Rihanna’s “Love on The Brain” & the ‘He beats me ‘cause he loves me’ issue

I was listening to the captioned song by Miss RiRi as one of the newer remixes out there as a promo and it hit me like a ton of bricks the song is actually about what appears to be tolerated abuse by the victim while supposedly being ‘in love’. The original recording is a little difficult to hear the vocals clearly as it is a rock sounding track and the guitar tends to overshadow other elements of the tune. As Jamaica is undergoing a rather bizarre set of cases of abuse and or intimate partner violence episodes with some awful outcomes this is not the kind of song we should be processing right now frankly, sadly it is extremely popular even on the LGBT circuit at parties circuit and it bothers me. The old ‘he beats me because he loves me’ thinking is very much alive; whenever others try to intervene or when the abused individual visits the police station for example they file a report, then change their minds afterwards and try to justify with the beat for love narrative, hence leaving the cops to effectively stop following the matter.

The opening stanza of the song is enough to tell us as to what it is about and frankly I have retired it from my playlists and sets.

The lyrics are as follows:

And you got me like oh

What you want from me?

What you want from me?

And I tried to buy your pretty heart, but the price too high

Baby, you got me like oh, mm

You love when I fall apart, fall apart

So you can put me together

And throw me against the wall

Baby, you got me like ah, woo, ah

Don't you stop loving me, loving me

Don't quit loving me, loving me

Just start loving me, loving me, babe

Oh, and, babe, I'm fist fighting with fire

Just to get close to you

Can we burn something, babe?

And I run for miles just to get a taste

Must be love on the brain

That's got me feeling this way

It beats me black and blue but it fucks me so good

And I can't get enough

Must be love on the brain, yeah

And it keeps cursing my name, cursing my name

No matter what I do

I'm no good without you

And I can't get enough

Must be love on the brain

Then you keep loving me

Just love me, yeah

Just love me

All you need to do is love me yeah

Got me like ah-ah-ah-ow

I'm tired of being played like a violin

What do I gotta do to get in your motherfuckin' heart?

Baby, like ah, woo, ah

Don't you stop loving me, loving me

Don't quit loving me, loving me

Just start loving me, loving me, babe

Oh, and, babe, I'm fist fighting with fire

Just to get close to you

Can we burn something, babe?

And I run for miles just to get a taste

Must be love on the brain

That's got me feeling this way

It beats me black and blue but it fucks me so good

And I can't get enough

Must be love on the brain

And it keeps cursing my name, cursing my name

No matter what I do

I'm no good without you

And I can't get enough

Must be love on the brain

That a mainstream artist as young as Rihanna is handed or forced to do a song such as this to perform to mostly young(er) impressionable fans that gobble up materials without the requisite checks and balances should be of concern. I am assuming that Miss RiRi and management are tied into a contract that may basically say sing what we give you or else, of course in a subtle form. I have been digging other new songs from her such as “Needed Me” & “Sex With Me” and spinning them in my sets both clean and explicit versions; although the latter is a little racy and more for adults but it does not promote violence directly although the “ .....switch on a fake nigga like a station..” line is kind of hinting towards black ghetto life and belittling hypermasculinity/bravado; the use of the word “nigga” is well known to many that that means a gangster or as in our case the dons. The redeeming line follows however in a sense “Vodka & water and a lemon and a few other things I cannot mention,” which seems to retrieve the dignity aspect of the track. While there is an ongoing national uproar about whether dancehall is influencing violence as life imitate art or vice versa (if one can call some of the stuff these days art) here is a big pop song brought in quietly over the mainstream and played on radio.

Same gender liaisons challenges

The unanswered question of the age for me is why would someone who is the subject of abuse outside of a co-dependency issue stay in said union and take it and then when it comes to crunch time the justification is ‘he beats me because he loves me?’ do not for one minute believe that this a hetero-normative construct only because it’s definitely not; especially when there is the aforementioned co-dependency matter at work. A poorer gay man versus a monied or privileged man in a liaison and the main driver is not necessarily sex but also control as the motivator which can lead to abuse. The lesser powered man is sometimes forced to take all kinds of abuse including sexual, psychological and violence against his person re-emphasizing the dependency element; while he may have some difficulty reporting same to a police station; he may be the brunt of humiliation, homophobia or simply ignored by the cops and chased away from the precinct. Once the cops realize it is more a lovers’ quarrel bordering on an old crime of passion mantra one can just walk away or if one is strong enough take it to a higher authority such as the area’s Superintendent and such. It might get a little tricky if there are hints of rape or sexual assault when it comes to two men, a buggery charge might hit one or both if they don’t handle themselves well or have an attorney present to wade through the matter. The lesser charge of grievous sexual assault might also creep into the mix.

There was some attempt via the USAID Comet II training exercise with some cops in 2016 but that only seems to target new recruits and not necessarily the older ones who are set in their ways; after years of very little strong oversight and workshops for capacity building via improved customer service experience. Some changes have come through at certain stations but others the bad habits are still there, but change is usually slow anyway.

Conflict resolution interventions if not far more public awareness programs are needed, despite we have a dispute resolution mechanism and a hotline service they are not promoted enough and the other ones that are out there tend to be more so female based for the most part with the man being the aggressor. Campaigns since the upsurge in intimate partner violence cases are too flat in my view and sound too politically correct, flat and cannot be compared to the strength of the cadence of what dancehall acts for example use in more misogynistic songs. The message has to be firm and placed in a real world context not presented by some middle class person who has never experienced any pain or is in tune with the culture in a far more real way than just an observer in an observational tower or privilege. I was expecting more on the grounds of foreign songs with similar messages to RiRi’s i.e. some rap for example that directly promote violence against women, but what do we do, censorship is an issue as well but there is also responsibility on the part of artists, song writers, producers and so on.

