Effortlessly combining folk, reggae, soul and blues, the singer/songwriter/guitarist , Patrice, exploded onto the music scene with his phenomenal testimonial debut Lions E.P in 1999 aged just 18. With the deep lyrical content and social conscience resonating within his work, Patrice alludes to his late father (a Sierra Leonian political activist and poet) and Bob Marley as the greatest influences on his music. Lions, with its tales of love and social rhetoric coupled with raw acoustic production, perfectly showcased Patrices distinctive fusion of lyrics, sounds and genres. After supporting Lauryn Hill on her much acclaimed Miseducation of Tour, Patrice released his critically acclaimed first album Ancient Spirits in 2000 (European sales in excess of 150,000)
Since 2001, Patrice has toured relentlessly and wooed audiences at gigs across Europe, USA and Africa. Whether solo, acoustic or with his band Shashamani, a big combination of humour, B-boy stage antics, and incredible musicianship have thus far made Patrices live shows a highlight of his career. Five years on, his reputation has been cemented with show stopping headline performances alongside Youssouf N'Dour in Senegal, Manu Chao and Damon Albarn at The Festival In The Desert and the Tamika Reggae Awards in New York amongst many others.
His second largely self produced album How Do You Call It (released in Europe September 2002) saw Patrice evolving his sound with a rich melange of Hip Hop, Soul and Reggae which underpinned twelve well crafted songs. Recorded over a two-month period in Jamaica and with 3 tracks produced in London with Cameron McVey, Massive Attack, Youssouf N'Dour, Andu Baraganescu and Neneh Cherry, How Do You Call It further cemented his unique niche in todays diverse musical landscape. The LP also spawned the Pan European hit Sunshine.
Nile, Patrice's third and most current album (named after the river Nile, representing Life in the African continent) is truly a bold undertaking and can be described as a work of astounding maturity, sincerity and sensitivity. Whether rocking to the amped guitar, explosive drums and African percussion behind Africanize Dem or soaking up the beautiful rendition of the obscure Wailers track It Hurts To Be Alone it's clear that experimentation has lent his work an undeniable urgency and freshness. The present single Soulstorm has provided Patrice with another European hit. The majority of 2005 was spent performing to sell out audiences throughout Europe which included his first headlined show for all the UK fans at The Borderline, in London, and perhaps the pinnacle of his career so far, playing in front of the 6,000 fans who filled out the Zenith in Paris. In the summer of 2006 Patrice released a live DVD which gives the audience an exclusive look at how Nile was recorded, rehearsed and performed throughout the world.
Lead The Way
Patrice Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gwan keep the faith
Jah lead the way
Gwan keep the faith
Jah lead the way
Chorus
Jah Jah will lead the way
Now that I know
That I'll be o. k
As long as I keep the faith faith faith
Verse:
Belong to a species dat is dyin' out
So we gots to keep it real? yeah that's right
To go by what I feel? it's all inside
See di heathen dam ah cryin' out
Ina di name of global peace
Oh what a joke thing
Unu better say it loud and proud
Bridge:
(I say)
We no want no false prophet's morality
We no want no commercial spirituality
We no want no form of ideology
Nor no philosophy
That deal' with some sort of conspiracy
Chorus
Verse:
Scared ah who, scared ah what?
You sure it's me you come fi scare?
You must she mad
We move with powers way too fat
And you no look like you prepare?
Dem promote death and we no believe in dat
Spread confusion everywhere
But mi no care what name you want fi call your god
Mom it's the god of love? the god in us
Enough ah that
You speak di truth and dem say you mad
Or claim she you no cool
You get ridiculed
You get miltant and dem say you bad
Boom? there goes another fool
From you want your mule
And your acres them say you? re nuts
It's dem that make and break the rules
Oh lord tell me which way to walk
Dem say dem do things in your name
But I know they don't know you
Bridge:
We no want no false prophet? s morality
We no want no commercial spirituality
We no want no form of ideology
Nor no philosophy
That deal' with some sort of conspiracy
Chorus
In the song "Lead The Way" by Patrice, he encourages his listeners to keep the faith and trust in Jah to show them the right path. The chorus repeatedly emphasizes this idea, that as long as he has faith, he will not go astray and everything will be okay. Patrice then goes on to highlight the corruptness of society, using words such as "heathen" and "false prophets" to describe those who promote negative messages. He expresses his frustration with their attempts to promote death and confusion, and urges his listeners to speak the truth no matter how they may be perceived by others.
Overall, the song is a call to stay true to oneself and not be swayed by the negative influences of the world. Patrice emphasizes that as long as one keeps their faith and ignores false ideologies and conspiracies, they will find their way. The song also touches on the idea of holding onto love and positivity in tumultuous times.
Line by Line Meaning
Gwan keep the faith
Continue to have faith and trust in a higher power
Jah lead the way
God will guide us in the right direction
Jah Jah will lead the way
God will guide us in the right direction
I will never go astray
I will never lose my way or deviate from the path
Now that I know
Now that I understand
That I'll be o. k
That everything will be alright
As long as I keep the faith faith faith
As long as I continue to have faith and trust in a higher power
Belong to a species dat is dyin' out
We are a part of a dying species
So we gots to keep it real? yeah that's right
We need to stay true to ourselves and our beliefs
To go by what I feel? it's all inside
To follow my instincts and listen to my inner voice
See di heathen dam ah cryin' out
People who do not follow our beliefs are suffering
Ina di name of global peace
In the name of world peace
Oh what a joke thing
It's ridiculous
Unu better say it loud and proud
We need to speak our truth with confidence
We no want no false prophet's morality
We do not want to follow hypocritical teachings
We no want no commercial spirituality
We do not want religion that is used for profit or gain
We no want no form of ideology
We do not want to follow strict beliefs or philosophies
Nor no philosophy
Or any teachings that may not align with our own beliefs
That deal' with some sort of conspiracy
That may involve secretive plots or deception
Scared ah who, scared ah what?
Who or what are you afraid of?
You sure it's me you come fi scare?
Are you really trying to intimidate me?
You must she mad
You must be crazy
We move with powers way too fat
We possess great influence and strength
And you no look like you prepare?
Are you ready to face us?
Dem promote death and we no believe in dat
They support and encourage violence and death, which we do not agree with
Spread confusion everywhere
They are causing chaos and uncertainty
But mi no care what name you want fi call your god
It does not matter what you call your God
Mom it's the god of love? the god in us
Maybe it's the God of love or the God within us
Enough ah that
That's enough of that topic
You speak di truth and dem say you mad
When you speak the truth, they call you crazy
Or claim she you no cool
They say you are not cool
You get ridiculed
You are made fun of
You get miltant and dem say you bad
When you become passionate, they label you as a troublemaker
Boom? there goes another fool
There goes another person who follows blindly
From you want your mule
When you want what you are entitled to
And your acres them say you? re nuts
And they say you are crazy for wanting what is yours
It's dem that make and break the rules
They are the ones who decide what rules to follow and break
Oh lord tell me which way to walk
God, please guide me in the right direction
Dem say dem do things in your name
They claim to do things in God's name
But I know they don't know you
I know they do not truly understand what God stands for
Contributed by Mia A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@LarenDoBiten
Hearing this makes me feel like I'm back in those days, when life was cool
@FunkGirl666
I love this song so much !!! :) Reminds me of good old days :)
@erz0r
good song.,