Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

Mavado looking at his injured hand after an incident with a police officer at the Constant Spring police station in September 2006.

Today is the second to last installment of our in-depth six-piece interview with Mavado.

Mel Cooke: So how de Connect Jamaica Programme goin' on? (programme he organised to distribute computers to schools)

Mavado: Well it a gwaan y'nuh. A jus' true to de amount a ting from wha day it kina slow dung likkle bit. But it a go pick up again, cause it no gone noweh. An' me no gone noweh. An afta de storm an everyting yu ago have a calm an me jus' retaliate towards helping back de yutes an' all a dese tings. So right now me not even a worry, Jah know. Cause wen yu help people an all a dem ting deh, Jah bless yu more y'nuh. An even de people whey u help, when people fight yu an people know sey y'know dem yute ya a good yute, an dese people cry fi u, yow, a blessin' y'nuh. See wha me a sey? Cause Jah no like ugly. Yu understand?

Mel: How you an de Constant Spring police?

Mavado: Me an de police dem good man.

Mel: No stress, no struggle, dem ting deh pass off?

Mavado: Me nah no stress wid dem. Me an Spring police always alright y'nuh. Is jus' dat inna every bunch yu ave bad apple. Inna every bunch a apple yu have even one an two bad one. But yu cyaa use da one bad one an judge everybody more time. Me an' Spring police dem good.

Mel: Yu love de gangster life really or is a home vibe? Yu roll out inna Range, ride de bike, X-amount a gal ..., or fi you personally is more a meditation ting?

Mavado: (Pauses, chuckles) Mek me tell yu dis man. Yu see gangster life ... Our definition of gangster y'nuh, is mekking money, y'nuh bredren, an live de way how yu feel sey yu suppose to live. Dat mean sey from yu a mek money yu ago waan live happy. An yu a go waan ave everyting whey u waan ave. Yu 'ear dat? So we jus' live happy an jus try fe have everyting wha we waan fe have. Yu ear dat? Dat is wat de gangster life is like.

Mel: So wha bring you more happiness. Fe roll out inna de Range or siddung an hol' a 'meds'?

Mavado: My happiness a wid me an de people dem. Dat bring me happiness. Vanity, riches an dem ting deh no really bring we happiness y'nuh. Dat jus bring we accessories, yu understand. So we no too too really sey dem ting deh mek we happy. Dem ting deh mek we life nice an mek yu live like ow yu waan live as me tell yu, but de happiest time a life no wen you an yu fren dem a chill out man? An yu a party an hol' a vibes. Have yu truck an yu car an yu house an yu dis an everyting an stay inna dat every day, a mad yu mad inna dat. Ear whe me tell yu. An me no deh pon dat. Yu see it?

Mel: So yu no leave out de original, original fren an crew dem?

Mavado: No man, me no lef out me fren dem same way man. No matter waapen. Y'nuh.

Mel: As tings progress, as de artiste grow bigger media, popularity, whatever, yu ever feel like yu woulda draw away from yu roots pon de Gullyside, whey yu woulda no longer feel at home desso?

Mavado: De gully?

Mel: Yeah. Yu ever feel yu woulda reach a stage whey yu woulda feel outta place, which part yu come from?

Mavado: Eh eh. Me no feel me cyan reach ... Mek me tell yu dis. Even now. When mos' people look an dem no see me pon de Gully, an' nuff people a sey a how Mavado no deh pon de gully, jus' because de yute dem pon de Gully haffi live as one. Yu see me? An anytime no unity no deh pon de gully me nah go deh deh. See it? See anytime de yute dem start unite again, come back as one, an mek de truth be known, an mek de people an de worl' know wha really a gwaan pon de Gully an everyting good again, me wi always deh pon de Gully dem time deh. Yu understan'? Cause a desso we born. We no love noweh more danÉ We no love noweh like ow we love de Gullyside. Yu understand. But as long as certain ting a gwaan, me affi jus' tek whe meself fe a time. An dem affi sort out dem ting an sort out demself. Sort out de unity an de righteousness. Yu see it.

Mel: A likkle flare-up gwaan whe day an ...

Mavado: Yeah, but we no really waan go too much inna dat. Cause mos a dese tings more time ...

Mel: Arright, cut da part deh. You were surprised when dem turn yu back from New York da time deh?

Mavado: Yeah! Den no mus surprise man? Memba sey New York a me place y'nuh. Go inna America more dan hundred time aready. Yu understand? An me neva ave no problem ova deh. No problem at all. Me is a yute, me not even stay a farin fe long. De longes' me eva memba stay inna farin a one week. Me no stay longa dan dat a farin. An I don' tink I spen one week a farin five time. Yu understand. An from me bus me a go farin every minute. Go work, go promote. Y'nuh? Me fren dem might keep a party an me jus' fly up an hol a vibes wid dem. Or me go check Wyclef or me go check Busta Rhymes or, y'nuh, me go check one a dese people. Yu understand? So New York come een like me yard. So when me really reach an dat appen, me nah lie, me surprise an' me hurt, yu see it. But hear why me hurt an me jus' hol it, cause me love de part wen dem sey yow, Mr. Brooks, we no ave no problem wid you in we country, cause yu always come ova here. We nah no problem, a Jamaica. Jamaica ave a problem. Me no know a wha kin' a problem Jamaica ave?

Mel: Couple show cancel down some Caribbean islan' an ting?

Mavado: Yeah, cause I was in jail at dat time.

Mel: So yu legal to fly to de Caribbean, travel documents return an ting?

Mavado: Yeah, me ave me passport an ting y'nuh. But a jus' de yu know, de ting wid New York. Everyting whe gwaan, an gwaan me still a hol it. Everyting wha gone, so long as a my own it haffi come back to me. Mmm.

Tomorrow: Mavado, who is one of the featured acts on the upcoming show, Rendezvous, on May 10, speaks out on the 'crime and the crisis', dying, how the ladies asked him to squeeze them like a trigger and how he wants to be remembered.

Mavado (second left) on the 'corner' in Cassava Piece last year with his friends.