ARTISTES WEIGH IN ON – ‘GRAMMY GAY MARRIAGE’
Some members of the Jamaican music industry are of the view that the recently concluded Grammy Awards show, went overboard by ‘marrying’ gay couples on live television, exposing the lifestyle which is still illegal in several countries to millions of viewers who simply wanted to see their favourite artistes acknowledged for their contribution to the music industry.
According to gospel artiste Omari, he still wants a Grammy Award and is not bashing others for their sexual practices. However, he says the decision by the show’s organisers to broadcast the marriage had nothing to do with the celebration of music.
without warning
“I am not surprised by certain things no more and I am not shocked that these things are happening, but I don’t think that was the time and place for that. A lot of families, including children, were watching and to just to allow that to come into everybody’s home, I just don’t think that should have happened; it just exploded on our screens without warning like a bomb,” the Jehovah Guide Me singer said.
Omari also said the ‘gay marriage’ overshadowed the live performances and the persons who won awards.
“That is what people are talking about now instead of the performances and the winners. Not Jay-Z nor the awards, just the marriage,” he added.
Omari is currently working on a new album to be called Royalty and hopes his comments on the show will not rule out a possible nomination for 2015.
Publicist Karl Durrant and his artiste, Baby Chris, also shared their view on the stunt. “I think it was out of place to try to use the media and music to try and sensitise people on homosexuality. I wish they wouldn’t exploit music and the Grammy stage like that,” Durrant said.
Baby Chris, like Omari, made sure to highlight that he was not bashing homosexuals, but felt the gay marriage was out of place. “A man free fi live him life, but don’t put that in the public eye. But I still want a Grammy, I will just collect mine on the next stage,” the singjay who recently collaborated with Beenie Man for an effort called Ghetto Rozaysaid.
more cautious
Veteran reggae/dancehall artiste Singing Sweet was even more cautious than his fellow artistes on the issue. He says Jamaican artistes are on the radar for their opinions on homosexuality; therefore it’s better to keep personal views hidden from the public eye.
“I am travelling from 1991 and I see a lot of people in the world doing strange things, but to each his own. Mi nah glorify nothing. Mi just a be me and a nuh just because mi want a Grammy mek mi nah bash dem, but it’s a sticky situation and the artiste dem nuh waah lose dem visa and dem thing deh. My purpose in music is to help my family and help some other youths. I nah bash nobody and I never do any music wey bash people,” Singing Sweet declared.
The ‘mass wedding’ moment took place at the Grammys last Sunday during the performance of Caucasian rappers Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, who performed the pro-gay song Same Love, which features Mary Lambert. A total of 33 couples, including gay ones, were joined in matrimony by Queen Latifah.
[VIA – Jamaica Star]
