With Beenie Man being dropped from Virgin Records, MTV shutting down its Caribbean channel Tempo, and reggae superstars like Sean Paul momentarily absent from the U.S. mainstream things don’t look too bright for a new reggae/dancehall artist trying to  breakthrough on the international scene.  Yet, that is just what Busy Signal intends to do and he’s already making huge strides.

After rising to prominence as a member of Bounty Killer’s Alliance Crew and building his name over the past 4 years with popular singles and collaborations, Busy Signal appears is fully coming into his own with his new album, Loaded.

Sixshot.com spoke with the rising international star about growing up in the church, why he hates riddims, dancehall being used as a scapegoat for Jamaica’s ills, Barack Obama, and more.

Sixshot.com:  What was it like growing up as part of the church choir?  How did that influence you and your music?

Busy Signal:  It gave me a head start with the microphone in my hand since I was able to hear words through my mouth and come through the speaker.  So I got to give thanks for that and to my mother.  She really groomed me like that and bring me to the church. 

Your browser does not support inline frames or is currently configured not to display inline frames. >Sixshot.com:  Did the religious aspect stick with you?  Do you identify now as a Christian?

Busy Signal:  I’m not a Christian but my mother is a Christian.  I am not but I go to church and I believe in God.  I read and keep up with what’s going on and prayer and everything.  So I go and give thanks.

Sixshot.com:  You’re part of Bounty Killer’s alliance crew.  What’s the most relevant advice he’s given you?

Busy Signal:  The most relevant advice he’s given me is to keep focus; if I do music then I do music.  I don't lose the focus and try to do something else.  He also talked to me about being a no-show and he tells me to have respect for my job.  I'm the only one that can go and be myself and represent for me.  So he told me to take my job serious, be focused, and deliver.

Sixshot.com:  Recently Beenie Man was dropped from Virgin Records, MTV cut off the Tempo channel for the Caribbean, and so it seems to be hard times for reggae music.  Do you feel that sense of pressure?

Busy Signal:  It’s definitely hard cause we need the exposure and we need the highlights.  We need to be publicly highlighted around the world.

Sixshot.com:  Do you feel pressure to represent the music and continue the track record of success of Sean Paul and Damien Marley?

Busy Signal:  It’s hard but with you guys and people around the world that listens to dancehall music we will do it.  We just need that exposure and we have to keep doing good music—that’s the key.

Sixshot.com:  I read that you prefer not to jump on riddims and that you like to create original music.  So does the fact that every one jumps on riddims limit the appeal of reggae? 

Busy Signal:  Definitely, and its watered down the whole thing.  You have one beat and you have 90 so-called artists doing stuff.  Then out of the 90 songs for that one beat you get  3 good ones.  But those three don’t get the highlight cause it’s too much to choose from.  It never gets to the one that will be the one if there is one.  So I hate going on that rat race type of s***.  I like to do my thing and make my own s***.

Sixshot.com:  What’s the story behind your popular hit song, “Jail?”

Busy Signal:  That’s one of my real experiences and I been in jail.  When I was younger I been on the wrong side of the law and this is way before I stated music and everything. In jail I was like okay when I get out I want to be a better man and make myself better.  I don’t want to go back to this place ever again in my whole life.  That’s a true experience of mine and not just a song.

Sixshot.com:  Recently dancehall has been getting negative exposure as being blamed for the violence and ills in Jamaica.  Do you think the music is being used as a scapegoat?

Busy Signal:  Yes, very much so and it's been used as a scapegoat.  You can't blame music for the violence of a country—that’s just so stupid.  It’s to turn the direction off the politics, election, and the lack of jobs and poverty.  Lack of jobs is the main thing that brings crimes, poverty brings crime, but music helps people and unites people.  So they don’t highlight those things instead of using dancehall as a scapegoat and blaming the artists.  We talk about things that we see.  No artist in the world manufacture guns, and no artist in hip-hop rap world owns a gun store.  We see what the law does and how they treat people so we write songs.

Do you think there’s any responsibility for the music cause music is powerful and sometimes the lyrical content--

Busy Signal:  You got some that do that but not the whole country and not the violence of the whole country.  Violence in the streets and people dying has nothing to do with music in Jamaica.  Nobody has ever died from listening to music or from fighting for different artists in Jamaica.  The 2pac and Biggie incident—I don’t know who killed who but that’s never been done in Jamaica through music.

Sixshot.com:  In the states we have Barack Obama who may be the first Black president.  In the islands are they excited about that possibility?

Busy Signal:  They really are excited and they really pay attention.  We keep up with all that stuff and are really happy.  This is part of history so we are all waiting to see the change.  We are waiting for it cause the world needs a change, not just America and we got to start one place and one day at a time.

For more information on Busy Signal please visit:
www.myspace.com/onebusysignal