Fliprag: With eight guys in the band, how do you find a happy medium to keep everything cool on both a business and personal level?
Bridge: 'Cause everybody's scared of me.
Baraka: (laughs)
Bridge: No, we got a nice little bond together. Everybody kinda tight. It's like a family. Folks really don't skin out.
Baraka: Sometimes it's very dysfunctional but we find a way to make it very rational and keep it going.
Troy: Organized chaos.

Fliprag: You guys have great turnouts every week at Skully's. Do you think that is a result of somewhat having a corner on the reggae market in Columbus?
Troy: Yeah. But the Sunday night reggae thing has been going on a little over twenty years. It has been around for so long and we all come from other bands that have done it before us so it's just like a continuing effect. It grows on its own.
Baraka: And it helps to have really good talent. We seem to come together with good talent that we showcase in different styles of reggae, different vocalists…it's complimentary to the whole thing which is why people come to see us so much.

Fliprag: What are the shared aspirations of the band?
Troy: To really spread the message of reggae music. We all come from different backgrounds musically but somehow reggae music has brought us all together. We got guys that come from an R&B background, hip hop, funk, jazz fusion - and for some reason, reggae has brought us to this point. And it's good music. It's not talking about killing people, disrespecting women, and things of that nature. The big market right now is in Europe as far as good roots reggae. And Japan is a big market for dance reggae. And because we have so many different musical styles in this band, we want to put all that together and then spread it out.
Bridge: We haven't put a CD out yet. So all of us are looking more into getting ourselves out there to be heard as opposed to just coming to hear us on Sunday nights. Right now, you can't hear us in your shower or while you're cleaning your house.

Fliprag: There's certainly a notable blend of different styles and influences in the music. Was that intentional when putting the band together?
Baraka: All the guys in the band come from different backgrounds and they understand different influences and know how to compliment what we're doing. That way we just keep growing so the music keeps evolving to a higher level where it doesn't get stale or stagnant. 'Cause they have this idea about how to get that "other type of music" into what we're doing. So if you hear different influences, it's all for the good of what we're trying to do.

Fliprag: With so many influences and backgrounds, do you ever find yourself struggling to get back to basic roots reggae?
Cello: Everybody in this band seems to have a really good interpretation of reggae. We're all from the states, pretty much. And we all listen to and play reggae. We've played with one another in reggae bands and other bands that weren't reggae. I think these guys play roots reggae better than some of the authentic from-the-island reggae bands I hear. Because they love the music and have the talent to pull it off.
Baraka: What I like about this band is they respect reggae music to the fullest. They do their homework and they go home and try to understand the way it's supposed to be played.
Bridge: All of us have played with "authentic guys" from St. Lucia, Jamaica, St. Croix…we've been around. So everybody has taken a piece of that and made it their own. It's almost like we've lived on a lot of different islands. It's a bowl of goodness.
Cello: If you ever listen to these guys jokin' around, you might think they're from the islands. Just because the culture and music has rubbed off. They've been around it for so long that it becomes a part of you; respect for the music and the culture.

Fliprag: When writing, do you try to collaborate as a group or are the songs primarily written by individuals and then used by the band?
Baraka: We all have different ideas and write different songs. We don't have a problem learning it and playing. But as far as saying, "come together collectively and write a song," we have not done that on a consistent basis. I think that's something for the future.
Bridge: Everybody writes their own songs. We have three singers and we also have musicians that are writers as well. Musicians can pass songs over to the singers. Most the time, I'm more or less writing my own music.
Troy: With today's technology, people can sit at home and create the skeleton form of an idea and bring it to everybody. You may have one guy come up with a hook or a quick melody line and somebody else expands on it. So sometimes it doesn't take all of us together in one room to make it happen.
Baraka: What's so great about it is Bridge could write a song and bring it to the band. And if the band doesn't like it, Bridge can still put that on an album of his own. With the technology, he could do that. And there wouldn't be any harsh feelings about him writing a song he didn't share with the band. That opens it up for everybody to say, "We can either write with the band or we can write on our own." Gives you a lot of freedom to be a writer.
Troy: Some guys feed off each other differently than another set of guys. Or sometimes, Dougie will have a set of lyrics that may fit something he might wanna sing. He might write the tune but lyrically, he might have Bridge or Baraka in mind.


Fliprag: In most bands, singers don't usually embrace other members' submissions of lyrics or vocal melodies so easily. How do you think you manage to do it without butting heads or egos flaring?
Baraka: It's because we've been together for so long. If a newcomer came in, brought a song, and wanted to dominate the whole CD, I'm quite sure we probably would have a problem. Even though the music or his lyrics were really good, the ego probably would step in. But because we've been together so long, we can be humble and let everybody shine.

Fliprag: So how do eight guys so seemingly well-matched to each other come together with one purpose?
Troy: A love of music. The music creates a common bond and a mutual respect for each other. I couldn't imagine my life with these guys not in it. Knowing what I know and have learned from each individual guy in this band has helped me in some way, shape, form, or fashion.

Fliprag: Seeing you guys interact together is more like watching a family than bandmates.
Baraka: What made us a family was understanding what a family is. There's drama in families. But as long as you can weave your way through the family and understand that the family is always together - as long as we stay united - we can always reach for something.
Dougie: It's a blessed acceptance of our differences. It was meant to happen…nothing personal can interrupt the flow.
Troy: It's a divine order. You can't question that.