Jonathan Emile Releases 'Savanna' Video

Photo: Liquid x Happiness

Jamaican-Canadian singer, rapper, activist, conference speaker, poet, and cancer survivor, Jonathan Emile has premiered the first official video from his upcoming album Space-in-Between (January 24th - MindPeaceLove / Tuff Gong International) with leading online reggae magazine Reggaeville. Directed by Fernando F. Hevia, the "Savanna" video pays homage to the Montreal-based artist's mother's hometown of Savanna-la-Mar, on the southwest coast of Jamaica. Emile takes the viewer on a guided tour through the sights, sounds, smells, and vibes of the Westmoreland parish capital.

"Shooting this video was mad -- between the checkpoints, motorcycle accidents, and crashing a drone into electric power lines on the final shot of the day, we somehow managed to get it done," mused Emile. Of the "Savanna" track, which progressive reggae outlet Rootfire hailed as a "banger," Jonathan offered, "the riddim takes you back to the dancehall sounds of the early 90’s and gives you an unpredictable feel in terms of arrangement & structure -- we wanted to achieve the same in the video." He added, "we juxtaposed shots of the messy normalcy of the market on Great George Street, against the natural beauty of the cliffs. We wanted the whole video to take you back -- in a lot of ways, Sav looks and feels frozen in time and still echoes the era that gave us some of the most legendary dancehall music."

Jonathan painted the picture further, as he recalled, "upon entering the market we, of course, spoke to people to explain what we were filming. Man dem asked if I was the DJ, and naturally they wanted to check my credentials before participating. I performed the song acapella to a small crowd and talked to them about my mom being from Sav and how my family was from Carawina (up near Petersfield where Peter Tosh was from). We were shown nuff respect, with the participation of ladies, children and men contributing to the scenes and helping to run logistics for us."

Emile's debut album The Lover/Figher Document featured guest vocalists like Kendrick Lamar, Murs, and Buckshot. Spaces-in-Between finds Jonathan exploring dub, reggae, and dancehall. The debut single "Savanna," produced by Canadian singer-songwriter Paul Cargnello, was inspired by Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley's "Welcome to Jamrock," but focuses specifically on the town of Savanna-la-Mar where Emile spent some of his formative years exploring and absorbing Jamaica. In many ways, Savanna embodies the Jamaican experience through Jonathan Emile’s eyes. Emile chants over an early dancehall riddim about origins, family, social and economic struggles, and his pilgrimage to Westmoreland, Jamaica.

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