Each generation has a voice that convincingly conveys past
tribulations, contemporary triumphs and future aspirations; throughout the
1990's, the voice of Jamaica has been Mark Anthony Myrie, better known to
Reggae fans as Buju Banton. Buju has dominated Jamaican music with a rough
gravel yet keenly melodic deejay (the Jamaican equivalent of a rapper)
delivery, transcending the parameters of dancehall Reggae and serving as a
globally embraced artistic paradigm for the 21st century. The wide ranging
musical styles and sophisticated lyrical concerns Buju embraces throughout
Unchained Spirit (his debut release for Epitaph subsidiary Anti Inc.) will
certainly  resonate with fans regardless of racial, cultural and socio
economic backgrounds.

    "My efforts here are not to crossover but to go through boundaries and
borders freely and be heard by all people who are citizens of the free
loving earth," reasons Mr. Banton. "Like the title, I'm an unchained
spirit, a free spirit and my intention is to make sure this one goes out
across the world to satisfy the musical and spiritual hunger of the nation,
to bring us closer today than yesterday to our freedom and our need to come
together to solidify the human race." 

    Buju Banton (bom July 15, 1973) is the youngest of 15 children born to
a 'higgler', street vendor mother in Kingston, Jamaica. A descendant of the
Maroons, (the fierce freedom fighters who fended off attacks from the
British colonial regiments) he was nicknamed Buju (the Maroon name for
breadfruit, a starchy round vegetable) as a child; Banton is a designation
bestowed upon a commander of lyrical distinction as well of the name of the
Deejay who had the greatest impact on Buju's coarse vocal style, Burro
Banton. Buju, entered Jamaica's musical fraternity at age 12 as the
'Lambada Man', captivated by deejay's lyrical skills as they chat over
records played by sound system selectors in the dancehall. "Being in
dancehall at such a young age, seeing people with microphones, hearing the
music was the most mystical feeling I ever encountered," he recalls. "The
first time I got the chance to make a song my head swell so big, I knew
right there there was no turning back." In 1991 Banton met (producer) Dave
Kelly then an engineer at producer Donovan Germain's Penthouse studios in
Kingston; soon the teenage Deejay's career accelerated into high gear on
the strength of several Penthouse single, particularly 'Love Me Browning'
an ode to light skinned women which caused great controversy in color
conscious Jamaica. Buju's debut album Mr. Mention (Penthouse) followed in
1992, breaking all sales records on the island and earning the young artist
more number one singles than any other Reggae artist, including Bob Marley.

    At just 21 years old, Buju's 1993-release Voice of Jamaica (Mercury)
featuring track such as 'Operation Ardent', 'Deportee' and the safe sex
anthem 'Willy Don't Be Silly', was lauded for the unprecedented social
commentary it brought to the dancehall. Buju Banton, now a superstar in
Jamaica, also established himself as a musical force in urban America as
the first dance hall deejay to sellout New York City's 5600 seat Paramount
Theater. Banton continued to innovate, implementing the spiritual
principals Banton had previously collaborated with Rancid on the title song
from their 1999 album Life Won't Wait and together they wrote 'Misty Days'
after the groups sojourn in Jamaica.

   Since the early 1990's to the threshold of a new millennium, Buju Banton
has metamorphosed from a brash teenage phenomenon into a self assured
deejay and singer, visionary producer and successful entrepreneur who runs
his own Aksum Recording Studio and Gargamel Productions. The wide-ranging
social and stylistic approach offered on Unchained Spirit reflects the
changes, challenges, circumstances and criticisms, which Buju has
surmounted artistically and personally. "We always want challenges to prove
ourselves worthy of the life we living and the air we breathing," he
explains. "Unchained Spirit is me expressing myself with the art form I've
been blessed to work in because making music, that is my joy. We try to
bring forth all kinds of renditions in the blend to make the music sound
exciting so each particular track can take your ear."