It seems what is popular trumps what is right in the scheme of things when the current hot matter of alleged new recordings of Vybz Kartel while serving a life sentence; it does not seem to matter that Kartel is a convicted murderer indeed the incarceration of him is seen as a stripe of sorts; the deafening silence from the prison authorities is telling when in fact it is only the Tower Street facility aka General Penitentiary, GP that has recording equipment my short time there I remember but they maybe old nowadays as analogue ones i.e. reel to reel tapes device versus newer compact hand held devices such as tablets with a good microphone, auto tune and Q-sound technology does the rest for the post production to finished product; when compared to the voice quality of the ‘new songs’ (or as we are told previously recorded tracks) it suggests that much higher grade of device(s) such as a phone were used. That also speaks to the business ‘contraband’ and what is allowed in and by whom. The subject matter of the ‘new songs’ is telling as most of the songs content are counteraction songs and also dealing with present matters and clashes with other rival artists so it cannot be that these songs are previously recorded materials held in wait for release and sale.

There are other songs even done by female dancehall acts though not popular as some of their male counterparts that hint to the ‘he beats me because he loves me’ mantra. The songs usually have one-liners contained suggesting that there would be no separation in the relationship even though the male in the union may handle the woman rough. Similarly to having a prison sentence or serving time as a stripe of ‘badness’ the physical scars of violence is also sold as a sign misguidedly of a strong relationship. It is almost a confirmation of submitted power to the man probably borne out of years of patriarchy and misogyny well established in dancehall music for example and some early reggae. Other rap songs also have such content and even spew threats to women who say they are ending the relationship there will be violent consequences even as the man has multiple partners sometimes knowingly to the threatened woman. Tracks such Cam’rons “Bitches Aint Shit” from way back in the 2000s though sexually suggestive via the “beat my bitch with a stick” line the threat element comes in where he threatens that if she leaves she’ll get a “dick in her mouth” and so on. Other older rap such as Cash Money Millionaires’ “Project Chick” from the Ballers Rollin’ album is quite clear, similar to Cam’ron is very suggestive as long as the woman is willing to comply at whatever costs, and failure to comply would have serious consequences. I don’t think I need to get into the days of 2 live Crew’s materials they are noted for their misogyny and such.

Artistry and repertoire (A & R) departments these days from record labels seem interested in pushing the envelope in terms of making too pretty or clean imaged females more street credible but are going overboard as music sales still struggle when compared to the days of CDs, vinyl and so on, case in point Miss RiRi herself nearly on the songs on the album are cutting it close designed to make her obviously more edgy. Mariah Carey’s latest video for example looks more like a lingerie advert instead of the polished diva we are used to; it is not the first time she has collaborated with rappers but this new one is kind of a turn off to many as they question why is she going so hard (or her handlers) to match up against younger stars? She is already the queen in certain respects as she really does not need to and while I can appreciate coquettishness to a point there are limits frankly. There is a reason why Diana Ross and the older gurlz have lasted so long without having to show too much leg, cleavage and hips albeit enhanced for some these days.

A word on church hypocrisy

Even as so many disturbing cases involving pastors and men of the cloth accused of inappropriate sexual contact with minors or psychologically weak women with convictions, the way less outrage from the church groups or the very vocal antigay fanatical religious right (who make the rest of the church body look stupid) is telling. This blog is replete with such considerations in previous posts. Where are the stronger public calls for action from within the church body? The responses so far are unimpressive if not unconvincing why are certain antigay groups more focused of child abuse while rightfully so but hardly any protests, marches as in the antigay pro-buggery mass rallies? The hypocrisy indeed the cherry picking is clear yet still. Yet these same groups were worried about a telephone directory cover with an eighties themed dancehall setting which is child’s play compared to the more raunchy aesthetics that come with the genre. They find millions for buggery constitutional challenges while yet declaring we have more churches per square miles yet we have more homeless LGBT and otherwise per square inch more and more on sidewalks and cities. Some of these folks have missed the boat in terms of God’s work and just true tolerance and caring if not forgiveness. Some seem to be more interested in maintaining their silos fed with tithes and offerings while pontificating on piety similar to the Pharisees and Scribes who crucified Jesus using a Roman system. The recently concluded seminar on abuse while condemning child abuse rightfully but from an outside perspective of the ‘church’ on a whole but very little introspection and a call for pastors to recognize their responsibility; the press releases only reiterate that it’s an outside problems by sinners as opposed an internal issue.

Meanwhile

There is a thin line between fantasy on record versus reality as we are learning nationally, the separation is not clear to some given the death threats being thrown via social media predicated on Vybz Kartel worship towards opposition spokesperson on youth Lisa Hanna by a mere suggestion that a review maybe needed as to allowing incarcerated persons to produce and record new music; the rapidity of rapes and abuse even from men of the cloth all so close to each other in terms of timing says to me that things were festering all along and we thought all was well. We really have to begin to consider the lyrical content of some of the songs and calling for bans on radio is one thing but the same tracks in their raw versions are readily available on an ever expanding set of platforms; with smartphone technologies and APPS it is a synch for any youngster these days. There may be legal implications as well in terms of censorship and our charter of rights. Many parents do not check or are able to check the content being technologically naive so all kinds of things can slip by. Then there is the business of the angel at home versus the bad boy/girl wannabe out of parents’ sight.

I think we need to calm for a while first then decide emotion free as possible the way forward but with fans of Kartel still up in arms we have some seriously embedded evil on the national psyche to contend with. For mostly men and bizarrely some women to openly suggest on social media while ignorant to the cyber crimes act Miss Hanna and indeed other persons who agree with her are to die violently or raped as punishment for the Kartel diss even though she widened the comment to other acts in prison is frightening to say the least. Restraint seems all but dead these days as some seem to think they have license to post or say anything online; we are told that the main instigators of the threats are known and the requisite posts (even after deletion) are being gathered to take the requisite prosecutorial actions by the police as empowered under the cyber crimes act.

Another bout of annoucementitis?

