Dub | Med Dred

IRIE. You released your debut album release, Dred Reggae, through Dubophonic. Can you share with us the concept behind the making of Dred Reggae?

Med Dred: That album is an identity of my style. That’s what it is. I’m not trying to prove anything. There are messages in there which are message that I want to convey to the people. It’s mostly anti- hypricote and anti-babylon message. It’s not really my first reggae album though. I got one called Med Reggae which was out before that one, but this is my debut solo album, yes.

IRIE. You are featured on the track ‘Nuff Robber’ by Dub Caravan, which can be found on the Lost Books of Dub ‘Chapter 3” album by Dub Iration Sound System album (Nov. 29, 2014 release). How did this collaboration come about? What was your contribution to the track?

Med Dred: Felix Russ Abu a.k.a. Dub Caravan and I are very good friends. You could say he is my best friend. We’re really tight bredren. We met through a mutual friend named Haji Mike who is also a reggae artist from Cyprus. He also does Dub poetry. He’s a good bredren. He’s been around longer than me doing reggae on this island. I had reggae recordings but not releases like he had. There wasn’t no competition thing. I was doing my thing and he was doing his thing. We eventually met up.We’re actually doing an album together that is not released yet. We’ve performed some tracks together, our biggest achievment was raising money to help the youths of Fukushima’s nuclear disaster in Japan. Felix came to Cyprus and Mike was performing somewhere. Haji said come down to see us and I met Felix there. His music has an organic sound. It was very natural and acoustic (reggae). This was the other direction of mine at the time. He kinda influenced my sound. We we’re
both into analog gear. We love that gear from the 70’s and 80’s. I gave him tips. Helped him upgrade his studio. A friendship developed to where we would help each other out. He said if you need a bass line, let me know. And I told him that I do mastering so we did some exchange in services. When he needed a tune mastered, I would master it for him,he would be like “Wow!” So whenever I needed a bass line, he’d fling it through some sick analog gear and I would be like “Wow, that’s what I want!” That’s how he went on to play on Dubophonic Words’.

Felix sent me the tune for ‘Nuff Robber’, the initial rhythm of the tune, without the melody part and without the voice. It was one of his dub tracks that he was working on for Ronald ‘Nambo’ Robinson who is one of Bob Marley’s horns player. Nambo and Felix have done an album together. Anyway, I got inspired by the rhythm and this tune came to me. I then played some Melodica and added a verse to it and sent it to Felix. When he heard it, the first thing he said was, “Who’s that?” Felix had never heard me do vocals. In the past, I only sent him instrumentals. And that’s how that came about. Also it is serious tune about a true story on how 2 masked men tried to murder me a few years back , the tune means a lot to me. Give thanks to Jah that i’m still here to tell the story.

IRIE. In your music, you’re often heard in snippets sending out anti-babylon messages. Do you practice or follow Rastafari? If yes, how important is Rastafari in your life?

Med Dred: I believe in Rastafari, support and practice Rastafari as much as I can. I’m more like a Jahsta then Rasta(fari). I don’t have any dreadlocks and I don’t live in a place where I’m free from Babylon.

IRIE. What does 2015 hold for Med Dred?

Med Dred: I’m working on loads of stuff. Most importantly, I’m working on more of a vocal album. It will have a rootsy feel that I like with some input by my good friend Dub Caravan and other featured artists.

IRIE. Give thanks, Med Dred! Much Respect!

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