Gays didn't stop My Tour

(The following is the first and second parts of a three-part interview done with Bounty Killer.)

A cross and angry Rodney 'Bounty Killer' Price spoke out for the first time about his recent European tour that saw three shows being cancelled ,allegedly because of gay activist groups.

It was reported that gay human rights groups had coordinated a European-wide campaign to halt Bounty's Deadly Alliance tour of the Netherlands, France, Belgium, Italy, England and Switzerland, and were successful in stopping concerts in Bradford and Birmingham, England, and another in Essen, Germany.

Successful tour
However, Bounty Killer in an exclusive interview with THE STAR says on the contrary, his European tour was very much a success and that gay activist groups were only exaggerating that they were successful in stopping a number of the shows.

"It was a successful tour in terms of meeting and greeting and connecting with the people. The tour lasted for four weeks, we did a week in London and then three weeks in Europe. They (gay activists) cancelled like three concerts out of 21, so all yuh hear dem a talk bout gay dis and gay dat, they were just exaggerating, they always try to exaggerate bout they cancel show," Bounty said.

A violence thing
He continued, "Di show in Birmingham, it was a violence thing that was going on in Birmingham in the black community and they (promoters) were feeling like it was very dangerous to try and get Bounty and Mavado in dis place at this moment, it wasn't any gay-bashing thing because if that was the case, we couldn't go in London."

"London is the heart of it, yuh understand, so if it was a gay problem, why Birmingham would have a problem and London don't have a problem? London show is the biggest one and that's the most successful one, dat's di one they would have tried to stop, not the little one down Birmingham. So it was just a violence thing in Birmingham and they came 'bout it's a gay thing. Even di concert wey dem claim dem cancel a Germany, a Munich, dem cancel di show inna di day an wi have to guh to court di afternoon and won," Bounty said.

So despite these minor setbacks, Bounty says, "the tour went well, but most people never want to see it a success, but it was a success ... yea because they expect that we were going to get turn back like Sizzla an all these things, they try but it jus neva work."

Artistes Need To Unite
Bounty says he is also calling on dancehall artistes to "be more unified in the fight against gays, ca' if wi nuh unite, wi will neva win dis battle."

"The artistes, they are not for the music, they are for the success, and the wealth and all this excitement and super stardom. Ca' for instance, if there wasn't a Bounty, a Beenie, a Buju, a Ele, a Capleton, a Sizzla an it was jus a Kartel an a Mavado, where di music would be? Or if it was jus a Bounty an a Beenie an no Mavado an no Kartel an no Buju an Capleton, wey di music woulda be?"

"When these artistes see other artistes going through problems like what happening to Sizzla now, yuh know nuff a dem a laugh, like ... Beenie, mi know him a laugh. 'Cause .... sey dem ban Bounty an Mavado an dem call him (Beenie) fi do di show an him run gone pon it. How you mus ban my fellow Jamaican an den you guh bond wid dem?" Bounty questioned.

According to Bounty, some of these artistes are not concerned about their culture,"these artistes nuh care if yuh nuh love Jamaica ... 'cause dem only a do dis fi come model pon Killa, dem jus waan have more money dan Bounty Killa, dem nuh business if Jamaica sink tomorrow."