Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
THE THEME of Tuesday night's edition of 'Per-Verse' att Weekenz on Constant Spring Road, was 'Losing Your Poetic Virginity - Come Touch the Mic'.
The host, Nadia Styles, said that "People are going to give their personal experiences, their perception of the world, what they did yesterday."
That did not quite cover the topic and tone of Locskley Comrie.
Sitting on the edge of a chair on the stage, his voice impassioned, Comrie gave a searing, factual condemnation of the justice system and sexual predators who target children.
He spoke of a man who stole three mangoes in Vineyard Town, Kingston, and was given a three-year sentence. He related going to the Tower Street Adult Correctional Facility to visit the man.
"When you see the brother. Small. They abused him," Comrie said. He appealed, but while the appeal was going through he had to stay in prison. "It took two years before the Governor-General and the Chief Justice decided to give him a bligh," Comrie said.
He then compared that to the suspended sentence given to a man who pleaded guilty to selling cocaine.
Then there was the case of a young lady who wanted to go to HEART for training, but could not raise the money for items such as shoes and clothes. Last Thursday, she hung herself.
"Keisha hang herself for $6,000; now we raising $100,000 to bury her," Comrie said. That led to another matter, Comrie saying that "Keisha who died, she got pregnant when she was 13 ... Our little girls are being brutalised and you and I have to stop it. Today, the nasty men of Jamaica are sodomising our children."
He was followed by a flute, drumming and poetry performance by Atiba, along with dancing by Tioma.
On a night when there was more music than verse and Styles attributed the late start to a combination of technical problems and an audience that in the main stuck loyally to the 'naa come firs'' philosophy, the opening guitar and trombone duo Ace of Melody made it well worth the wait.
With trombonist standing and guitarist sitting to also take lead vocals, a four-count led to a beautiful start of a love song, the trombonist leaning over to add harmony vocals where required. That was followed by an instrumental, which the guitarist said was a tribute to his grandmother, and they finished with Africa.
Sage contributed poetry, going a capella into a take on death ("funeral tun new attraction/first casualty a de politician. designer runway at the graveside") until he got a rhythm as requested. He was more mobile on stage for Empress Impressive, putting emphatic body language into the poem and ending on a low "inner moods" to good applause.
Genie Slick's somewhat delicate speaking voice transformed into a husky tone for the trio of songs that she sang parts of, standing as she accompanied herself on guitar. She started with One Day, then went deeper for her upcoming single which honoured her Guardian Knight, cutting that one short as well, without seeming to do so intentionally.
Atiba started without words with Afro Blue, the notes from his flute rippling, thrilling, floating comfortably in the upper register then descending to join a guttural hum, then going back up again.
"I think that what the brethren was talking about was misplaced allegiances," Atiba said of Comrie. "In 1855, 97 per cent of Africans in America were working for white folks. In 2005, 97 per cent of Africans are still working for white folk in America."