Yet again we hear aspirational soundings from politicians and privileged folks and NGOs but the announced strategies to include getting abused persons mostly women to come forward with the needed psycho social support sound nice on the face of it; while also announcing a shelter for battered women (not the first time) when others have been forced to close down due to lack of funding and help from successive governments. I hope not Let us see whether these ideas will ever come to light; case in point the human rights institute that is yet to come, homeless shelters promised but not fulfilled, infirmaries left to languish although places such as the previously structured Womens’ Crisis Centre and others struggle; there was a merger of sorts in 2015/6 but what has come of that new entity that announcements should come about shelters?

This is by no means the end of this. But should there be a ban on songs with this ‘he beats because he loves me’ mantra?

More anon

Peace & tolerance

H

Justified underage sexual abuse in lieu of homosexual sex!

Lasmay's take on the matter

Yet again we see these seeping sentiments not surprisingly out there of men who go to females of whatever age seen as acceptable more so than homosexual sex. The ongoing furore involving the Moravian pastor allegedly caught in a compromising position with a fifteen year old girl in a car in bushes in St Ann has shown up this misplaced principle problem. Many comments on social media and even on radio with not only men but women also pushing this line that the pastor is justified to a certain extent as it was not a boy but a girl who he was with. Some have gone as far as to compare the clerical abuse in the catholic faith of mostly boys and the appearing cover up of it so another denomination’s representative who does it but with a girl is not so bad. This moral equivalence problem is as old as time itself and recorded history when it comes to religiosity, selectivity of atrocities, nitpicking if you will and the more strident and targeted attention on homosexuality.

One of the reports said:

Hampton Principal Seeks To Explain Presence At Pastor's Sexual Offence Hearing

Pastor Rupert Clarke is led from the St Elizabeth Parish Court Wednesday after appearing on a charge of having sex with a minor. Pictured in foreground is Hampton School principal Heather Murray.

The principal of the Hampton School, Heather Murray, has issued a statement defending her presence at the bail hearing of a Moravian minister of religion who is charged with having sex with a minor.

While outside the St Elizabeth Parish Court, Murray reportedly tried to block The Gleaner's photographer from taking a photograph of the Moravian minister, Rupert Clarke.

Since then, Murray has faced huge public backlash, particularly from persons on social media who claim that Murray's presence at the hearing was appalling, especially in light of her position as principal of an all-girls institution. In the statement last night, Murray sought "to set the record straight", stating that she went to the hearing in support of the minister's wife, who, she says, is a high-school friend of hers.

"We are both long-time educators who have been serving together for many years on several boards, committees, and commissions. We are both justices of the peace. Such is the closeness of our relationship that when the news broke, I was, naturally, the first person to whom she turned for solace and support. I have not left her side since because I know that my friend needs me. She reached out to me as a wife, mother, and friend," Murray explained in the release.

She further explained, "My presence at the court was to be there for my friend who needed my moral support. As a wife, mother of two daughters, and principal with responsibility for 1,220 young ladies, I have sought always to protect and defend them and the young children of Jamaica. That has not and will never change."

The police report that at about 9 o'clock on the night of December 28, a team was on patrol in a community near Santa Cruz when they observed a parked car that aroused their suspicion.

They went to investigate and reportedly found the pastor in a compromising position with a 15-year-old child.

He was immediately taken into custody and was charged. Clarke has been granted bail in the sum of $800,000. He must have one or two sureties and is to return to court on February 13.

meanwhile

Betty Ann Blaine head of the children’s’ groups came out swinging on Nationwide radio some days after the incident came to hand. She and other antigay activists have been accused of silence and selectivity on other atrocities and loud on the preservation of the buggery law. Blaine warned that predators if it proven to be so are everywhere and one cannot trust anyone these days as they can also be pastors, a point I agree with in a rare moment; however the previous cases as carried on this blog for example and on tabloid publications have seen no response as this one, I guess because this one is so prominent and has taken on a life of its own. The recent telephone directory cover fiasco and sexualised images lead in part by partner in crime Dr Wayne West of the Jamaica Coalition for a Healthy Society, JCHS showed up just that and how even non LGBT persons criticised their hypocrisy. They have been shopping around to find other issues to speak on hence and now this one is the latest to try to adjust their image. They have shifted their HIV is a gay disease ploy to going after young persons and premarital sex especially in the throes of World AIDS Day 2016.

What is even appearing to be more disturbing is the public support the accused has been getting by some unexpected persons. Yes he is innocent until proven guilty and the case is in the preliminary hearing stage but when school principal of a prominent girls institution and other women allegedly from the Moravian church blocking the press from taking photos of the accused as he exited the court house is disturbing, what is she in particular and others doing there is the first question in her capacity as a public figure. I can understand support if it is prayer or visiting the trial to see proceedings but to be so militant and open about it to block the press’s access to the accused is disturbing and suggests something else. A subsequent poorly produced statement came to hand via the chairman of the particular school she is principal claiming she went to give support to the wife of the accused; yet she was not there at the time for starters and the strident defence of the accused by way of blocking the media access to the accused and claiming the media should take photos of herself and the women there, that was not addressed in the statement.

A previous case involving another pastor and his attempts buy out the female victims at a hotel comes to mind, JCHS, Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship (another older anti gay group) and other Christian fanatics who make the rest of the church body look bad were effectively silent. In fairness to Betty Ann Blaine she did speak out but in her usual style. But if the justification of heterosexual or hetero normative abuse clothed in misogyny being banded about even by so called religious minded folks where’s the condemnation by Blaine and other self righteous folks towards that side of it? In other words as long as it is opposite sex the age of the CHILD does not matter, then suppose the accused buggered the girl I wonder what would these same justifying misogynists say then; he is a gay man using a girl to get to booty!

This is not the first time this has come to light but it appears this incident has shown up the dormant feelings always there. The series of abusive incidents is only evidence of what has been obviously simmering for some time and to have them come in such close succession of each other is disturbing to say the least. Intimate partner violence is not limited to the hetero-relation cases that now obtain and same gender challenges also abound but not in such known numbers as the present visibility in mainstream media. It is simply sick to justify paedophilia in such a blatant form and to even go as far as agreeing to child marriages in the eastern parts and in Europe as the way to go as men must have women. The suggestion that women are property is just plain wrong but if our dancehall culture for example has helped to legitimise and reinforce these misogynistic postures then why are we complaining? For all intents and purposes we are the authors and finishers of our fate I imagine.

