Boom Bye-Bye.
Joe 12.25.09
Reggae legend Buju Banton busted in Florida for trying to buy 5 kilos of cocaine, looking at 20 years in prison.
The Associated Press
MIAMI — Jamaican reggae star Buju Banton is facing a drug charge in Florida.
Banton, whose real name is Mark Anthony Myrie, has been in U.S. federal custody in Miami since Thursday.
Drug Enforcement Administration spokesman David Melenkevitz said Sunday that Banton was arrested on a charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine. The charge stems from a DEA case in Tampa.
An e-mail to Banton’s independent record label was not immediately returned Sunday.
Banton’s ninth album, “Rasta Got Soul,” is nominated for a Grammy. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation launched an online petition protesting the nomination, saying some of Banton’s earlier lyrics have advocated violence against gay and transgender people.
The nomination for “Rasta Got Soul” is Buju Banton’s fourth Grammy nomination.
Gay Men of African Descent (GMAD) and National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) have announced that they stand with GLAAD in its petition drive and advocacy work protesting the recent Grammy nomination of Buju Banton. The Recording Academy should re-think their criteria for Grammy nominees. They probably would not nominate a performer a reputation for advocating the killing of African Americans or Jews in 2009 (they admit that they have awarded Grammys to racists in the past).
The New York City Anti-Violence Project is also joining with GLAAD to protest against Buju Banton’s Grammy nomination.