Marketing consultant, TV host, writer and entertainment industry insider Donovan ‘JR’ Watkis has a theory that the ejection of the Noise Abatement Act would allow greater development of reggae and dancehall music. Jamaican.
Talk to the gleanerWatkis said even with the law in place, music and culture have proven their strength and potential to translate into bigger revenue.
“The law is the problem because dancehall and reggae music has survived years of oppression, even with the law. Without this oppressive law, the music will survive even more, [but once in place]you can always use it to stop a dance,” he said.
“The Noise Abatement Act, which targets dancehall and reggae music, needs to be repealed, reshaped and refiled because it affects the way music is developed,” Watkis added.
In his latest publication, Reggae Dancehall: insight into the transformation of cultural capital into financial capitalwhich he describes as a “book album”, Watkis explores his theories among those of others, including artists and producers, “regarding the value of music and the use of reggae and dancehall culture of Jamaica as a competitive advantage in global music”. industry”.
“Each chapter is dedicated to a different thought,” he said of the publication, calling the 44 chapters tracks.
Watkis features interviews with over 40 personalities who have successfully navigated international markets and climbed to the top, including Sean Paul, Shaggy, Damian Marley, as well as Denyque, Walshy Fire and Usain Bolt. Topics such as the relationship between reggae and other genres, cultural appropriation, fashion and culture, mainstreaming, authenticity, digital streaming and marketing, the need for cultural spaces and Accommodating legislations are tackled by the author and the personalities presented.
“The government has a role to play in the development of music, and if it actively suppresses music by the forces by shutting down dance and community dances, then development takes longer,” he said. . “There is no industry without the right infrastructure. They don’t lock down larger events or festivals at 2am, and it doesn’t matter if there is access to a permit, everyone is closed and that shouldn’t be the case in Bob Marley country.
By law, no one should sing, play a musical or loud instrument, or operate or operate a loudspeaker, microphone or sound amplification device from private premises or public places at any time of day or night when sound is audible within one hundred meters of the source of that sound. If it is reasonably capable of causing annoyance to persons for specified hours beyond the distance of one hundred meters near a dwelling house, hospital, nursing home, an infirmary, hotel or guest house, this sound is presumed to cause annoyance. The periods covered are between 02:00 and 06:00 on Saturday and Sunday, and between midnight and 06:00 on weekdays.
“The Noise Abatement Act is designed against the entertainment industry because the church does not respect these hours,” he offered, adding that “a public address system should be considered localized media and playing music should be considered freedom of the press”.
He also argues that in other countries like the UK and Germany there are large arenas equipped with audio technology to accommodate and showcase our homegrown talent.
“Our national stadium is for sports and the arena is not big enough. We need proper acoustic venues equipped with audio technology for our creatives to create, rehearse and perform. We need a stadium 5,000 to 10,000 seats dedicated to our music, which would benefit everyone,” he suggested.
Watkis worries that reggae and dancehall are not only being silenced by law, but also that many artists have yet to grasp the importance of understanding the craft. Although the book targets people inside and outside the music industry, it anticipates that recording artists, producers, engineers, songwriters, composers and musicians will be motivated to read it.
“People who progress in the industry are those who have the knowledge, those who understand how to plan, prepare and strategize. Those who don’t read or try to find the information are those who fail. not,” he said.
stephanie.lyew@gleanerjm.com