Sadly the dons have simply adopted the sentiments and the old ‘buss breast’ phenomenon is ongoing, this is where young girls are watched as they go into pre-pubescent growth and development and as their breasts become apparent these thugs would literally summon them or force parents to send them to use them as sexual abuse and it is seen as justified.

The dancehall artist Zebra for example who is serving time for raping and sodomising a female victim who was his then female companion’s daughter of a previous relationship; and who was found guilty for buggery and rape and got thirty years, I wonder what would the sycophantic and misguided folks justifying hetero-normative adult minor inappropriate relations would think? But memory usually fades and historical perspectives are usually left out as persons reside in ignorance in blind opposition.

The ideal situation would be the woman’s head should have been served on a platter via the board but the board seems impotent to act accordingly, had this been a boys school perhaps with a male victim there would have been loud calls for the heads of the accused and possibly the school board though so they hetero coupling comment seems justified in the minds of some. I wonder if there a legal implications in as far as touching the camera by an intervening party when the media is carrying out its proper duties. The man is already charged so they have a right to access of him and not to be obstructed. As for the business of cheating here albeit with a minor the poor wife in whose behest this misguided principal was supposed to support, she may even have to consider divorce given the aftermath of this and ability to hold her head high especially as someone so mature.

Going to the courthouse is not the issue it’s what she did there.

Let us see where the trial leads and we are waiting for the sensible justification by the female school principal as to her public involvement by appearing to support the accused with such a serious allegation hanging over his head. One would have expected either absence from the situation as a public person (as principal) or also give most public support of the fifteen year old ‘victim’ in this matter. When pastors are seeming to be tolerated in the face of weird accusations is disturbing and the ready use of ‘easy sins’ yet have a leave me and my sins or cover ups is just as dangerous but have strength for others such as homosexuals then the ‘church’ has a lot of work to do.

Let the chips fall where they may.

Peace & tolerance

H

Bolt can sleep with whomever but not a man!

Bolt with another woman as revealed by the UK's mirror

So as the controversy grows on Usain Bolt’s supposed indiscretions with a Brazilian twenty year old woman specifically and other groupies many Jamaicans have been weighing in on the matter. Sadly Mr Bolt ought to have learnt on this and how these things have a way of materializing into something else; especially with the age of social media madness and dart boarding of popular figures he ought to have been more careful. It was only a short time before in Brazil upon his arrival other photos appeared with what appeared to be the typical ‘groupies’ a local commentator warned on radio of him and other male athletes especially as some persons are sent to simply expedite controversies for tabloids and now here we are. Bolt needs to understand he is no ordinary celebrity and that he is seen by many including young ones as a role model whether he likes the titles and or responsibility or not.

In the haze of it all a subtext has emerged that Bolt is justified in having sex with whomever he wants to so long as it is not a man, or enjoying his hetero-normative privilege, in other in misogynistic terms women are objects and the supposed love interest must also accept Bolt’s and the others who engage in groupie loving can do as they please with multiple female partners but as for men that is off limits. People seem to forget just basic boundaries and respect, lest we forget what happened to other sports stars or icons however we may seem them such as Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant or Mike Tyson and so called groupies. The perceived sexual orientation and or sexual exploits of such public figures should not be the material for public consumption as it is being luridly presented by tabloids that are making a killing at this; it is as if they were waiting for a crack to wade into it to take him down or sell millions via clicks online for advertisers for profit.

A vox pop on RJR’s Beyond the Headlines left me rather disturbed to see the values or lack thereof people place on public figures and what is ‘permitted’ by celebrities versus ordinary souls. Only one man of the twelve persons who commented seemed to have gotten the proper gist of appropriateness and non-judgemental concerns as to the sexual exploits of public persons and more about performance in the case of Bolt, some others while adding the female only caveat in the same breath strangely cautioned Bolt to be careful

So if Bolt was in bed with a man then his achievements would have been lesser than those of a heterosexual? I am not surprised at this with even women making some bizarre comments such as Bolt just by being a celebrity he is to be shared with other women simply because he is a ‘man’ meaning he has full proxy to do as he pleases, but what about the dignity of the women involved? But if it were a man then he is not worthy of any ‘big ups’ or respect. To be a man in Jamaican terms is to be highly sexualised with a woman or women as is evidenced in the heaps of praise the tabloid story is getting from other men locally on social media. The dignity of the Olympic achievement seems now lost and Bolt’s legacy seems muddied by this if he and his team around him do not address this before it gets out of hand. UK tabloids in particular have described his encounters to include threesomes and such, reduced to just another stud that happens to be able to run fast. The public restraint he shows and friendly approachable image may be lost in all of this. His announced intention to leave the sport as well may have triggered this some suspect, so it is a way to get him prior to that when he will be less clickable on websites and enhanced sales of tabloid gossip.

And what if it were a male was the subject of this farce as it were again I ask would Bolt be seen as unworthy or not worthy of praise, accolades, adulation or achievement, let us not forget the stigmatization only a week prior thrown at Omar Mcleod just because he was less than masculine in his celebration after winning the first 110m hurdles gold medal. His supposed thumb ring on his right hand (a marker for some of homosexuality still) and his pose in a certain photograph made him the subject homo-negative comments with a bigoted hashtag ‘goldfish’ despite his groundbreaking achievement, his too proper cadence of speech also has been used to tag him as gay as real Jamaican men are not supposed to or expected to be well spoken, especially in sport. So it is not surprising the caveat regarding Bolt. The blurred nature of our highly sexualised culture is so evident here and evident in this matter, at the time of this post no official response has come from the Bolt camp so we wait to see. I was of the opinion that sports persons are expected to perform despite their sexual orientation and or what they do in their private times, all the more reason for public figures to be guided. This is not the days of an absent social media, as I commented elsewhere today one sneezes it ends up making an appearance somewhere it one is not careful while the other side of the coin some crave attention they are willing to do almost anything to get likes and clicks; media prostitution if you will.

