Just a day after Sizzla Kalonji caused an uproar on social media by burning two plaques he received from Palestinian-American producer DJ Khaled, he reported to the stage for the second day of the Welcome to Jamrock Reggae Cruise (WTJRC) in Montego Bay, Jamaica.
The Just One Of Those Days singer, who is notorious for being unapologetically outspoken, was seemingly in a calmer state of mind and even wore a white suit to exude this ‘purity.’
“All who proud ah yuhself, hands in di air,” he said to expectant fans who had waited until almost 1:00 am to see him perform. He continued, “And I like this audience enuh. No segregation, no racism, alright? Peace love and unity and make sure you please remember the suffering people in the ghetto and have respect for yourselves, and other persons.”
“So, this is Sizzla Kalonji … hope you enjoy!” the veteran added.
The previous day’s brouhaha seemed to be of no concern to his supporters. Sleepy faces and incessant yawns were the order of the night for multiple people who waited impatiently to see Kalonji, who closed the show. There were also evidently more persons drawing for seats to rest their aching feet from the blue of standing as they watched Burning Spear and, later, Bounty Killer and Cham perform.
Conveniently, excitement burst through the crowd once the man of the hour touched the stage with his band and two backup vocalists. The performance emanated positivity.
Sizzla knew exactly what his supporters wanted to hear and fed them every bit of it. From Thank You Mama, to Give Me A Try, Solid as a Rock, Woman I Need You, and Praise Ye Jah— he was on a roll.The veteran singer sprinkled “thank yous” in between songs. Co-conceptualiser of the cruise and renowned Reggae artist Damian Marley joined him on stage in the penultimate moments of his performance and embraced him—a picture-perfect moment.
Kalonji has since deleted the dramatic posts of the plaque burning from social media.
The singer, whose given name is Miguel Collins released his first album Burning Up in 1996 at the age of 20 on the RAS Records label. His self-produced The Messiah album earned him his first Grammy Award nomination in 2013.
With more than 70 albums to this credit, Sizzla’s most acclaimed are his sophomore project Black Woman and Child, which was released in 1997, and Da Real Thing, which was released in 2002.
