The years have no hold on Daddy U-Roy, who, at the height of his 70 springs, still relishes every second that comes his way, with humour and enthusiasm.
Whether he is talking about the people who accompanied him on the adventure of "Pray fi di People", his latest opus, or about himself, the Jonestown boy who ran off against his grandmother's advice to try his hand in the sound systems or… to play marbles with his mates.
We are talking about the career of a gentleman who is at the origin of hip-hop. No less.
Reggaefrance / You’ve released an incredible number of albums. How does ''Pray fi di people'' differ from the others?
U-Roy / The difference with this one… There are so many problems between people all over the world. It’s all about war, war, you see? So I’m doing this to show that we can have a lot more peace between people. People have to think differently instead of thinking about war. We’re all human beings, let’s not fight. Let’s be cool with each other.
What do you want to bear witness to through this album?
I’m just going to show people more love. We need that!
How were the singers on the album chosen? What guides your choice?
I thought about it a lot. And Music Action suggested that I choose Balik, from Danakil, Tiken Jah Fakoly and Professor, from Groundation. It was a very good idea, I really appreciated that. For the others, I sorted it out myself and contacted Marcia (Griffiths), Tarrus Riley, Chezidek, Horace Andy... Also Winsome Benjamin, who is one of my backing singers, Richie Robinson... There’s a variety in the choices we made.
 Il n'y a qu'une seule personne que j'ai réellement considérée comme mon père spirituel, et ce fut Count Machuki. 
Two tracks particularly struck us, the ones with Marcia Griffiths and Ernest Wilson. What can you tell us about these two singers and your collaborations with them?
I really like those two songs. OK, Marcia Griffiths is a good friend of mine. I called her, asked if she could do this for me, and she was immediately ready to do it! It’s the same with Ernest Wilson. At the start, I wanted to do it with Beres Hammond, because he has that “rough” voice, like Ernest. But Beres was on tour all the time, so I tried to do it with Ernest. And it was good, yes.
The track with Balik and Tiken Jah Fakoly must have a special flavour, we imagine…
We called it 3 The Hard Way'': three generations, three countries. It’s a unity of three voices, and I’m very happy about it. Balik is a very young French reggae singer, which is very good for the French audience! Same for Tiken Jah, an African man. Yeah… Different cultures, it was good to do this with them! I enjoyed it.
You were born in Jonestown. What kind of child were you?
My parents are Christian, so they raised me in a Christian culture, like going to church on Sundays, things like that. But I’m happy about all of that. Because as a growing child, I tried to stay out of trouble. Because when your parents have taught you things, you want to make an effort for them, all the time. It was a dangerous environment, but you have to know that you are responsible for everything you do. So you just have to try to be as good as you can!
I read that from a very young age you listened to Louis Jordan, Louis Prima, James Brown, Ruth Brown, Fats Domino, Rufus Thomas, Smiley Lewis…
Oh yes! All those guys, yeah!
Which one was your role model as a child?
Louis Jordan, I loved Louis Jordan! (He smiles) Because he sings and plays the saxophone. He has that way of talking jazz and the accent that goes with it, and I love him for that.
Would you have liked to be a – jazz – singer like them?
Yeah, I would have liked to. (He laughs.) I love jazz, believe me! I really liked the kind of music Louis Jordan and Louis Prima made. To this day, in fact.
Can you sing like a jazzman?
Not really. But that jazz phrasing, I can do it. I really like it. The blues style, I love it.
You grew up in Jonestown, so not far from Trenchtown, and from Peter, Bunny and Bob, who are roughly of your generation. What was your relationship with them?
I knew them really very well. We met through music, because Bob, Peter and Bunny worked for Studio One, while I worked for Treasure Isle, so for Duke Reid. Jamaica is a small country, so it’s easy to meet. In this business, you can bump into each other in the street, end up on the same stage or in the studio…
You recorded Trenchtown Rock (ed.: the title would be called Kingston 12 Shuffle) with Bob…
Bob came to see me and asked me to do Trenchtown Rock with him. It was great, it was an honour for me to do that with him, because that man had great talent, you know? It’s good to do something with someone who is a real professional in the business. (Proudly) Yeah, I did Trenchtown Rock with Mister Marley.
You started at 14 on the sound systems, in 1961, is that right?
Yeah, I had to ask my grandmother if I could go. Sometimes she refused, she said ''off you go, find a book and go and read''. But sometimes I dodged her and left the house!
What was your daily life like as a teenager?