A certain cricketer was also accused of poor performance on the field of play due to overtime as it were spent with groupies and or alleged sexual activity with females literally at one point allegedly throwing their underwear at or on him, he went on to land himself in a public relations mess in 2015 when he made what appeared to be an inappropriate advance/comment to a female Australian reporter live during an interview and like now he was praised for being so brazen as he ‘did not want a man’ but was showing his manhood and his hetero-normative privilege by not only other men but surprisingly women too.

It’s about performance than anything else, in the field of play that is and not sexually.

Peace & tolerance

H

Oh tops & bottoms and rigid role play again.

So after being forced to intervene in a community matter involving brethrens who were in a tiff literally about role play in their now short lived liaison I am left wondering why the obsession with roles? Why can’t we just over time unlearn some of these deeply entrenched hetero-normative role play both sexually and socially driven through education and society where such roles are defined for males and females. There seems to be a usual souring of lovers (if you will) or partners just due to simple things (or appearing such) as who should be the receptive partner or dominant partner and by virtue of that nearly every other aspect of the relationship or liaison is defined by that; down to the very household chores are designated as done in hetero common law or married couples and the established social constructs.

In a previous podcast I had asked some of the very questions above and wondered aloud why or it is no wonder why we have so many challenges in navigating sex, love, identity and insecurities as the case may be. The ‘community matter’ involved a police officer and his partner who share a house in a relatively comfortable area; both men are gainfully employed and are doing relatively OK given the other issues around; things have been going south for a while now ever so slowly but both men never realised it until it was at the end and the ventilating of the issues revealed much. The proverbial ‘spirit tek’ (spirit comforting) was the glue that held the thing together and only for the breaking of that it was inevitable that they would not be compatible after all; the sex was a mere connector to keep them together in what turned out to be a farce mimicking a hetero-relational ‘love’ dream. The officer (the more man) felt he is or was the cock of the walk and worse yet reinforced by that also deeply entrenched ‘squaddie’ mentality in the police force where bravado is license for dominance in all things including the romantic department. Police largely tend to have that attitude of dominance even while being off the job.

The goodly officer refuses to do any chores around the home that denotes a feminine defined one such as the plates or the laundry and literally expects his meals to either ready upon arrival or shared after such where he plops on the couch and watches cable and is expected to be unimpeded while doing so. I was surprised that this deeply defined role play even in the face of heightened gay lifestyle visibility and a younger generation with different value systems would reflect some differences but it turns out the more things change it seems, the more they stay the same. Things got physical at one point with the refusal of the other party to condescend to the ever growing demands of him by the cocky cop and so much so that a trial separation (at my request) was entered into for a short while but soon ended as the expenses on each other’s part did not make it practical. But it was clear upon their return that it could not be business as usual.

The other party was content with being the domesticated member of the union but was not willing to be bossed around or forced to carry out such duties at the expense of his “lazy” cocky cop; the cop also thought of himself as the proverbial exclusive top and that no man was going to plug him or penetrate him anally. Of course the fear and insecurity that comes with such declarations are clear, the conflation with dominance (or perceived such) as expressed in the power of the penis and its forceful use defines who is the man in the relationship therefore defines everything else around him. The misogynistic driven thinking in same gender unions is still bothersome to me as it does do damage rather quickly in some unions, worse yet when there was no love in the first place but more an escape from homo-negativity by cohabiting with another gay man to reach for some goal or fantasy.

Some years ago an attempt was made to try to begin to address relational matters and my own experience with a couple short lived liaisons has taught me a lot but it is not going to be easy to adjust for some younger men especially who are either bi-curious, homo-curious or gay for that matter and who enter into mid to long term unions; while entering such come with preconceived notions and baggage from opposite sexed unions as well and their complexities. The other influences are even more disturbing as things normally hidden or unheard of are just out there on social media especially some the madness now obtaining on Instagram in recent months; the usual narcissicism, clear displays of insecurities with one gay man sighting possible suicide as he feels unwanted and trapped. Thankfully the necessary interventions were sought on his behalf and engaged to timely intervene in that matter. Another now removed Instagram post of a ‘butch’ lesbian and another woman, not sure if she was her ‘lover’ in the true sense that was up in March was even more disturbing as the related role play, suggested intimate partner violence and dominance as expressed in a masculine sense was painful to watch; it denotes the ways in which deeply entrenched societal norms can have a direct impact in LGBT circles.

I suggest we unlearn and encourage our brethren to begin to unlearn the rigid entrenched socialization based on hetero-patriarchy and misogyny and begin to properly define our own way; diversity in MSM culture is already there and maybe some highlighting of same as maybe other brothers are not aware of such.

Peace & tolerance

H

Iwan’s ‘Oman Ova Battyman’ shows the lack of understanding sex & sexuality

For the past couple months a release by Iwan entitled ‘Oman Ova Battyman’ (Woman Over Battyman) on the Ay3 riddim has been getting some traction on radio (and sound systems naturally) by an unofficial edited version apparently though not official as my checks revealed an original radio version was not released on the promotional CD.

Obviously some radio DJs have done a revision so it can be added to clean playlists. While I do not expect the song to become a mainstream smash hit as ‘Boom Bye Bye’ by Buju Banton the tune has been getting popular via several mixtapes and on dancehall online forums. Similar editing to clean up ‘Boom Bye Bye’ for radio or dotted mixing of certain parts of the song was also done; or the use of cue setting on the cross-fader or looping cued parts to get the clean parts of the lyrics out for broadcast without allowing words like ‘battyman’ going over the airwaves. The Youtube video (above) has seen some relative attention and my interest was sparked while I was in Spanish Town recently when a taxi drove into the Texaco gas station where the song blared from the heavily tinted Probox car (one of those that often have female schoolers sometimes numbering 6 or more exiting them at taxi stands in the afternoons); the reaction from even the staff of the station was instant, also members of the public schoolers included reacted with light head bumping and some breaking into song and light dance after a third loop of the track as the driver seemed to have preset the player so.

