Since news broke two weeks ago of Buju Banton’s arrest and detention for conspiracy to possess and distribute cocaine of more than 5 kilo’s, radio jocks across Canada have shown the Reggae superstar and Grammy nominee support by playing Buju ‘marathons’ of the artists top singles. 

George Barrett of COOP radio in Vancouver began his marathon on his Sunday program called Reggae Train because “it’s important that we radio jocks show our support which is an extension of the communities support.”  Barrett also went on to say “many people have tried to hold Buju down but they can’t because Jah is with him.”

Additional radio stations such as CHRY and CKLN in Toronto have increased their play catalogue of Buju’s music, and some radio presenters have also opened up the phone lines to allow callers to voice their opinion on Buju’s case.  One male caller said “mih feel ah set up.  Either way, Buju gets my support whether him right or wrong.”

Keeping a balanced scale, Howard “Stretch” Carr from CKUT’s 90.3 FM says “I’m not increasing or decreasing Buju’s play rate, or commenting on the case until I hear from the artist himself.” 

To date, the affidavit from the Drug Enforcement Agency has been made public; however, neither the public nor media have heard a defense from the artist’s legal team yet.

Collectively, many radio DJ’s in Canada support Buju, and are hoping for a positive outcome.  Stretch Carr reminds us that allegations such as these were leveled against Glenn Washington some years ago, and they turned out to be false.  “We just have to wait and see.”

Canadian Reggae radio shows have reported playing an average of 5 additional songs by Buju per radio show.  Buju’s most played song in Canada is “Caged Bird” on the Coming in from The Cold riddim, as well as “Hard Times” on the Shoulder Mover riddim