Aspiring dub poets and young musicians now have a new option for producing content through Supa Buss Production and Management.
Supa Buss Production is a new production house that aims to promote “clean” art forms, prioritizing them over the less wholesome content that dominates mainstream media, according to its founders.
The brainchild of producer/engineer Nigel Burrell and Ras Manga, born Gregg McCaw, Supa Buss “provides a space for unearthing the talents of dub poets and is focused on young singers [who are] coming up now,” Burrell told Loop News.
The new outfit takes its title from the Supa Mixe and Buss Dem Big brands, owned separately by Burrell and Ras Mang. It is a fusion of the backgrounds and expertise of the principals whose individual platforms are grounded in the concept of putting out clean, conscious music and dub poetry.
Gregg McCaw
The principals also plan to launch an annual event under their production outfit.
Speaking about the setup, Burrell said production will take place at his studio in Red Hills, Kingston.
Known for his work with Toots and the Maytals, Burrell holds an award for the Best Reggae Album category by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences for his work on the 2020 Got To Be Tough album.
Ras Manga brings his connections and the talents he unearths through his platform Buss Dem Big, which he launched a few years ago while he hosted another programme called Nature’s Table on a local radio station.
Buss Dem Big is aired weekly on Facebook and has garnered thousands of followers. It has seen the Jamaican Rastafarian interacting with and sharing the music of artistes from as far as Germany, Europe, Canada, Africa and Sri Lanka.
“Supa Buss is a product of the time. It comes out of the need to use music to help bring about change, shape minds and realign the culture through good quality music and dub poetry,” Ras Manga said.
Beginning with the artistes they are working with now, Burrell hopes the change will be felt sooner rather than later.
“I’ve been in the business for over 39 years and I don’t like what is going on now. The thing has changed so much, we have to be trying to build it back,” he said.
The men say the focus for right now is not on making money, but on building the brand and getting the word out to young talents.
“We working on establishing a good label and good product. When the money starts coming in, we will entertain that too. But, for right now, are we just working hard to get good music out,” Burrell said.
Another point of differentiation is the cost to the artistes, Ras Manga said noting the rate is “less expensive.”
Among the talents, they now produce are Ragga Jahmari, Burrell’s son; Proverb Nesta I – who hails from Zimbabwe; Don Minot out of Connecticut; dub poet Wize Wurds; Maveriq Mavo from South Africa and Mangaliso.
“We are working on some good songs and hoping for them to get big,” Burrell said.
For Ras Manga, the production label is the actualization of a dream he has had for a long time.
“It seems everything has just unfolded the right way in the right time,” he said.
