By Andrew Mayende
Buju Banton, the legendary reggae icon was born as Mark Anthony Myrie in Kingston, Jamaica in a less privileged neighborhood called Salt Lane. The name Buju means breadfruit in a Jamaican local dialect and was given to him by his mother as a child. 
Banton is a Jamaican word that refers to a respected storyteller, and it was adopted by Buju in tribute to deejay Burro Banton, whom Buju admired as a child. It was Burro’s rough gravelly vocals that Buju emulated and ultimately made his own.
Buju’s mother was a street vendor while his father worked as a labourer at a tile factory. He was the youngest of fifteen children born into a family that were descendants of the Maroons from Jamaica.
As a youngster, Buju often watched his favorite artists performing at outdoor shows and local dancehalls in Denham Town. At the age of 12, he picked up the microphone and began to work out his lyrical prowess under the moniker Gargamel. This was the starting point of the legend that Buju is today.
As fate would have it, in the course of his glowing career in which he won a prestigious Grammy Award, Buju was incarcerated in the US in 2011 on a 10 year sentence. In the year 2018, after 7 years behind bars Buju was set free in a long walk to freedom, travelling home to a heroic welcome. He went on to perform in a sold out and record breaking concert at the National Stadium in Kingston Jamaica under the banner “Long Walk To Freedom.”
This year (2020), he released the mega hit, Buried Alive, which is a super inspirational track off his new album Upside Down 2020. As he says in the track, we may not know what tomorrow may bring, but a glimpse of success can be seen from a distance.
Buried Alive:
I was buried alive but I’m still breathing
I don’t know what tomorrow may bring but I got a feeling
I am alive, there must be a reason
I was given one more chance, my heart still beating…………………
Buju has steadily continued to inspire humanity through his strong lyrical masterpiece. His deep voice continues to inspire generations and to give hope to many downtrodden that despite any false starts, a second chance at life is possible.
It’s not an easy road, but your destiny shall surely come to pass!-Buju ( Not an easy road and Destiny).
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