The Danish reggaestjerne Wafande has in the majority of his childhood had to do without his father, who disappeared from one day to another, as Wafande was eight years old.
the Danger, who originally came from Tanzania, was himself a musician, and sailed on the seven seas, and he has inspired Wafande to a song that means something special for him.
Which song is your best?
– It is “She Said I Was A Failure” from my album “Black Dylan”, which I did together with producer Nuplex. The song is about a sailor who comes into port and discovers that his sweetheart has found a new man. My father was a sailor, so the song is my mother and father’s story.
What inspired the song?
– the “Black Dylan” is a soulplade, and the whole project was dedicated to my father, who was a musician, so it was a bit in the cards, there had to be a song about him.
– My father sailed his entire life. As a 14-year-old saved himself on a container ship, which sailed from Cape Town to New York, so he came to the UNITED states as a refugee. Later, he sailed to Denmark, where he met my mother, but he was clearly marked by his childhood and was pretty absent the subsequent.
– But, in spite of his many fuck ups and lack of presence through my childhood, my mother never made him over to me. I got as an adult and allowed to take my own decisions about what I think about my dad.
– I think, in fact, that’s what I’m singing about in the song. I understand, that he was absent, and my mother thought he was an idiot, but she never said anything about it to me. I have always respected my mother for.
there Is a line in the song you are particularly fond of?
“She said I was a failure / that’s the reason she is not in love with me / because I was a sailor / I’ll forever be beneath the seven seas”. My dad smoke joints and drank a lot, so, whether there was love or not, so he drowned and was under the sea. My mother has never said that he was a failure, but it was like in the air.
How is the song to play live?
– It is nice to play live. The song came at a time when I was a little tired of just being him happy. Before I broke through with’ Give me a smile”, I spent my whole life singing in English, but many people had no idea that I could actually sing, because my dancehall and reggae was a bit more straightforward rap. So it was liberating to come out and show that I could do more than that.
What has the song meant for your career?
It was enough, in fact the first step in the direction that I would bet on to be the songwriter instead of the singer. I felt that the song brought me back to what I started with. At the same time, I worked with several people at the plate, compared to what I had previously done. So it was a confirmation that maybe I should grow it a little more.
Wafande is right now current with the track “No ID”, which is the first single from his last album as a solo artist. He will continue to work as a songwriter and producer.
/ritzau/