“Nuh Battyman Sex ....” was the line that seems to get the ‘forwud’ more than the hook “Oman over battyman ... is Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve” The ideological imperative of the unnaturalness of homosexuality and the naturalness of heterosexuality is at work here. The closely related, primary imperative is that which broadly asserts that homosexuality is contrary to the sexuality nature has inscribed in the human, and for exclusively procreative purposes. That this imperative manifests not only in secular popular song. The audible sounds imitating gunshots were clear from some of the men nearby in agreement with the lyrics although Iwan seems to have been very careful to stay away from the usual prescriptive call for our execution via shots, burning or at the least a sound beating. Probably he realizes the implications for his career as a newcomer to the business and the pressures faced by more established dancehall acts such as Beeniemen or Buju Banton.

My question to Iwan is then women do not have an anus too and where is his abhorrence to heterosexual anal sex?

The misogynistic narrative is clear reducing women to mere sex objects and available upon a man’s request with or without her consent; Cecil Gutzmore from his paper on Policing Homosexuality ....... said it best “Disapproval is strategically deployed not only against such traditionally designated social ‘perversions’ as homosexuality, bisexuality, transvestism, trans-sexuality, and so forth, but also against a number of more ‘day-to-day’ activities relating to the sexed – especially the female – body, particularly in respect of its un/dress, hair-styling, and the like. Iwan does this while emphasizing the procreation imperative both on the part of Iwan himself and that of having a woman in the first place.

One of the stanzas says it clearly:

“Mi see pump um, mi nuh fancy nuh backside” (I say vagina I do not fancy backside or the anus) with the religious condemnation imperative infused:

“Mi nuh fancy nuh evil ...... Satan can play me like noodle,” clearly saying homosexuality is wrong and is condemned by God while nicely condoning illicit sex, multiple partnering and randomising use of women for sexual purposes all of which the same God in his word and over used opinions by apostles/theologians such as Paul professing monogamous relations.

“Mi neva know a man mother as a man ....” also adding to the procreation ambit as well but if our brethren Iwan was aware the traditional thinking and practice of procreation via copulation has changed and that even same gender loving couples or heterosexual couples wanting children or those who have difficulty having them can do so via stem cell reprogramming; while even choosing the gender of the child instead of adoption or foster care routes. The use of such songs to gain attention is not uncommon Beenieman did it when his career was slouched in the 2000s but he released “All Battyman Fi Dead” and he was back in the game.

TOK’s ‘Chi Chi Man’ for example came at a time when previous releases were going virtually nowhere except tracks like “Eagle dem fly” and other minor hits for them at that time. 

Elephant Man in the red and black outfit which has generated chatter on social media. At right: Deejay Aidonia as he performed on Reggae Sumfest

So I am not surprised at this, there are a few other newer acts on the scene who are trying as well even as some of them blur the line of the hyper-masculine aesthetics; such as the adoption of fashion once deemed to unisexual or ‘battyman looking’ even as some of the very designers and persons behind the scenes in dancehall are gay and pull the strings which is what bothers me sometimes.

The inherent masking and double standards I dare say hypocrisy is glaring and homophobia becomes more entrenched than ever. The models in the video and dance moves very suggestively too are part and parcel of the skewed sexualising if you will that has come to dominate dancehall, I aint no academic but it is clear to me that many of our problems of unfathered children, crime and related societal problems stem from the narratives over the decades that give rise to them. While it is clear that dancehall came from behind Reggae as a rebellious genre for the non musician to still be in the business make hits and by extension make money, it is in that vein that we see the badmanship, bravado and so on are used to sure up or compensate the marginalization of Jamaican men just by being poor and from the ghetto. 

Iwan never went that far as an Elephant Man would have where he combines misogyny with notions of wealth to support multiple partnering with women; in other words more women a man has on his sleeve to boot is the more power and respect he gains; albeit he may be on the downlow but publicly it is not palatable to prioritise his male lover(s) as the rejection would be clear and disastrous. TOK’s once popular anti-gay song, ‘Chi-Chi Man’ (2001). One of their specified ways of recognizing gay/ ‘chi-chi’ men in Jamaica is from the fact that they drink in a ‘chi-chi man bar’. This is confirmation of a known, observed and at least partially permitted gay scene in Jamaica, a society that is supposedly so dangerously homophobic that lesbians and gays have ‘not a space to breathe.

“Mi nuh inna battyman talk, mi nuh inna battyman walk, mi nuh inna battyman flex, nuh battyman keys no battyman sex” (I am not into gay men’s talk [cadence of speech] I am not into gay men’s walk [effeminate gait] ...... I am not into gay men’s sex [anal penetration specifically] Iwan continues midway the song clearly saying effeminacy in all is spheres is the clear sign of male homosexuality and that anal sex is the be all and end all for men who have sex with men. Iwan like many others is unaware that though it may sound unbelievable not all men who explore same gender sex or identify as gay actually practice anal sex. Iwan like others in anti gay and murder music songs ignore non penetrative activity between men as a reality to begin with.

He continues:

“Billy goat fi di Nanny Goat, why man have fi climb pon man? Mi nuh overstand (Billy goat for a Nanny goat [female goat] why a man has to indulge in anal sex [climb on a man suggest literal backshot anal intercourse] I do not understand [‘overstand’ is a rebellious remark to ‘understand’ as ‘under’ in Rastafarian terms suggests something negative, condescending or assuming a lesser powered role or a threat to a man’s manhood/bravado.

But Iwan seems behind as tight pants once so vilified in dancehall by some of the same folks who are sporting them now he (Iwan) is not upset; bearing in mind some pants are so close we see prints and ass cheeks showing so sumptuous to the wandering mind.

Changing hearts and minds while forcing in some way or form the unlearning of these highly prized narratives is so needed. Law reform is one thing but the widening of understanding is a totally different ballgame.

