After their first six audacious months on the air, Louisville Magazine spoke with the creative minds behind WFPK-FM’s World Force Reggae — uno-named Rastafarians Basil (left in photo), from Great Britain, and Ibuka, from Jamaica. Their show airs every Friday from 11 p.m. to midnight.
Let’s hear the story. How did you meet?
Ibuka: I’m born and bred in Jamaica, Manchester to be exact, which is the central part of Jamaica. So, I grew up on reggae. Reggae I eat, sleep and everything.
Basil: I’m from England originally. Since I was 15, I played (music) — I play bass as well — and was a DJ back in England.
Ibuka: Well, we used to have a Rastafarian group called Puuda, which is an acronym for "people united under de almighty." It just so happened that one of the locations we met at was where Basil was residing. So, that’s how this fire ignited. And from there came the World Force Reggae band, which dissolved about six months ago.
So it’s all about the vibes on a given night?
Basil: That’s what reggae is, really — vibes. It’s a way of life for me.
Ibuka: Yes, you got to feel it. The life is in the music; the music is in the life.
Basil: Outside of my family, it’s what I live for: reggae music and Rasta.
Ibuka: They both work hand in hand.
How did World Force Reggae go from a band you both played in to a radio show?
Basil: I know Matt (Anthony) and he would have us on Sound Clash once a month. Then Woody (Chancy, of the show Woody’s Roadhouse) and Matt pushed for us to get our own show — they thought we should, and we did, which is great. I always knew I wanted to DJ on the radio. It was a dream come true. We’re blessed, really.
Ibuka: Yeah, every man must always have a dream. A man without a dream is like a tree without roots.
How do you work together to create the show you do?
Ibuka: We fluctuate. It’s like his energy feeds onto me and I get into it and push it forward.
Basil: I think we feed off each other’s energy and the music as well. I think the music uplifts us and that’s what we are trying to do — uplift people.
Ibuka: Surprisingly, we never talk to each other about what songs we are going to play on a Friday. When we get inside there, the songs that I have complement his songs, and it works vice versa.
Basil: We’re two peas from the same pod.
