Anthony Cruz has revealed that he stepped away from music for about five years after his only daughter was killed by gun violence, a loss he says nearly broke him.
The singer behind “Halfway Tree” and “You Got It Bad” also looked back on one of his boldest career moves: driving uninvited into Buju Banton’s gate to play him the rhythm that became their collaboration “Place Too Bloody.”
Cruz, whose real name is Rowan Smith, spoke openly about the death of his daughter. He also has a son, but “she was my only daughter,” he said. His record label had already been named after her, and he had recorded a song when she was born.
“Because without the grace of the almighty, I would not be sitting here with you,” he said.
He recalled that when he first got the call, he assumed there had been an accident. Losing a child, he explained, is unlike any other grief, and he described the feeling as “like half of you gone.”
During those years away he focused on fasting, prayer, reading psalms and “a lot of therapy,” he said, all while “just trying to build myself back.”
Cruz later started a charity in her name and received support from government figures, friends and family, including Garnet Silk’s widow. He said he never had the strength to fully push it forward at the time, because every public mention of her brought the pain straight back.
Still, he is thankful that music remained an outlet. He said he is “glad that the music was here,” adding that the grief never truly leaves. “You have to live with it,” he said.
The conversation also turned to “Place Too Bloody,” one of the standout moments of his catalogue. The rhythm already carried a heavy lineup that included Richie Spice, Chuck Fenda and Sizzla. “I was the last person to go on that rhythm,” Cruz said.
Knowing he had to come up with something that could stand beside those names, he wrote the song with a friend named Pearl. Then, while driving one day, he decided to turn into Buju Banton’s gate unannounced with the track playing. “I play the song over and over,” he said.
According to Cruz, Buju listened and “he knew it was a hit song.” The deejay told him to check back the next day. Cruz arrived prepared, with the rhythm set up and ready, and soon found Buju in the booth voicing his verse. It was the first time the two had properly met.
The song took off on a European tour, where Cruz said crowds kept calling for “Place Too Bloody.” Demand for the track as a dubplate was high enough that the fee was split between the two artists, giving Cruz what he described as his first thousand.
The single never received a music video, but he believes one could still be made. “It’s a song we can video today,” he said. “Because it’s relevant right now.”
Elsewhere, Cruz traced his path from singing over records in a friend’s basement to working in Miami under producer Willie Lindo alongside Kashif Lindo.
He recalled being among the earliest artists around the Fifth Element camp, introducing Chuck Fenda to the team and backing the arrival of Richie Spice.
He also credited his spiritual grounding for the patience he shows in his career. Today, he says, he has a large body of recorded music ready for release and a clear sense of where he is headed.