Peace & tolerance

H

also see:

The entitlement problem from hypermasculine MSM & negative outcomes

Lyrics, not gays, tearing down reggae or dancehall

Dancehall Acts with Anti Gay Legacy Feud with each other as Creativity Fades

Alkaline (Rimming DJ) gets a homophobic response from newcomer Dwayno's track "Mr Faggoty"

Stigmatization of Effeminacy in Gay Jamaican Culture Part II

Vybz Kartel lashes back with "Woman Wi Love" song, has he forgotten it is he who blurred the lines

Sexual objectification & mystique of Black Gay Men, a brief look

Should we care about dancehall acts & rumours of gaydom?

Busy Signal recovers with "Too Many Men" in subtle messaged song

Dancehall act Busy Signal under fire for "I Love Girls Who Love Girls" song

I-Wayne's "Burn Out Sodom" hits at gay adoption, homosexuality & accuses msms of paedophilia today's Star headline just shows the queerness aesthetically of dancehall becoming more apparent:

see: Social media abuzz over fairer skin Khago

On Facebook, users compared the artiste’s change in appearance to Alkaline’s bleaching.

“So Alkaline bleach and get bigger inna Dancehall so other man a try do it and hope it get him luck,” said one user.

Another user posted that the entertainers are now going to extreme lengths to get attention.

“Man put things inna them eye, man a bleach the skin them get from God just fi stay relevant in Dancehall, it’s sad,” said the user.

also remember this?: CLICK HERE

Artistes Should Speak Against Political Violence, Poverty - Bounty Killer

Oh really is this the same Bounty Killer whose name is coined due to his public persona as being the self proclaimed warlord? Ironically he is silent on the murder music output he contributed to but loud on so called political violence; I wonder sometimes if this new found piss-bowl self righteous some older dancehall acts are now finding is so late and indeed hypocritical; remember Beenieman's tirade on Bad Boy's Trevor sex scene issue? 

when they (artistes like Beenie) helped to set the very voilent psyche that young men seem to aspire to with bravado and idealizing thuggery/hypermasculinity and misogyny.

The Gleaner carried this today:

With an election just around the corner, dancehall icon Bounty Killer is challenging recording artistes to make music with more substance and fulfilling content, especially social commentary. According to the artiste, known for songs like Poor People Fed Up, Anytime, Book Book Book, among others, the problems facing the lower class are no longer at the forefront of Jamaican music.

Bounty Killer says during his formative years, political violence was at its peak and he wanted his music to make a difference. He, therefore, yearns to see his fellow artistes tackle issues regarding politicians and their influence over the youth of the inner city.

"Some of these artistes are doing music just for the hype and stardom, and while that is also good, there are more important things. I used to take the poor people problem as my problem because I came into music to change certain things because at the time, political warfare was at its peak and the senseless violence over politics and politicians," he said.

Slippery Slope

The artiste says politicians have continued to fail the people of Jamaica, and when the music begins to fail to educate the masses, society will continue to go down a slippery slope.

"You know what they say: The more things change, the more they remain the same. The youths continue to hurt each other for politicians, yet there are people in Jamaica still living without running water, still don't have electricity and don't have roads. The youths need to speak up because it can't be just about flossing alone," he said.

The crime rate in 2015 has surpassed that of 2014, which is a clear indication that the Government failed to control criminal activities in an island that is already lacking in investments. Bounty Killer blames poverty for the spike in crime.

The Biggest Killer

"More people need to be singing for the poor because poverty is the biggest killer right now. People know me as an artiste, but I am also an advocate for justice. At first when I did songs like Poor People Fed Up, I did not do them because I thought I was going to get a big support. I did those songs because positive music needed to be heard," Bounty explained.

Bounty Killer is promoting a new song called Karma, featuring Lukie D. The single is a social commentary and tackles the problem of youth embroiled in criminal activities. He gave credit to reggae-dancehall artiste Bugle for his work where social commentary is concerned. However, not to be left out of the mix, reggae artiste Kabaka Pyramid is perhaps deserving of credit for his song, Well Done, which toys with politicians using sarcasm to highlight the errors of Jamaica's politicians.

He sings:"Election a when the tension a rise / Suh yu buy wi Kentucky, not to mention the fries / Anything fi secure yu vote / And then yu rob the people fi secure yu boat / Fi guh a Goat Island, weh the Chinese own / The whole Jamaica is a Chinese loan / Well done, Mr Politician man!"

ENDS

Has Bounty Killer forgotten his own words or his clashes with other dancehall acts with violence laden lyrics to empahsize misplaced bravado or has sought to apologise for inciting the very violence he now seemingly opposes overall and especially to gays in Jamaica? Remember these?: Deejays seek Obama's help for visa ..... there are consequences for actions & words or  What's wrong wid Bounty Killer? 2008

Met Police hypocrisy on homophobia - SMM London Bounty Killer refused to sign the symbolic Reggae Compassionate Act

remember this?:

Battyman fi get bun track

What's wrong wid Bounty Killer? 2008

Bounty Killer and his B****man comments at Shaggy’s fundraiser 2010

Anything to Remain Current ........... Bounty Killer Backs Anti Gay Religious Groups Stance

Dancehall act Busy Signal under fire for "I Love Girls Who Love Girls" song

Busy Signal recovers with "Too Many Men" in subtle messaged song

Busy Signal's "We Nah Dweet" hits out at Down Low life & a certain Kartellic act

Dancehall meets house music: Is Tolerance already there in the fusion but unrecognised? 2010

We need to speak up against homophobia in music 2009

LGBT History Month - Stop Murder Music 2008

Dancehall's princess "Spice" lesbophobic rant "No Gyal To Mi Ting "

Artistes Afraid To Tackle Issues says the Gleaner .... including murder music

Vybz Kartel lashes back with "Woman Wi Love" song, has he forgotten it is he who blurred the lines

Dancehall Acts with Anti Gay Legacy Feud with each other as Creativity Fades

Dancehall DJs warned again to avoid murder music at GT Taylor’s Extravaganza 2015 event

