King Shango, King David, The Fireman and The Prophet.

A wise man onc… Read Full Bio ↴King Shango, King David, The Fireman and The Prophet.

A wise man once said that a prophet is not without honour save in his own country and so it has been with Capleton. While the veteran DJ's words and works long ago earned him the title of "The Prophet", the respect and honor that should rightfully be his have been a long time coming. "Anytime you try to uplift righteousness and upliftment of the people them, then you ah go get a fight", says the hottest entertainer in the worldwide reggae fraternity. "Bob Marley come do it and them fight him. And when Bob Marley dead, that's when they start to endorse him. I already aware of this, I am not unaware. So I know the more them fight I is the more I get stronger" In the fast-moving world of dancehall reggae, fame and success are hard to obtain and easy to lose. Fans can be fickle, and trends change in the blink of an eye, leaving most entertainers with painfully short career spans. Only a rare few can remain relevant from year to year, holding their audience's attention and leaving them crying for more. His lyrics are deep, precise, and thoughtful. His stage shows are nothing less than dynamic, explosive performances. But his remarkable staying power and longevity may be Capleton's greatest gift.

Born Clifton George Bailey III on April 13, 1967, in the rural parish of St. Mary, Capleton earned his future stage name from friends who were so impressed with his sharp reasoning skills that they named him after the most famous lawyer in town. From a tender young age, he was a lover of the traveling sound systems, sneaking out at night to catch the vibes until dawn. But it wasn't until he turned 18 and moved to Kingston that he was able to realize his destiny.

It was Stewart Brown, owner of a Toronto-based sound called African Star, who gave the untested artist his first break, flying him to Canada for a stage show alongside giants like Ninjaman and Flourgon. The audience poured out their appreciation, and he never looked back. When Capleton first burst on the scene in the late 1980s, the dancehall was a very different place than it is today. Slackness and gun talk were the order of the day. This bright promising newcomer announced his arrival with a string of hit songs from "Bumbo Red" to "Number One on the Look Good Chart" and "Lotion Man." Everything he touched hit the sound-good charts, and the youthful artist with the nimble vocabulary and hardcore voice quickly established himself as one of dancehall's most reliable hitmakers. But even he could not have predicted that eleven years later, at the start of the new millennium, he would be dancehall's ruling voice.

"I think the people dem see say me really deserve that because of the amount of years me put in," Capleton says, "and we never really bow and we still hold the faith. We stand up for whatever we a say. Yeah and we really work for it. And them say by your works, a so you get your pay. The people them see the amount of fight me face and the whole heap of accusation. And me still never give up"

When he dropped the tune "Alms House" in 1992, Capleton established himself as more than an entertainer but as a guiding light of righteousness through music. "United we stand and divided we fall," he sang for the benefit of his fans and dancehall comrades. "Nuff of them nah go know themself till them back against the wall." A few years later he came back with yet another antidote to the clashing and rivlary that had taken hold of the dancehall business. "Music is a mission," he reminded his fellow artists, "not a competition. Some man use the music to cause confusion." The path of this dancehall Prophet was clearly established in 1994 with a string of songs that declared his newfound faith in Rastafari. "INI sight up the light and see say really, yunno, Rasta is real," he recalls. "founder of the world, because Rasta did come set the trend. Y'unnerstand. Rasta is life."

The first words of his mega-hit "Dis The Trinity" made it plain that the DJ had experienced some kind of revelation. "I was once lost but now I'm found," he stated, "Selassie I live every time." Capleton became a strong advocate of the teaching of the Jamaican National Hero, Marcus Mosiah Garvey, founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and advocate of universal black repatriation. "Babylon rewarded us with hatred for our love," he declares. "They taught us to rape, steal and kill. For instance, they stole our literature and taught it back to us in a different manner so as to infiltrate our minds with foolishness and other misconceptions. Now we as black men do not see ourselves as prince and prophets, but as punks and guys. Our women do not see themselves as queens, princesses or empresses anymore, but as harlots and concubines." The only solution, as Bob Marley advocated, is to emancipate oneself from mental slavery.

