Interview with Dandelion by Jakob Levi at the Atrium venue in Uppsala Sweden 2007-11-10

Dandelion came out of nowhere when Conscious Sounds dropped his "Adversary" the other year. Atleast so it seemed. We had the chance to link up with Dandelion for a short talk about his history on sound systems, musical influences and more.

 

Guidelight Movement: Greetings Dandelion.

Dandelion: Hello.

GLM: Could you introduce yourself for those who don't know you and your music?

DL: Ok, my singer name is Dandelion and I'm from England. I've only just now come to release anything. Like the first release I did was, it was about a year ago actually, with Conscious Sounds. I released "Adversary" on Dougie's (Wardrop) label Conscious Sounds. But I started with reggae in Norwich, and not in London, which is a couple of hours away from London. I've been singing since about year 2000 with some sound systems in Norwich and then I moved to London and got introduced to some people there and started having things released just recently.

GLM: So when did you first pick up deejaying then?

DL: It was around 2000 as well. I must been around seventeen or something and there was a sound system that were playing regulary in Norwich and that kind of inspired me. But I was born in the West Indies though I only lived there till I was seven but I remember when I was living there, from when I was really young, I used to really like dub more than the calypso. I remember really liking dub more than anything else when I was really young. But since I moved from Tobago I never really had an interest in reggae that much but then in Norwich a sound system who started playing, Rebel Lion Soun System, and they had regular nights and I used to go down to every one of them. Around that time, it must have been the late ninties I remember having a job in a carpark and I was just thinking of lyrics when I was wondering around by myself. Then one night at a Rebel Lion session I asked one of the selectors if I could have a go on the mic and I had a little go and then they asked me to come back and they kind of incourage me. Eventually they even put my name on the flyer. I have to thank them as well because Simon Reality, the main selector of Rebel Lion,...because Rebel Lion is from London originally, so when I moved down there, Simon, because he's connected and knows alot of people, he knows Dougie and alot of people involved in roots in London. He took me around to Dougie's studio and out of his own pocket paid for the day. Dougie had never heard of me. He paid for the day said he wanted to record an artist but it was really just for me to be introduced to Dougie. He paid the money and I recorded some songs. They weren't specials for Rebel Lion but I kind of made sure that they would be able to be released if Dougie wanted to and then he wanted to, so that's really where it all started, about a year and a half ago.

GLM: So where did it lead from that first release "Adversary" to now?

DL: Yeah, I recorded "Adversary" and he wanted to release it. So when I went back afterwards to do some stuff he (Dougie) took a video with his phone and he put it on youtube. I think after working with Dougie the first people who approached me were Meditative Sounds. I never really heard of them before that. They saw what I did with Dougie on youtube and got in touch with Dougie who asked me to voice a track for them. That was the first one. Then through Dougie as well Dubateers heard me and they asked me to voice a couple of songs as well. I've been singing reguarly with Dubateers now for the last half of year or something. Yeah, that's kind of where it's at right now. With Dubateers I've been to Croatia to play out there with them. I think with every thing they get out in Europe they going ask me to come with them as well so it's good. It's only been for a short amount of time and it's going really well.

GLM: I heard you have links to a sound system called Free King as well?

DL: Yeah, Free King Sound. In Norwich there were reggae before Rebel Lion but in the early ninties when Rebel Lion moved up to Norwich from London. Through them really, they inspired a whole generation of people into reggae. They inspired Foundation Sound which is another sound in Norwich that been around for quite a while and then in turn through Rebel Lion directly Free King was been inspired. Free King Sound has been encouraged by Rebel Lion and Foundation so much so that they all three now promote a night in Norwich that's going to be starting soon. Like a reguarly fortnight in a club.

GLM: You as a young man, where do you see the roots and dub scene in years to come?

DL: I think dub and roots will always have an underground scene like it has for many years, or decades actually. I think it will carry on being underground and as an artist I'm not just strictly into the roots scene. At the moment I'm actually working on material that's been like a working progress for years with friends of mine, dub producers and other people who I met that are producers. I've constantly been on the look out for a kind of progressive sound that mixes reggae, hip hop, r'n'b and whatever else, like electro. I've been on the look out for something that's kind of fuses all. There's been things already, like there's lot of dancehall, hip hop dancehall, hip hop that's been mixed with the roots. There's alot of fusion out there. But I'm personally interested in trying to do something with my voice that's applying itself across different genres. I think the sound I'm looking for will be able to be played on a roots sound as well but it will also be accessible to other people, if you know what I mean.

I don't think there's any danger for roots to be exploited and ruined if being too popular because I think the music as it is, that people love and that people love to play through sound systems, I think the way it is it won't be exploited and ruined by the mainstream because it doesn't got that mainstream appeal that's going to ruin the scene that's it done with other genres. It got such a strong identity that the core will always be the same. But I personally see it as a interesting thing to try to find an original fusion of roots and other things to kind of get a taste of it to maybe get into the mainstream. That's what I'm trying to do.

I think roots has so much more potential to grow in the underground in Europe as well. As it is so established in Britian it hasn't been necessarily tarnished in any way. I think it has a long way to go in the rest of Europe. To kind of grow as underground music in the first place before anything. Before it's affected by any mainstream potential. But then again I'm not too sure. I think in Italy you see it's kind of breaking through to the mainstream a little bit.

GLM: Yes, you got a big reggae scene in Italy, France and Germany...

DL: Yeah, that's the thing. It don't know too much about the European scene, of how it's going in France and Germany since I haven't experienced it too much.

GLM: Roots reggae music is commonly called message music. What are your thoughts around that?

DL: It's fundamental really. As a roots singer I'd feel ridiculous if I'd sing anything else than conscious lyrics and I wouldn't represent myself in any other way than conscious within the roots scene. I think it's very important because the message is what's kept it so pure over all these years and how it's still growing in Europe and how it's been inspiring so many people. All it takes is one person to be inspired and to get a sound system and play out. Than it kind of inspires a whole generation in where ever that sound system plays. It's amazing how that happens. It's so sincere and most people involved in it is losing money because they're just doing it because they want to do it. It got nothing to do with the business. I think that it's the message that's keeping it alive that way. Along with the music obviously.

Everyone involved kind of feels like the reason why they're inspired by the music in the first place is kind of enough for them. It's not the money or the prestige what it's all about. So it's very important. As an artist, I think, I'll always try to promote the message within the music.

GLM: So who inspired you then?

DL: I think when growing up in the West Indies, Tobago. As I said before I'd always like the dub music and I think about the time I left Tobago, it was 1990 when I left, and I can see clearly that the style of the late eighties and early ninties dancehall has played a strong part in my style, because that was the first kind of reggae that I was into. That I heard. That I grew up with. Artists like Super Cat, maybe Barrington Levy and some other early dancehall. I think that's mostly inspired my style but I'm always trying to be versatile and kind of incorporate all kinds of styles in what I'm doing. But I have a passion for that late eighties early ninties dancehall.

GLM: Alright. So what can we expect from Dandelion in the future then?

DL: I'm going to carry on doing the roots as much as I can and carry on where ever I can find work. Eventually I'm going to promote myself as a roots singer because I haven't really got a myspace or anything like that yet. So eventually I see myself doing that but in my own time I'm trying to come up with an album of songs that represents roots but might be able to cross over into other genres as well.

GLM: Alright lion, many thanks for your time.

DL: That's alright. Thank you.

 

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