Buju Banton, the iconic entertainer who hails from Kingston, Jamaica, is preparing for the release of his brand new album, ‘Born for Greatness.” He celebrated his 50th birthday back on July 15th. In May, the well-loved entertainer performed in Trinidad and Tobago, at the annual ‘Redemption’ concert.
‘Born For Greatness’ will be available for purchase on September 8th. Buju told Dancehall Mag that he does not make bubble gum music, explaining that the 17-track album will encapsulate real life experiences that he will humbly share with the world. Selected by the Caribbean Awards Community as the organization’s first Humanitarian Award honoree for his Buju Banton Foundation, Buju is encouraging his fans and people around the world who are looking on, to walk with him as he continues on the path of making a difference.
THREE YEARS ONWARD
‘Born For Greatness’ comes three years after the artiste unleashed his first post-prison release album, ‘Upside Down 2020.’ It was a prophetic piece of work, something those observant of the world’s occurrences would agree, signaled the artiste’s intuitive ability, even as he maintained an ear for the street. Songs like ‘Buried Alive,’ ‘Lamb of God’ and ‘Lovely State of Mind,’ reminded fans of the reggae crooner’s incredible talent, all the while penetrating the human psyche with lyrical and melodic inspiration. The album peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart and later became Buju’s sixth album to be nominated for Best Reggae Album at the Grammys.
Buju Banton remains a pillar of strength in the caribbean music industry, even as dancehall has undergone an immense transformation with the likes of new age artistes, Skillibeng, Skeng, Valiant and others bringing a different experience to fans. He maintains however that the world must be invited to experience the traditional sounds of an island and region that has influenced the international industry over many years of music. “It’s a turning point again musically for me because I’m here and I’m seeing the direction the music is going,” he told DancehallMag.com. “I’m seeing what’s happening in the global community geopolitically, as well as how the music from various other enclaves has somehow put ours aside. Now, it’s not any fault of those [types] of music why ours is not on the forefront like it should be. It’s more so a fault of ours because our production somehow stepped back from what it ought to be.”