Street Dance DJs Clash over Playing of Sam Smith's Gay Themed 'Stay With Me" Song

If Bounty and company really want to be legitimate as I have said in previous posts they need to rescind or discontinue the public availability of their offending lyriced songs and openly apologize or show some true remorse for their hurtful words; then and only then will they will begin to get my support. But I may have to wait a lifetime for that to happen as violence and homophobic songs still sell. Buju Banton claims his Boom Bye Bye track was when he was fifteen years old yet he still earns from the song from iTunes etc while not separating himself from the track or pulling it from the market as a show of true tolerance.

also see:

Buju Banton's Boom Bye Bye still available on iTunes despite so called ban in 2008 2014

One half of sometimes anti gay duo Twins of Twins Double Standards - Politicians Use Music To Promote Their Own Agenda - Patrick Gaynor (Gleaner 22.11.15)


Andrew Holness & that 'Fish' comment; politicians who exploit homophobia

Who will have the ethical cojones to separate themselves from previously recorded murder materials? None for now I doubt.

Peace & tolerance

H

Alkaline (Rimming DJ) gets a homophobic response from newcomer Dwayno's track "Mr Faggoty"

Dear readers,

This one did not pass me I just never had to time to settle and put it together, so here it is as the war of words of sorts continue since the arrival of controversial artist Alkaline whose real name is Earlan Bartley, was born in 1993 in Kingston who released a song promoting rimming (an act some gay men also favour) in one line of a song that overall dealt with rough penetrative vaginal sex hence the interest via this blog.

In March I had looked the controversy and resulting death threats towards a fellow DJ with some public backlash in the post: "Rimming" promoting DJ gets blamed for freaky singjay's ostracism & death threats; Now comes Dwayno a newcomer in dancehall obviously piggy-backing on the controversy in order to make a name via his Facebook page as well whose correct name is Dwayne Forrester. The other controversial artist "J Amsterdam" with suggestive oral sex themed lyrics however did not come in the firing line of Dwayno (at least not yet), J Amsterdam has been reported in the Star News Entertainment section some time ago that he underestimated the backlash from his provocative "Wine Inna Mi Face" (sit or squat while rotating hips in ones face) song which is targeted for the heterosexual market, Ricky Carty and Demarco who also have very explicit materials have been spared too but it seems Alkaline's definitive reference to the anus as an erogenous zone is what has upset Dwayno and company. 

Alkaline

J Amsterdam

J Amsterdam also commented on Alkaline's 'anal licking' lyrics saying to another media outlet, "Alkaline is making it bad for me right now because people feel that he did the anal licking line because of me, Demarco and Ricky Carty. But what he did in his song with one line is worse than my entire song. This did me more harm than good because I have received no bookings, not even Tiana or D'Angel want to be associated with me. Persons have to be hypocrites to survive in this industry ... Jamaica is not ready for it, and even though I said oral sex in the song, I have never performed it,"

In fact Dwayno seems to be playing catch up with the latter two acts Demarco and J as his lates release "Sex Experience" attest.

Dwayno seen on the left with Vybz Kartel

"you shouldnt say so fagkaline you shouldn't say so

y you tell har fi put har tougue deh so

y u mek man pump like esso

when you see badman dont come deh so

mobay kington inna d ghetto

waltham man we kick off you head like eto

fagot dwoy better watch weh you talk 

Linstead man iron dogs we bark"

**** bouff dem (a mixtape)

Just some of the lines from one of his other tracks singling out Alkaline as promoting homosexuality under disguise as the Alkaline song explicitly instructs women to sit on his face and also perform "batty wash" (in one line of a stanza of the 2 minute song) or rimming as we know it to be named. The track has awakened Jamaicans revulsion to anal sex overall it seems be it with the same or opposite sex.

Here are two of the tracks now out blasting Alkaline, using "Fagakaline" as a stigmatizing name:

"No gal tongue caan guh near mi rear" (no female can put her tongue near/in my rear) is the line that gets some folks riled as witnessed at a few street dances that I have seen it spun by the disc jocks also "Nuh man caan touch mi rear" (no man cannot touch my rear); "If gal push tongue inna yuh batty yuh wi mek man fuck yuh inna yuh batty" (suggesting that if a girl rims you then it is likely you will allow yourself to be penetrated) as well usually causes an loud reaction causing the jocks to replay the track.

Some of the comments with regards to Alkaline's song are vitriolic to say the least such as:".........any man who make gal push tongue up dem asshole is a battyman!! alkaline getting off on gal licking him batty!! him worst dan nyamstardam!! mi would bun him out if him say him eat pussy!! but mi bun fire pan battyman more dan fire pan pussy sucker!! mi bun dem all but fire hotter for battyman!! alkaline a battyman!!"

here is the song in case you missed it:



Alkaline's public image however seems to have withstood the backlash thus far as a recent public performance he had positive reactions although he did not include the controversial materials in that set from his growing repertoire. His Facebook page also has the mixed reactions as some screenshots I took show with some persons linking him to the occult as well especially after the tattooing of his eyes as it were:

Even effeminate playright and roots play figure Shebada has weighed in by liking one of Alka's latest efforts released in March

see the video for the track HERE

Let us see if the Alka will respond or Dwayno continues his lyrical assault via some weird secular moralism while justifying multiple partnering, casual sex so why can't Alka be free to also express his own sexual desires or that of his listening audience who prior to now did not have a voice to do so.

also see:
Busy Signal's "We Nah Dweet" hits out at Down Low life & a certain Kartellic act

"Gay Look" for Kartel?

Popular Jamaican homophobic words 

Homosexuality & Civilization

Should we care about dancehall acts & rumours of gaydom?

Elephant Man's "A Nuh Fi Wi Fault" lyrics (flashback)

Vybz Kartel lashes back with "Woman Wi Love" song, has he forgotten it is he who blurred the lines of his own sexuality?

Out a Road: DJs who "hit out" hiding something?

Elephant Man called a "Fish" in dancehall rivalry 

Peace and tolerance

H