November Rain said:
ah leave the beenie man alone....
yagga ya yagga ya yagga ya....
It is Buju Banton, not Beenie Man. Here is the story. When Buju Banton was a very young artist one of his first songs was "Boom Bye Bye". The lyrics in this song are "boom bye bye in a batty boy's head" - A "Batty Boy" is a derogatory term for a gay man in Jamaican patios. So, many people believe that he was advocating shooting gay people.
When Buju first came out as a singer, he was strictly a dance-hall artist. His songs were that of a kid in this genre. As he progressed as a singer, he became a Rastafarian. So, yes, he once sang "Boom Bye Bye". However, ever since his ground-breaking album "Til Shiloh" when he became Rasta, not only has Buju's lyrics and messages changed, but his sound has switched from strictly dance-hall to more of a roots sound.
Buju has repeatedly apologized for his early behavior as misguided young man, but groups for Gay rights have never forgiven him because he still plays "Boom Bye Bye" occasionally at concerts. Now, I can understand how these groups can be mad that Buju still plays the song, but they do not understand the culture of Jamaica at all.
Personally, I have very mixed feelings about the whole scenario. When I first heard "Til Shiloh" in the mid-90s when it came out, I was blown away by the album. Buju became an instant favorite of mine. I then discovered his early dance-hall work and it was great for that type of reggae. When I learned what "Boom Bye Bye" was about, I was torn. The song (not the lyrics) is great. So, Buju usually simply throws in a tiny bit of the song at shows. I hate the Buju has this song in his past, because his stuff since he became Rasta is really great and really loving.
Basically, this is a case of Buju writing a song in his misguided youth that he has never been forgiven for writing. It has been 15+ years since he wrote that song and none of his songs have been close to that type of a song. In fact, since Buju became Rasta, all of his songs have been about love, understanding and peace. Check out some Buju classic albums like "Til Shiloh", "Inna Heights" and "Unchained Spirit" and you will see that the misguided kid who once wrote "Boom Bye Bye" has grown into a man who no longer harbors the pain and anger of a young man who was raised in a very poor, very volatile area of Jamaica.
Tough call on Buju because he has grown as an artist and person where Beenie Man has not.
I think you just discovered Gods true name!
