King Calie determined to do music his way

Going against the strategy of releasing numerous singles in a short space of time, reigning Magnum Top Performa King Calie said he will be focusing on his 'six in six' approach.

"It was a challenge from higher up. Back in 2020, I did a 100-day project, writing and releasing a 100 demos, one per day. So now the six in six months is a scaled up version of that project, as we seek to do six high quality songs accompanied by visuals and a marketing plan," he explained.

At the same time, while many new artistes have focused on trending talking points in the dancehall space such as 'chopping the line', Molly or dunce talk, King Calie said he is focused on doing music his way.

"If I do any form of drugs, it will be hard for the world to know. I'm not that secure in my addictions to sing about it. I'm not dunce so that won't sell. 'Dark' with a short fuse maybe, so me stay to mi self and smile a lot. I fully support the dunce movement though, don't get me wrong. For me it's deeper than just saying he has no education. I just feel it wouldn't fly for me personally. A no my ting!" he said.

He added, "But mainstream will run with it as it provides another stereotype that can be weaponised against young black men."

When asked if he has any self-imposed limitations on his creativity, he said, "Music and words are two very subjective things. I could say ' Run him dung breathless 45 inna hand' and to a sprinter, it represents chasing down an opponent with only 45 yards to go. To a selector, it represents being the underdog in competition and selecting that one 45 that will sway the crowd in your favour. So even if you limit what you say, you cannot limit how it is perceived. This is why art isn't suitable as a form of leadership."

He added, "It's an informative tool that gives power to those who possess it, but only in a space where there is cultural and social decay. So the people turn to anyone for guidance, even the people that make up scenarios and rhymes about them. Music resonates, it does not influence."

He also revealed that he has some collaborations in the pipeline to be released later this year, Believe with Khapital, another Top Performa contestant, and Broken Wings with Renigad.

King Calie has released two tracks in the past two months. Safe addresses the alarming increase in violence against women, while King Inna Dis sets the tone for competitors to fall in line.