"Over the years INI as a nation and a people, them no really teach INI nuttin' bout INI black self. You know I mean? Them teach INI them give we European philosophy. So INI and some other youths a try emerge now, we ask certain question and we ask fi certain things. Caw we know say an institute, or in a college, or in a certain organization we need we Ethiopian curriculum, we need the black man thing. We need to know about weself. Becaw the prophet Marcus Garvey did show we say, A nation without no knowledge of them own history is like a tree without a root. And if you don't know where you're coming from, you're not gonna know where you're going."

Even as he uplifts the black race, Capleton always makes a point of clarifying that he does not seek to alienate any race. "We are not being racial nor prejudiced star," he says. "Becaw we know Jah is for everyone. But where history and prophesy in concerned, that is our witness and we have to be ourself, and we cannot hide from the truth. Caw we woulda be a traitor and a sellout to ourself. And you cannot sell out yourself."

Soon thereafter came the song "Tour" a blazing state of the dancehall report written in the weeks following the slaying of Panhead and Dirtsman, two of Capleton's fellow artists. That song not only became an anthem of the roots revival within the dancehall, but a hip hop flavored remix of that song hit the Billboard charts, opening up a huge new audience to Capleton's messages of righteousness.

There followed a relationship with Def Jam records, who released two Capleton albums, Prophecy and I-Testament, which featured memorable collaborations with rap stars like Method Man and Q-Tip. Both records were warmly accepted by the international audience, but as the millennium drew to a close, Capleton sensed that it was time to return to his core audience. He had work to do. "I have to be myself, right? And I only can be me," he reasons. "So whichever way fi make me be me, I work with dat. Y'understand."

Capleton is now at the height of his powers. 1999 and 2000 have brought a ceaseless string of sound system favorite and dancehall chart toppers like the anti-violence anthem "Jah Jah City" and "Good In Her Clothes," a message of respect for the sisters who carry themselves like Empresses rather than. But even as he completes his mission of upliftment, Capleton has had many critics. One of his biggest hits, in fact, is addressed the naysayers in the press and the ivory towers of power. "Critics won't leave I alone," chats the Prophet. "They say they can't take the fire weh me put pon Rome"

Many of Capleton's songs "and most of his critics" make mention of this blazing fire. Capleton hopes to clear up the confusion once and for all. "Is not really a physical fire. Is really a spiritual fire, and a wordical fire, and a musical fire. You see the fire is all about a livity. But is people get it on the wrong term. People get confused.So when a man say "more fire" him think that mean say you fi go light the cane field or go light the church." Fire, Capleton explains, is a way of reminding one's brother that they are going astray. "That way a man know say him doing something wrong. That even give him the urge to know say Yo check up on yourself. What you're doing is not right, or else him would not say "Fire fi dat," or "Burn dat" or "More fire." "If we go check it back now," he continues, "fire is for the purification of earth, anyhow you check it. This earth itself have to even emerge from the literal fire also, which is the volcanic activity, we a talk bout lava. The hottest element to rise us in the morning is the sun. The water cleanse, but it's still the support from the fire that burn the water, burn out of the bacteria so the water coulda heal we fi cleanse. The herb heal, but it's still the fire fi burn the herb so the herb coulda heal we also."

{Bio is courtesy of Rob Kenner} www.vprecords.com

More Prophet
Capleton Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Red Hot!
When dem si mi dem know seh ah more fire!, More fire!
Dem shoulda know
When di judgement suh red, red, red, red hot!

Now again, dem shoulda know ah Saint Mary mi come from
Shoulda know seh mi grow up ah Islington
Shoulda know seh Capleton bun battyman

Di same ting ah apply to di lesbian
Dem shoulda know ah Saint Mary mi come from
Dem shoulda know seh dat next door to Portland
Dem shoulda know seh Capleton bun battyman
And mi bun out dem confusion

Di people dem ah, bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Di corruption and di slackness ah di prophet come fi stop it
Dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Disillusion and confusion ah di prophet come fi bun it
Dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
And none ah dem cyaan stop it

Mi go trodd London, when di people si mi dem ah push up dem hand
Hear di whole ah dem seh si di fireman
Fire y'all fi use fi bun out confusion
Bun disillusion and bun temptation
Mek dem know di fire is fi di purification

People dem ah, bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Di corruption and di slackness ah di prophet come fi stop it
Dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Disillusion and confusion ah di prophet come fi bun it
Dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
And none ah dem really cyaan stop it

