EDITOR, The Tribune

The Merrian-Webster dictionary defines a clown as “a performer (as in a circus) who entertains by playing tricks and wears comical clothes and makeup”.

Mr Christie, contrary to what you have said, there is not one inaccurate lyric in my latest song entitled “We Gat Some Jokey Leaders”, it may seem to be negative to you, yet it is the true feelings of the country, there is not one made up situation in the song, it’s real life put to art.

Songs like “Hold Dey Feet To Da Fire”, “We Bein Sitted On”, “I Ain’t Fa VAT” and “Captain Kangaroo” they all speak to what is going on in our Bahamaland today. Go over every lyric and you will find that they are all true subject matters, I would welcome a discussion on my lyrics line by line, if you are so inclined to. However you must admit that lyrically and musically the song “We Gat Some Jokey Leaders” is tight?

It’s my opinion that you and the Minister Of Youth, Sports and Culture, Danny Johnson have wasted around $13 million of the people’s money on another country’s culture without any remorse or apology, but your problem is my song? Crime in the Bahamas is escalating to record proportions and your problem is my song? All kinds of conflict of interest and cronyism and your problem is with a well written song that is speaking truth to power, I could go on and on with the problems you choose to ignore, yet you focus on my song, it seems like I have hit a nerve?

A tender spot, which means that I am doing my job as an artist on social commentary, that is more than I can say for you and your government, sir. It seems like you want all the artists and writers in the country to write about gay and merry things like carnival. They say if you throw a rock into a pack of dogs, the one that yelps the loudest is the one that got hit.

Mr Christie, I take my job seriously, I have been in the music business as a professional from the age of 17 up to this date, worked hard, sacrificed and I have never wavered. I would appreciate you taking your job seriously also, sir, knowing that we, the taxpayers of the Bahamas, are paying you and expect results, you and your colleagues are not entertainers, sir, do what you were elected to do, please.

When I wrote the song “Dey Sellin’ Our Country” under the FNM administration, you didn’t complain then Mr Christie. Why not? Is it because the FNM was in power? What did you say when the songs “Dig Up”(The Road Dem Dig Up) or “Jobless (Tell Ingraham I Need One Job)”, where were you then? Actually those songs were performed on your rally stage, were they negative towards the government of that day? No they were not, they were public commentary, and spoke up for the people, and that is what I am doing now, no, sir, not negative, truth,” you can’t just speak up sometimes, sir, if they were right, then I am right also, this reminds me of those crime statistic billboards y’all put up during the 2012 elections, “What is good for the Goose is good for the Gander”. Mr Christie, those songs are social songs, written about the reality of the day and so are mine, I write the reality that the Bahamian people have seen everyday since your administration has been in charge, more crime, more taxes, less jobs and more corruption and cronyism.

The vast majority of our people are hurting, I think you know this, leave the entertaining to those in the entertainment industry, those with real talent, I know it seems cool being an entertainer in the Bahamas, but the pay is insulting, and your government doesn’t support you.

So I beg you, stop the clowning and dancing around, get to work, earn your pay; the Bahamian people are not taking you seriously when you are joking around, sir.

KIRKLAND H BODIE

Nassau,

August 20, 2015.