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Ras Kassa was inspired to become a director from watching music videos years ago on Jamaica-s only television station then, JBC. Ras Kassa was inspired at that time by videos from artists such as Leroy Smart, Beres Hammond, and Eddy Fitzroy. Once he received the opportunity to direct videos on his own he used his creativity to raise the standards of locally produced videos. We speak with Ras Kassa about his love of music and the moving image.
Interview conducted by: Heike Wollenweber
Peppa Pot: First of all, how did you get started in your career and why did you choose it?
Ras Kassa: A long time ago, we used to do music. I used to DJ and dem ting deh. I don-t know what the f**k I was thinking about. So we used to be at a studio downtown, a studio called 93 Street. Trevor Bailey and some others. Trevor used to be a man who is in the video ting long time. He did "Shocking Out" for Ini Kamoze back in the days. So him have some artistes and tells me he wants to make some videos. So him mek one video and another video and it lead up. I was always behind the scenes. I didn-t want to be a director and then one day I just got forced into it and now I am obsessed with the game.
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| M and Ras Kassa | Peppa Pot: Are there any particular milestones in your career?
Ras Kassa: Milestone? Which part we go again to get milestone? Out a St Thomas?
Peppa Pot: Thank you, that is very helpful. Which videos that you directed would you say then where important to you?
Ras Kassa: All of them are important to me. All of them don-t necessarily turn out good. But it is important to me because once an artiste goes into the studio and voices a song and then brings it to me, I appreciate that shit. It-s a big thing. And then what happens is, you listen to the song, you think about the concept and you have it in your mind. Then you shoot it and the world gets to see what you are thinking about. I find that fucking amazing. If Moses was around, parting the Red Sea, that ain-t shit. The camera, pointing that on somebody and then capture their image, that is still amazing to me.
Peppa Pot: What would you say is important to make a good video?
Ras Kassa: First thing: The director has to be a director. You can-t point and shoot and call yourself a director. The first thing you have to learn is how to be a director and what it takes to be a director. You have to know about that, know about angles, about cinematography, which is lighting and all of that. First to be a director, that is a very, very important thing. You can-t go out and shoot a video and you don-t know about directing. Directing doesn-t mean you set the shot and then make the artiste do. You direct them. You direct them on how to move to the camera. You direct them. Most days, we don-t have directors, we have people who have an idea and they put a crew together and they point and shoot. I have another name for them but I can-t tell you what it is.
Peppa Pot: Why not?
Ras Kassa: Alright .... F***ing Idiots. And you write that s**t, too.
Peppa Pot: I will, alright. Are there any particular artistes whose music inspires you, personally and in your work?
Ras Kassa: Like I said before, we used to do music before this. I play a little guitar. I love music and I love all kinds of music. I can jump from Assassin to Willy Nelson, jump back to Burning Spear, jump to hip hop, the Game. Whatever, even to Sparrow, some good old Calypso music. I am just a lover of music, I appreciate music. I just appreciate f***ing music.
Peppa Pot: Well, I wanted to ask what music means to your life, but…
Ras Kassa: What music means to me in my life? I can-t live without music. Period. I can-t live without music. It-s like ... you can-t live without air. I can-t live without music. I grew up in a house where most of the family members on my father-s side play an instrument. Well, everybody plays an instrument, including my father. So I mean, I love music. Me is music and music is I.
Peppa Pot: Can you tell us about future plans and projects or even career goals that you still want to achieve?
Ras Kassa: Alright. Let me tell you what we desire, but we won-t tell you what is in the pipeline. Our desire is to make a movie. We want to take it to them like Peter, Bunny and Burning Spear did, because in Jamaica Rasta is nothing. That is why we put the Ras in front of the Kassa. This is to remind them seh this a di people dem who you used to beat up and persecute and say, dem cyan do tings. As a rasta I want to take it to them, the first RASTA director out of Jamaica. Take it to them blockbuster style. I don-t want to make a film and it just makes 2 Million US$, 5 million, 20 million, I want more than that. I want it to go far. I want everybody to see it. And not just a Jamaican "shoot dem up"- film.
I am basically fascinated by horror stuff, Stephen King books and stuff. I am mostly into that. I don-t really get into that "shoot dem up" kind of script. We want to take it to them that way and the other main thing is to have an industry in Jamaica. We don-t really have an industry, we don-t have a music industry and we don-t have a film industry. What we have is thief and blood****t liars. All of the old people in the film industry just keep holding on to their position and they keep doing the same f***king thing and I refuse to be a part of that blood****t. And that-s the end. Email This Q&A Back
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