Kingston: Look At Me

Hi, class. Let's talk about St. Andrew Parish, Jamaica:

Home to Trench Town. Birthplace of reggae, the Wailers, Toots and the Maytals, Beenie Man etc. etc.

Home to Kingston's Tuff Gong International record label founded by The Wailers in 1965 and recording location for a sometimes shocking roster of musicians, many simply hoping to tie their name to the legendary studio. You can scope Wikipedia or go straight to Tuff Gong to learn more but - spoiler alert - Sinead O'Conner makes an appearance.

Home to Gyptian. Born in St. Andrew's Parish. Reborn daily as he's blasted from the windows of many a car in Brooklyn since "Hold Yuh" released (and subsequent billboard climb) in 2010. Not a song to play your mother if she's got a knack for deciphering a thick Jamaican accent. Dad might be into it, though.

Lastly, meeting place of Major Lazer, the collaboration of DJs Diplo and Switch (American and British, respectively) whose first album Guns Don't Kill People...Lazers Do was recorded Tuff Gong Studios. Clearly, Major Lazer didn't exactly start from nothing. Introduced while working with MIA, the list of guest appearances on their first album is an absurdly powerful list of people. Even then, by the time Diplo met MIA and Switch, he'd made more than a name for himself in dance music. Today, Diplo's liner notes are like a quiet (or not-so-quiet) music takeover. He's co-written, produced and otherwise collaborated with a some of the biggest performers to date (MIA, Kid Cudi, Britney Spears, the artist formerly known as Snoop Dogg). 

I'll be first one to say that Major Lazer's videos can be boring (oh, SICK! hot chicks in cheekies blowing SMOKE! - Look out, Terry Richardson!). But this video, shot in Kingston, is perfect. Just try to tell me I'm wrong:

The point is this: These two songs share roots in a place where, arguably, much of today's most influential musicians originated, recorded or just pretended to be affiliated.