Reggae fans can do themselves a favor by listening to the Rootsland podcast. The creator/narrator of the pod, Henry Karyo, a longtime music industry professional who got his start interning at Tuff Gong, does a fantastic job recounting the history of reggae music by sharing his own experiences living in Jamaica for several decades, immersed in the local culture and hub of the genre. The podcast’s current season, titled “Wanted Dread or Alive,” has been focusing on the tragic 1987 murder of one of reggae music’s most renowned and influential artists, Peter Tosh. In fact, through Henry’s own research, new information has come to light and he’s created a petition to demand that the Jamaican government reopen the investigation into Tosh’s death.

Sadly, Peter’s untimely death was not the only tragedy to befall the McIntosh family.  Years later, in 2017, his son Jawara, known professionally in the music industry as Tosh1, got arrested for marijuana possession in New Jersey and was sentenced to a year in prison. Of note, like his father, Jawara practiced Rastafari and had been an outspoken activist working towards the legalization of marijuana before his imprisonment.  While serving his time at the Bergen County Jail, Jawara was brutally beaten by another prisoner, leaving him in a coma, clinging to life by a thread. While Jawara would emerge from unconsciousness over a year later, permanent damage had been done, and he eventually succumbed to his severe traumatic brain injuries, passing away at the young age of 41.

I recall reading about Jawara’s death and feeling sick to my stomach over such unnecessary suffering and loss of life.  What a horrible fate to befall the son of one of my musical heroes, a badass anti-authority figure who had used his platform to fight for the oppressed and downtrodden. Something about being from NJ myself made this calamity even worse.

A local reggae-rock artist that performs under the moniker Blindman had been similarly affected by Jawara’s death and recorded a song in his honor. The track, appropriately titled “Legalize It,” borrows its title from Peter’s pro-ganja anthem and seeks to continue to shed light on the injustices centered around marijuana. To do this, Blindman solicited help from current and former members of The Wailers, which included Aston Barrett Jr., (son of Aston “Family Man” Barrett, bassie and bandleader for Bob Marley & the Wailers) and Don Kinsey, a guitarist for both Bob Marley and Peter Tosh,

“The fact that Tosh1 ended up being arrested, imprisoned, violently beaten into a coma and later died should upset everyone. I empathize with the Tosh family as that was gruesome for all of them and a total injustice. Since that time, herb has become legal in NJ and this didn’t need to happen, nor should this happen to anyone.” Blindman commented, adding that he believes both Peter and Jawara would want to continue to advance the cause. “There is a famous saying that goes ‘On the blood of the martyrs, faith was formed.’  It’s Jawara’s blood here, and no more lives should be ruined anywhere in the world.  Straight up a violation of human rights.”

As a youth in the 80s and 90s, Blindman grew up on MTV, influenced by television shows such as Headbanger’s Ball and Yo MTV Raps. Blindman’s mother was raised in Sayreville, the hometown of Jon Bon Jovi, and so the hard rock of one of New Jersey’s biggest superstars had frequently been played in the household. By the 4^th grade, Blindman already considered himself a big metalhead, rocking a mullet and all. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the young buck gravitated towards making music of his own and found himself singing in hardcore bands as a teenager.

However, a major shift occurred while attending college at the University of Delaware when he first heard Bob Marley & The Wailers’ Live! “My entire world changed, as up until that point, I really only heard Legend and was clueless on the depth of Bob’s music,” he told me. “From that point on, 99% of the time you hopped in my ride you’d hear Bob Marley & The Wailers Live in Portland, 1979.” A friend of his, Mark Goldberg, who goes by the nickname “Sheik” and plays guitar on a lot of Blindman’s songs including his recent single, “In the Water,” had burned him a bootlegged copy of the show. “That bootleg literally changed my life.”

From there, he naturally started going beyond the music of Bob Marley to artists such as Tosh, and Bunny Wailer until a friend introduced him to Israel Vibration and Dennis Brown, which sent him down an even deeper path into the roots of reggae music. When telling me about this period of discovery, Blindman added that it came before the days of streaming, so it all happened from buying albums from record stores and swapping music with friends, something us older fans can relate to.

In his earliest days of making music, Blindman had not yet adopted his professional moniker, but at my request, he recounted the origin of the name for me. After singing in bands for a few years and being subjected to the changing whims of several guitarists that he had played with during that time, he decided he needed to learn an instrument of his own, so he took up piano. He would practice for several hours a day in the music building at University of Delaware and when he came home at 3 AM from delivering pizzas all night, he’d smoke a j and play his keys and write music. “Bob Marley worked nearby and I always felt a very natural mystic, kid you not,” he said. “Very supernatural experience.”

Blindman met a lot of resistance from the people around him at the time when he decided to change courses, so he used it as “fuel for the fire to take heart and persevere.” He recounted, “For all the doubters, haters, etc., who were blind to my vision, I used them as inspiration to have the faith to live out what I’m about…walk by faith, not by sight. See with your heart!”

Speaking of faith, a thread of Christian spirituality runs through Blindman’s music. “I am definitely a Christian in that I follow Christ and practice my faith every day, read the Word, go to church, give alms, etc.” he said. “I always believed in God for as long as I can remember.  As I kid, I remember being paralyzed with fear feeling like Satan was going to get me and just praying to Jesus.”

As he grew older, Blindman has explored many faiths and practices and that’s what led him to fall in love with Bob Marley’s music so much. “What I loved about Bob was he practiced his faith fearlessly in his music,” he said. “Bob undoubtedly had conviction and I admire that! My thing is, music is music and love is love. There is a lot to learn when we open our minds. We are all on a journey…only God knows when we will reach the destination. Feel me?”

Blindman’s musical journey eventually found him performing with a reggae/hip-hop band called Universal Rebel, who, incidentally, I once saw open for John Brown’s Body at a local venue called The Stanhope House. It was at this same venue that Universal Rebel had also supported The Original Wailers. That evening he befriended one of their performers, Rica Newell, which led to Newell singing on a couple of tracks from Blindman’s 2017 album, See with Your Heart, as well as performing with him at a local show in support of Ziggy Marley, who Newell has also toured with as a singer. This musical partnership with Newell has continued through the current day with Newell singing on a number of Blindman’s tracks, including the song we are showcasing today.

Blindman’s work with Newell eventually opened the door for him to connect with Lennie Chen, who was Bob Marley’s best friend and became a surrogate member of The Wailers, with whom he continues to tour with today. (On the band’s website, he is listed as “Vibes Man.”) Lennie invited Blindman out to a Wailers show at Brooklyn Bowl, where Blindman got to have dinner with the band. This experience blossomed into a kinship with Chen and the rest of the band, which eventually led to Aston Barrett Jr. working with Blindman on some music, including “Legalize It.” At the time, Don Kinsey had been playing with The Wailers, and knowing he had played guitar on Tosh’s song by the same title, Blindman reached out to him to ask if he’d be interested in playing on the track. Said Blindman, “Don and Aston Jr both have lots of love for Tosh1 and they naturally supported the song from the jump.”

Keep an eye out for the video for “Legalize It” to be released next week. Also, for those that live in the New Jersey area, Blindman, along with his band, The Dopifyerz, will be opening for The Wailers at their area dates next week, including May 8^th at The Vogel in Red Bank and May 9^th at The Newton Theater in Newton.

“It’s been a tremendous journey meeting people who knew Bob, and my relationship with The Wailers,” Blindman reflected. “Lennie and Rica are those kind of people that God puts in your life at the right time for the right reasons. Total blessing.”