Mi go trodd New York, people dem si mi seh mi nuh fi skylark
Bun dem light and mi fi bun dem dark
Memba di fire inna Steeple Chase Park
Bun confusion mek di whole ah dem scorch
Bun illusion and mek di whole ah dem scorch
Dis King Selassi watch di whole ah dem lost

Di people dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Di corruption and di slackness ah di prophet come fi stop it
Dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Disillusion and confusion ah di prophet come fi stop it
Dem ah bwal seh dem waan more prophet
And di wicked man dem cyaan stop it

Mi go check Claharda, People dem seh fi bun di fire nuh harder
Fire fi ah man if ah next man him saada
When di people si mi dem ah bawl out lava
Memba seh di fire did roast yuh cassava
It boil di tea fi all granny and daughter
Anytime wi come ah more fire wi brought yah
So mi sing again

Di people dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Di corruption and di slackness ah di prophet come fi stop it
Dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Disillusion and confusion and di prophet come fi bun it
Dem ah bawl seh dem
(Ay yuh waan one more ting yo!, now again seh dem ah shoulda know)

Shoulda know seh Saint Mary mi come from
Shoulda know mi grew up ah Islington
Shoulda know seh Capleton bun battyman
Dem same fire, apply to di lesbian
Dem shoulda know ah Saint Mary mi come from
Dem shoulda know seh dat next door to Portland
Dem Shoulda know seh Capleton bun battyman

When mi go trodd down muma bay
People seh mi fi romp and dem seh mi know fi play
Bun it inna di night and mi fi bun it inna di day
Light up di fire mi seh light di sunray
Seh mi bun everything from mi know seh dem gay
When mi ah trodd down Manndeville
Light up di fire iyah dem nah own skill
All boogaman and sodemites fi get killed
Di fire nah fi cool and di seh it nah fi chill
So bun Bob Dole and mi seh bun all Bill, Bill, Bill, Bill,

Seh di people dem ah, bawl seh dem waan more prophet
Di corruption and di slackness ah di prophet come fi stop it

Dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet YO!
And bigger judgement pon dem

Overall Meaning

The song "More Prophet" by Capleton is a rallying cry for more spiritual leaders in society. The lyrics speak to the corruption, confusion, and disillusionment prevalent in the world, and call upon the people to demand more leaders who can guide them towards true enlightenment. Capleton makes it clear that he himself is one such leader - coming from Saint Mary and growing up in Islington, he has firsthand experience of the struggles and hardships faced by the people. He promises to use his fiery spirit and determination to burn out the darkness and bring light to the people.

Throughout the song, Capleton is unapologetic in his condemnation of those who engage in homosexual acts, using inflammatory language to show his disgust. He believes that this type of behavior is contributing to the corruption and confusion in society, and that it must be rooted out in order for people to find true spiritual fulfillment. Overall, "More Prophet" is an impassioned plea for people to turn towards the light and seek out true spiritual leaders who can help guide them towards a better future.

Line by Line Meaning

Red Hot!
The situation is urgent and requires immediate action.

When dem si mi dem know seh ah more fire!, More fire!
As soon as people see me, they know that I bring the truth and intensity.

Dem shoulda know
They ought to have known.

When di judgement suh red, red, red, red hot!
When the consequences of one's actions are heating up and becoming more severe.

Now again, dem shoulda know ah Saint Mary mi come from
Once again, they should have been aware that I'm from Saint Mary.

Shoulda know seh mi grow up ah Islington
They should have been aware that I grew up in Islington.

Shoulda know seh Capleton bun battyman
They should have known that Capleton has a strong stance against homosexuality.

Di same ting ah apply to di lesbian
The same attitude applies to lesbians as well.

Dem shoulda know ah Saint Mary mi come from
They should have been aware that I'm from Saint Mary.

Dem shoulda know seh dat next door to Portland
They should have known that Saint Mary is located next to Portland.

Dem shoulda know seh Capleton bun battyman
They should have known that Capleton is strongly opposed to homosexuality.

And mi bun out dem confusion
Capleton's music and words aim to bring clarity and understanding of what's going on in society.

Di people dem ah, bawl seh dem waan more prophet
The people are desperately calling out for someone to lead them.

