The Editor, Sir:

I have serious issues with dancehall which I define as the popular Jamaican music expression and associated culture that had its genesis circa 1980. It is the art form and associated value system represented by Beenie Man, Bounty Killer, Vybz Kartel, et al.

There was a recent episode in the United States where Don Imus, a popular radio talk show host, got fired for referring to the Rutgers University women's basketball team as a bunch of "nappy-headed hos". The comment sparked outrage and eventually led to the firing of Mr. Imus. However, the ensuing debate was even more interesting.

The spotlight was now on rap music, and the question was: Is it OK for rappers to refer to African-American women as 'bitches and hos', but not OK for Imus to do the same? I listened to the arguments on both sides, and it was not all along racial lines. There were quite a number of blacks who argued that it was clear hypocrisy and double standard, and that rap music needs to be cleaned up.

Parallels with dancehall

This is my position. I could not help seeing the parallels with dancehall music. I believe they are one and the same, the difference being just a matter of accents. Dancehall has evolved (or devolved) into artless crap. There are many artistes, but no art. There is no art of word or instrument. The message is excessively negative, violent and anti-social.

It is astounding that one can be consistently talking about killing people 'marrow pon the ceiling' and it not be a cause for concern. I am baffled as to why the radio stations, the Broadcasting Commission, and whoever else has responsibility, see nothing wrong with littering the airwaves with this violent, pathological ranting. Firstly, I thought this was all bad art. Then I thought, what of the states of mind of these 'artistes'.

It is naive to underestimate the power of art. Dancehall is no longer about individual artistes, it has become a force, a force that informs people and shapes the psyche. It has become extremely negative, and we cannot as a society continue to have it this way. We must either revise this art form or destroy it, because I have no doubt that it is destroying us.

I am, etc.,

Princeton Ebanks

Greater Portmore, St. Catherine

Via Go-Jamaica