By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS

Tribune Staff Reporter

lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

JULIEN Believe says backlash over his Vybz Kartel concert performance was less about him — and more about Bahamians not valuing their own culture enough.

The Bahamian artist, whose set at the high-profile Clifford Park show drew attention for its lukewarm reception, defended his appearance yesterday, saying he was proud to represent Junkanoo and Bahamian music.

He said social media exaggerated a moment showing an unresonsive crowd and ignored the bigger issue: the way Bahamian culture is viewed at home.

“I saw the criticism and I heard it. I also saw a lot of love, and I also saw a lot of Bahamians defending the culture,” he said. “Because what a lot of people were doing, they weren’t really trolling me or criticising me, you know, they were criticising Bahamian culture and saying that the Bahamian culture didn’t have a place on that stage in The Bahamas, which is a very unfortunate thing to be able to say.”

The singer said he believes the backlash reflected a deeper cultural problem — one that discourages young Bahamian artists from embracing local sounds out of fear of ridicule.

“It’s kind of discouraging, because a lot of young Bahamian artists and talents are straying away from doing the local music and the local culture because they’re afraid of what they will experience as they grow in the business,” he said.

“We have a greater problem in our country. The problem is we don’t appreciate our culture enough.”

While acknowledging that crowd reactions are unpredictable, the singer said many factors affect audience energy — including how a performance is introduced or the music played beforehand. He noted that other performers that night received similar responses.

“I wasn’t the only artist on stage where the response was like that. Everyone that went up on stage, the response was like that,” he said, referring to the non-headline acts.

He said many foreigners in the crowd had likely never heard Bahamian music or Junkanoo before — and that alone made the moment worthwhile.

“I do what I normally do,” he said. “I was part of what I was able to do. I’ve never had an experience like that before, so to me, it still was a good opportunity for a lot of the foreigners who never saw me, who never heard Junkanoo music, or Bahamian music for the first time, they would have had an opportunity to experience our music and our culture.”

Still, he warned that public backlash to local artists being featured alongside big-name international acts could do long-term harm.

“For a long time, people complained about foreign artists getting on these stages, but now that we have that opportunity, we’re complaining again,” he said. “What it’s going to do is it’s going to hurt other Bahamian artists in the future from being able to share these stages. We don’t want that.”

The singer said he intends to speak to his fans directly and is mindful of how he addresses criticism publicly.

“Because I have kids, and I have a family, I’m very cautious on what I say,” he said. “I’m more concerned about my legacy than anything else, and so at the end of the day, I’m just here to represent for the culture, and I’m grateful for all the love that I’ve been getting, the calls I’ve been getting, the shares, people defending the culture. Again, this—I’m just the catalyst that people are using at this moment.”

He ended with a call for unity and support: Bahamians, he said, must stop tearing down their own.

“Give them some incentives,” he said. “We must tap into the resources.”