ON the evening of November 4 2007, the world was transfixed on the historic presidential elections in the United States.
Barack Obama, a first-term senator from Illinois, was elected the first black president of that country. The landslide result set off global celebrations.
At Penthouse studio in Kingston, music producer Donovan Germain and deejay Tony Rebel recorded Blackman Redemption, a song commemorating the occasion. Singjay Queen Ifrica and singer Nikki Burt also performed on the track which Rebel said captured the once-in-a-lifetime milestone.
“Wi realised the fact dat in our lifetime wi si a black man in the White House which most people neva believe woulda happen. Whether or not he has lived up to expectations, wi can tek solace in being part of history,” Rebel told the Jamaica Observer.
President Obama is scheduled to visit Jamaica on April 9 for talks with government officials led by Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller.
The American leader’s day-long visit is likely to have a tight itinerary but Rebel hopes he will be able to present him a copy of Blackman Redemption, which is driven by the music of the Bob Marley song of the same name.
President Obama has pointed to Marley’s message having a sobering impact on him during his college years.
“Wi know tings going be tight, but is a great opportunity to give him a copy or two,” said Rebel.
Shortly after Obama announced his candidacy for president, reggae artistes hailed his ascendancy from US senator to White House aspirant, in song.
Cocoa Tea’s Barack Obama set the tone, followed by gospel singer Lester Lewis’s I Saw a Black Man in the White House.
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