![\"\"](\"https:\/\/loopnewslive.blob.core.windows.net\/liveimage\/sites\/default\/files\/987ed795e280ff998fd89b4db919d346konshens_red_reign_album_cover_easy-resize.com_.jpg\" "\\"Cover")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nCover of Konshens new album, Red Reign<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That should be clear on his new album, which was birthed during the time he spent in Jamaica last year when the entire world was on lockdown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Being forced to sit still with nowhere to go, was a period of mental and emotional reckoning for the artiste, birth name Garfield Spence. He grappled with several issues, among them the death of his brother Delmark \u201cDelus\u201d Spence, who took his own life in 2016 as well as his rollercoaster marriage to Latoya Wright.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThese things are trauma, it moulds and shapes you as a person. Losing my brother, I haven\u2019t figured out how that works yet, it is a lifelong thing. Even if not in your day to day, how you process things, it changes you,\u201d he revealed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In March, he released the first single off the album, \u201cCan\u2019t Stay Sober\u201d, a moody and provocative meditation on the pros and cons of self-medication, which spoke to his alcohol abuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Konshens was driven to write \u201cCan\u2019t Stay Sober\u201d after taking stock of his own drinking and admitting to himself that he might have a problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRight now, I drink way too much and this song helped me to realise that, and now I’m taking steps to kick it,\u201d he said at the time of release. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Being alone in the stillness of his life gave him clarity and unleashed a level of creativity that was definitely cathartic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe album was therapy for me. From abusing alcohol and being depressed, it was an outlet,\u201d said Konshens, who recorded 73 songs. \u201cThat saved me, my family wasn\u2019t there with me in Jamaica; I was stuck there with just me and my music,\u201d he said, likening his new renewed vigour to 2012 when he released his debut album Mental Maintenance and established himself as the king of \u2018gyal tunes\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Though he was reluctant to divulge too many details about the new album, preferring instead to let his fans discover it themselves, Konshens described it as a journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tracklist for Red Reign<\/p>\n\n\n\n While \u201cTake a Shot\u201d is typical Konshens, it is by no means an indicator of the entire 18-track album.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen you listen to the album you will find that the first set of songs I started recording were depressing and reflective and you could tell this is a person going through something. One of the songs is saying I can\u2019t stay sober\u2026I was getting up every day, drinking, smoking, thinking about life, that was me, and at that time I realised the excess was too much and then you will see the lightbulb moment, where I tell myself this is more than you, get to work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In assessing his career, the 36-year-old discovered that his mission was bigger than simply making danceable music. With dancehall and other Caribbean genres still striving for consistent mainstream success globally, he reset his purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCOVID was a tool that showed that you have breath that going through your body and the fact that you can be the person that can highlight so many people in the Caribbean and bring the genre to the forefront, this is where I am at now,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Addressing dancehall\u2019s constant fight to establish itself globally, he elaborated: \u201cThis is one of the things that give me a wake-up call. In dancehall, we have had many superstars but we have not had three big major superstars at the same time. We had Sean Paul, Shaggy and then you skip some years. We have had no shortage of stars locally but each time, nobody really opened the doors for others to come up. There is a whole other world outside of the local market. You have Beenie Man level and Sean Paul level and it is miles apart, where business is concerned, it is miles apart.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n On Red Reign, named after the signature colour of his hair, Konshens is walking the talk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The album features numerous collaborations, among them one with Bermudan pop singer Kaelyn Kastle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Konshens said he will continue to look out for Caribbean talent to highlight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am definitely looking out. These islands have a whole heap of hidden gems. Just from touring the islands, I always wonder how these artistes don\u2019t get buss like Jamaicans,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Red Reign also features collaborations with Jamaican artistes Spice, Rvssian, Jesse Royal, Dre Island, and Kemar Highcon. Konshens clearly targets a global audience with features from Puerto Rican singer Rafar Pabon. Nigerian Afrobeats singer Davido, and Jamaican\/UK singer\/rapper Stefflon Don.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe album is multi-genre, but in every genre featured the dancehall is featured heavy, the identity is there, the identity of Caribbean culture is present in every song. I was very strategic in selecting the artistes,\u201d said Konshens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Asked what he wants fans to take away from his fifth album, Konshens reiterated that it is not about him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI want to hear what they get from it, I want to get the feedback and see how it makes them feel.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Konshens\u2019 latest single \u201cTake a Shot\u201d, sees the dancehall singer in familiar territory. Described as a \u201cbad girl banger\u201d, the song, like his past hits \u201cGal a Bubble\u201d, \u201cBruk Out\u201d and \u201cGal Dem a Talk\u201d, gives women a reason to showcase their wild sides. \u201dTake a Shot\u201d is one of the songs on Konshens\u2019 new album Red Reign, out on…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":3348,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/loopnewslive.blob.core.windows.net\/liveimage\/sites\/default\/files\/25ab0910968b03a4e8c085ef906fa90ekonshens_red_reign_track_listing_easy-resize.com_.jpg\" "\\"Tracklist")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/loopnewslive.blob.core.windows.net\/liveimage\/sites\/default\/files\/ae28c82b810ce0adcdaaf6c4bd39038ckonshens_red_easy-resize.com_.jpg\" "\\"\\"\/")
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