Di corruption and di slackness ah di prophet come fi stop it
Capleton is the prophet with the mission to end corruption and laziness in the world.

Disillusion and confusion ah di prophet come fi bun it
Capleton is seeking to burn away illusions and bring clarity through his prophecies.

And none ah dem cyaan stop it
No one can stop Capleton from fulfilling his mission as a prophet.

Mi go trodd London, when di people si mi dem ah push up dem hand
Capleton travels to London, where people enthusiastically raise their hands to show their support when they see him.

Hear di whole ah dem seh si di fireman
They all recognize Capleton as the 'fireman,' the prophet with a message that spreads like wildfire.

Fire y'all fi use fi bun out confusion
Capleton's fire is intended to burn away confusion and create clarity.

Bun disillusion and bun temptation
Capleton aims to burn away the false promises of hope and seduction that lead people astray.

Mek dem know di fire is fi di purification
The fire is for the purpose of purification and not destruction.

Di people dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet
The people recognize a need for more prophets like Capleton to guide them.

And none ah dem really cyaan stop it
Nothing can stand in the way of Capleton's messages being spread.

Mi go trodd New York, people dem si mi seh mi nuh fi skylark
Capleton travels to New York City, and people recognize him and respect his mission.

Bun dem light and mi fi bun dem dark
Capleton intends to burn away darkness and promote the light of truth.

Memba di fire inna Steeple Chase Park
Remember when Capleton's message caused a large gathering in Steeple Chase Park.

Bun confusion mek di whole ah dem scorch
Confusion consumes and destroys those who fall into it.

Bun illusion and mek di whole ah dem scorch
False images of hope and promises lead to disappointment and destruction.

Dis King Selassi watch di whole ah dem lost
King Selassi, the great Jamaican leader, is watching over all those who have gone astray.

Di people dem ah bawl seh dem waan more prophet YO!
The people urgently call out for more prophets to lead them.

Mi go check Claharda, People dem seh fi bun di fire nuh harder
Capleton travels to Claharda, where people tell him to increase the intensity of his messages even more.

Fire fi ah man if ah next man him saada
Capleton's fire is directed towards those who cause harm to others.

When di people si mi dem ah bawl out lava
When the people see Capleton, they call out with great enthusiasm, shouting messages of change.

Memba seh di fire did roast yuh cassava
Remember that the fire has previously burned away the illusions which have misled you.

It boil di tea fi all granny and daughter
The fire has spread to impact everyone across generations.

Anytime wi come ah more fire wi brought yah
Every time Capleton comes, he brings the heat with him, the intensity always increasing.

Seh di people dem ah, bawl seh dem waan more prophet
The people continue to call out for more prophets to guide them.

And di wicked man dem cyaan stop it
The wicked can't stop the spread of Capleton's message of truth.

When mi go trodd down muma bay
Capleton heads towards Muma Bay.

People seh mi fi romp and dem seh mi know fi play
People tell Capleton to enjoy himself, but he needs to continue to spread his message of change.

Bun it inna di night and mi fi bun it inna di day
Capleton will continue spreading his message both day and night.

Light up di fire mi seh light di sunray
Capleton spreads his fire and light just as the sun radiates light to the earth.

Seh mi bun everything from mi know seh dem gay
Capleton aims to burn away all false promises and false hopes of those who mislead society.

When mi ah trodd down Manndeville
Capleton travels to Manndeville for his mission.

Light up di fire iyah dem nah own skill
Capleton will spread his fire, and no one can match his abilities.

All boogaman and sodemites fi get killed
Capleton seeks to eliminate all those who practice homosexuality.

Di fire nah fi cool and di seh it nah fi chill
Capleton's fire will never go out, as it constantly builds in intensity.

So bun Bob Dole and mi seh bun all Bill, Bill, Bill, Bill,
Capleton calls out specific politicians like Bob Dole and Bill Clinton who have failed society and misled their constituents.

And bigger judgement pon dem
The consequences for these politicians' actions will be severe.

Lyrics © THE ROYALTY NETWORK INC., Universal Music Publishing Group, Royalty Network
Written by: Clifton Bailey, Cleveland Browne, Wycliffe Johnson, CLIFTON GEORGE BAILEY, WINSTON EDWARD POWELL

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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