KINGSTON, JAMAICA - Just three weeks ago, a group of young
Jamaicans exercised civil disobedience in remarkable fashion on Hope Road. The
occasion appeared to be a video shoot for Protoje's 'I&I,' the
second track on his Billboard and iTunes charting album, The 8 Year
Affair. Yet, much more occurred on that Friday morning. Moreover, it was
flawlessly executed.
It was approximately
8-o-clock and bumper-to-bumper traffic crawled its way toward Half Way Tree.
Just then scores of Rastafarian youth, Reggae Revivalists and their supporters
spilled onto the street. They marched from the Twelve Tribes of Israel headquarters
at Clieveden Avenue, made their way pass the Bob Marley Museum to King's House,
the Governor-General's residence, then continued on to Jamaica House, which
houses the Office of the Prime Minister.
"Every time I
envisioned what this video would look like, all I kept seeing was I and I and I
making this trek," said Protoje. "The song is aggressive but it is
still love that we are coming with. I wanted the video to show that
energy."
The 'I&I' video
features the likes of Kabaka Pyramid, No-Maddz, Jesse Royal, Hempress Sativa,
Jah9, Chronixx plus members of Zincfence, Pentateuch and Raging Fyah along with
other familiar faces. Members of Protoje's band, The Indiggnation,
are also prominent in various scenes.
What made the whole
ordeal special was that it was more than just a mere music video shoot.
According to author Dutty Bookman, who assisted with organizing the march, it
was revolutionary action.
"The music video was
more like a smokescreen," Bookman recalled. "We handed out some
thought-provoking leaflets with inspiring words from Haile Selassie I, Marcus
Garvey and Walter Rodney. I could see that drivers and pedestrians really
appreciated the information they were receiving."
The distributed leaflet,
which can now be downloaded on the internet, was prepared in part by I-Nation
Books and Necessities. During the walk, I-Nation also displayed some of its
stock, including Rodney's Groundings With My Brothers as well
as other Afrocentric titles.
The procession did not
get very far before Jamaica Constabulary Force vehicles appeared on the scene,
but officers found neither disorder nor fault with the gathering. Marchers
largely remained on the sidewalks or toed the center line in the street, hardly
disrupting the flow of traffic. In the end, the police simply escorted the
march until the crowd disbanded at Jamaica House.
"It wasn't a protest
or anything like that," Protoje remarked. "I and I just felt like
taking a stroll down a public street and have fun doing it."
Directed and edited by
kush.asher, the video has the subtle feel and imagery of a prime time
television newscast. The entire march was recorded in one take with the
participation of a number of filmmakers and photographers, including El Puru,
Ezra Tafari, Sabriya Simon, I-Shango, Matthew McCarthy, Taj Francis, Ikem
Smith, Randy Richards, Big Mike and others.
Commenting on the
significance of the 'I&I' video concept, kush.asher explained, "It is
special because Rastafarians were allowed to be active in front of Jamaica
House. Not that long ago we would have been shot!"
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sks_McbbqM
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/protoje/protoje-i-i
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/protoje/protoje-i-i
Download
the leaflet here: http://www.mediafire.com/view/?7c5bbx6o19smb0e
Contributed
