Sean Paul Cites Kurt Cobain And Nirvana As One Of His Musical Influences
Dancehall superstar Sean Paul gets his musical taste from myriad sources, from Reggae royalty Bob Marley to grunge-era rock band Nirvana. The uptown prodigy grew up listening to The Beatles, Shabba Ranks, and just about everyone in between, setting the pace for the genre-bending versatility heard throughout his catalog and enviable features.
The hitmaker’s recent ‘At Home With’ interview, on Apple Music with host Zane Lowe, unearthed among other things how “moody” grunge melodies influenced his sound.
In the early ’90s, the then-unknown Breakout singer was honing his craft; basking in Dancehall’s glory days and tuning in to trippy alt. rock. Sean Paul may currently be at the peak of his power, but he was initially drawn to the vulnerability beneath Grunge music’s buzzing guitars.
“I had an appetite for rock music, but when grunge came around, it just hit me on a different level,” Sean Paul said. “It hit me with a feeling, of some feelings like, ‘Yo, this is moody.’ And it’s not just like ‘we’re winning all the time’ type music. It was like, sometimes I lose bro. Sometimes I lose big time and I’m saying it to you and you feel it in the heart.”
The Dutty Rock productions CEO paid keen attention to the “melodies and harmonies they were using”, as well as aspects of unique, relatable songwriting. “It was a different music, but it reminded me of some of the Beatles songs, so grunge was reflecting that, and he [Nirvana’s former frontman, Kurt Cobain] was a prolific writer and one of the people I was really feeling.”
“And even though Smells Like Teen Spirit is probably one of the most popular songs he’s done, I love a lot of their music too. I picked that one because it’s kind of popular, but there’s others, you know what I mean, which are really big to me.”
Though he also touched on his hip hop fusion during the sit-down, some would find the Alternative/Dancehall music meld to be a bit more bizarre. The sounds of Jamaica have enjoyed rockstar favour since the days when Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger linked up with Peter Tosh for the 1979 hit (You Gotta Walk) Don’t Look Back.
Before that, Bob Marley recorded Punky Reggae Party during his late ‘70s British exile as a response to The Clash’s cover of a Jamaican reggae classic, Junior Murvin’s Police and Thieves. Even today, the music continues to make waves.
Just weeks ago on March 8, Bounty Killer and Lady Saw, now Minister Marion Hall, received Gold certifications from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for their collaborations with rock group No Doubt in 2002. The Grammy-winning singles Underneath It All with Lady Saw and Hey Baby featuring Bounty Killa were produced by veteran rhythm masters Sly & Robbie for the group’s double-platinum Rock Steady album.
Meanwhile, Sean Paul is all set to work with No Doubt’s lead singer, Gwen Stefani, on his upcoming album, Scorcha. He confirmed the lover’s rock team-up will also include Dancehall songstress Shenseea, and fans can expect an array of sounds from reggaeton star Nicky Jam, Swedish singer Tove Lo and UK-based Dancehall deejay Stylo G, among others.
Press play on the full interview below.