I went to school, and after school, I played marbles with my friends. (He explains how to play, with gestures) You put the marble in the circle, and you shoot! If you miss, it’s the other player’s turn. But if, ''bam!'', I shoot and hit a marble, I carry on, until I miss.
Do you remember the first time you picked up the mic?
Yes, man. My first song was Dynamic Fashion Way, for Keith Hudson. After that came Earth Rightful Ruler, with me and Peter Tosh. Those were my first recordings. But my first time with a mic was on a sound system. I talked on the mic, announced the songs that were coming up, where the sound systems would be playing the following week…
You were inspired by the DJ Winston Count Machuki. What did you like about him?
(He adopts a mysterious tone.) You know, that guy is very intelligent. Everything he said, he said with timing. Proper timing. He didn’t get tangled up with the singer’s voice, or with the instruments. He came in just before, or just after. He felt the riddim, then he spoke.
You worked with Coxsone Dodd, Lee Perry, Keith Hudson… What influence did all those encounters have on you at the time?
They didn’t influence me much. Because I’ll tell you one thing: I had my own style, and my own ideas. There’s only one person I truly considered my spiritual father, and that was Count Machuki.
In 1970, you had three huge hits with Wake the Town, Rule the Nation and Wear You to the Ball, all three at the top of the charts simultaneously. How did you feel at that moment?
I’ll tell you: it was such a surprise, because at the time, DJ music wasn’t much recognised in my country. So, for a DJ, to have one, two and three songs in the top 10 at the same time… It was the best thing that had ever happened to me as a young man. It was just huge, incredible, believe me.
At the time, radio stations avoided playing DJs like you, Dennis Alcapone, Scotty, too much, is that right? Why?
That’s true, the radio stations didn’t want to play our songs much. But my producer, a very influential man, had his contacts with the radio people and so on… I was the best-selling artist at the time, so they had no choice… My songs were played everywhere, everywhere, everywhere. Yes, that’s how it happened.
When did you create your own sound system, Stur Gav? What does Stur Gav represent for you? Is it your baby?
I created Stur Gav in 1976. Stur Gav comes from the names of my first two sons. There’s a piece of the first name Sturdox, and the other one was called Gavin. I took the S-T-U-R and the G-A-V. First there was Ranking Joe and Jah Screw (selecta), then Charlie Chaplin, Josey Wales, Brigadier Jerry…
What do you feel when you’re on the mic?
I feel inspired by the Most High to do what I do and to know that so many people appreciate what I do and give me that esteem. It drives me in everything I do. The people – young people like you, and others too – are the main ones who allow me to stay alive in the music business.
How would you define the word DJ?
(He thinks) I think it’s an art. It’s an artistic part of the job, because you have to know what you’re doing. You have to be in rhythm on the riddim. I don’t know about the others, but I know for myself. I love being in rhythm with my music, with the riddim, and so on... Sometimes trying to follow what the singer says… For me, it’s an art, it’s my job, and I really love it.
You’re at the origin of hip-hop and...
(He cuts in.) You know what? Believe me, I have to thank people for letting that be known. Because people have made it known: that I am “the originator” of the hip-hop universe. Because there were no hip-hop artists at the time. They all came along well after the DJ phenomenon started in Jamaica. Many years later, there was hip-hop, rappers, and so on…
Do you listen to hip-hop?
I listen to a lot. I like Run DMC, Biggie Smalls (Notorious B.I.G.), Jay-Z, yeah… I listen to Public Enemy, I listen to all those guys, even if their style is different from mine. I listen to a lot of young people’s music, I like lots of different musical styles. I listen to Brandy, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Chris Brown, Ne-Yo… Yeah, I listen to all those singers…
Whitney Houston’s death must have hit you particularly hard…
I didn’t believe it when I was told. She was a great lady! I was in Miami when I heard. They found her dead in her bathtub... I said: ''What? How come? What happened?
Would you have liked to sing with her one day?
I would have loved that! I would have liked to meet that woman, but it never happened. And I still hope to meet Mariah Carey, I don’t know if it’s possible. These women are among my idols in this business. I bought their CDs, and I listened to them a lot, a lot.
You’re the father of 10 children. You once said, referring to the excesses of dancehall lyrics, ''Children live what they learn''. What do you teach your children?
(Serious and precise) To be conscious and cultured. Don’t encourage stupid things, don’t encourage violence, and things like that. That’s what I want my children to know. Be good to people. If people are good to you, give it back to them. If people love you, give that love back to them. I believe in that 150%! Because if someone loves you and shows you love, why make war on them? It makes no sense to me. That’s my way of seeing things, and I’ll never change it.
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