Jamaican Dancehall Star Dexta Daps on Lorde Sampling Him for ‘Current Affairs’: ‘I Feel Like Bob Marley!’

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When Lorde unleashed her highly anticipated fourth studio album, Virgin, last week (June 27), one track quickly became the most buzzed-about song from her new set. Decorated with lyrics alluding to an MDMA-infused viewing of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee’s stolen 1995 sex tape, “Current Affairs” quickly went viral, as fans shared differing opinions on the ethics of watching (and singing about) an intimate tape without the consent of those involved. Once Genius lyric cards started to hit social media, the following lines quickly became a meme because of how little they sounded like Lorde: “Girl, your p—y good, it grip me good a me fi tell you.”

Those lines, sung in Jamaican patois, are, of course, not actuallyLorde’s — they belong to Jamaican dancehall superstar Dexta Daps. The silky-voiced, dreamy-eyed singjay behind hits like “Shabba Madda Pot,” “Breaking News” and “Twinkle,” Daps, 39, is one of the leading dancehall artists of his generation. The star, who’s nominated in four categories at this year’s Caribbean Music Awards (Aug. 28), boasts a 13-year-strong catalog that includes collaborations with fellow dancehall leaders like Masicka and Mavado, as well as international players like M.I.A., Davido and Tory Lanez.

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Known for his tender melodies and sensual stage show, Daps earned his first entry on Top Reggae Albums with 2020’s Vent (No. 10), a career-shifting set that featured collaborations with Spice, Beenie Man and Chronic Law. Three years later, he made his U.S. Afrobeats Songs debut with “Bop,” a collaboration with Davido from the Grammy-nominated Nigerian star’s 2023 Timeless LP.Daps’ catalog boasts over 463 million official on-demand U.S. streams, and “Morning Love” alone has garnered 17.1 million official streams in the U.S., through July 3, according to Luminate. Two weeks ago (June 20-26), “Morning Love” registered 25,000 U.S. streams. In the week following Virgin’s release (June 27-July 3), the track was up 29% in streaming activity to over 32,000 U.S. streams.

Appearing via a nifty sample (a fairly uncommon practice for Lorde) of his 2014 single, “Morning Love,” Daps’ voice ethereally drifts in the background of “Current Affairs,” gifting the Lorde and Jim-E Stack-produced joint a murky bent to balance the urgent guitars. His X-rated lyrics also capture the sanctity of morning love-making, an energy akin to the one Lorde strived to capture in her references to Pam and Tommy’s infamous home video.

“‘Morning Love’ was not the traditional dancehall style, it was infused with an R&B feel,” says David Harrisingh, one half of DASECA, the production duo behind Dexta’s hit. “And [Dexta] evokes that kind of emotion naturally, so it just seemed like a perfect fit. It’s kind of against the grain, but that’s something you need to do to innovate.”

Comprised of brothers Craig and David Harrisingh, DASECA has been sampled by international stars before (Drake sampled Mavado and Serani’s “Dying” on his 2016 “9” track). Still, they note that this process was smoother, thanks to their manager, Candice Stephenson.

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“I got an e-mail from her label saying they wanted to sample a song that was produced by DASECA, but we weren’t really sure what song it was,” she explains. “When I shared the information with her team, that’s when we realized they [wanted to sample “Morning Love”]. Obviously, it was a while ago, and I think Lorde’s team wants to keep [the specific timeline] under wraps.”

DASECA got an opportunity to hear an early version of “Current Affairs” to give the track their blessing, and David notes that he was “pleasantly surprised” by both the way “Morning Love” was incorporated and Lorde’s sexual lyrics. Craig, on the other hand, is still in awe at the legacy of “Morning Love,” saying, “We’ve done a few songs with Dexta that have been even more popular, so it’s weird to see the reach this one has. It’s very impressive to see how [deeply] artists, not just Lorde, dig into different genres.”

In a lively conversation with Billboard, Dexts Daps reacts to Lorde sampling “Morning Love,” surveys the current state of dancehall and reveals what he has planned for his next album.

When did Lorde reach out to you and your team to clear the sample?

Man, my team actually had to tell me about it, because I didn’t even know when they reached out. My team was so excited, they didn’t even reach out to me. [Laughs.] They just accepted it! I mean, it’s Lorde! What’s the sense of reaching out to me? I’m gonna say “yes” anyways. I just recently heard the song, and, man, it is so beautiful. She definitely cooked on that one.

So you didn’t hear the full song before it came out?

No, I didn’t get to hear the whole song until it came out. She is [such a storyteller]. Anybody that knows Dexta Daps knows I’m all about the stories. It doesn’t matter what I’m talking about; it’s going to be a story. Lorde is so lyrically inclined, you have to really listen to the message. And I really appreciate people who take the time out to put their message together. Lorde is definitely one of those artists. And to know that she sampled my song — I feel like Bob Marley right now!

How familiar were you with Lorde before she reached out?

This is an artist I want to hear! This is an artist that I listen to. The way she puts her songs and messages together is so pure and clean. She’s so metaphorically gifted, you have to be smart to get her messages. I [remember when “Royals” dropped], and I was like, “Who is that beautiful voice, what the hell?”

You have many hits, were you expecting “Morning Love” to be the one to get a moment like this?

No. “Morning Love” was one of my first breakout songs, and it’s also one of my favorites. It’s weird, I got attracted to the guitar at first [when I was writing] this song, and that’s one of the reasons why she was interested in the track. The guitar pulled her in. So, maybe we have some similarities there! It’s a privilege to see that we had the same inspiration and that she made such a beautiful track from that inspiration. I didn’t expect nothing like this for [“Morning Love”].

What do you remember about the initial success of “Morning Love” back in 2014?

When we did that song, it was actually out before my breakout song [“Jealous Ova”]. We were pushing “Morning Love,” but music works a certain way where you can’t force it on people. So, we started recording other songs and testing the crowd to see what they liked, and another song [“7-Eleven”] took me out there. When that happened, all of my older songs started popping. So, “Morning Love” became this big, giant song out of nowhere. It’s so different; it’s rhythm and dancehall.

You’ve been one of the main artists waving the R&D (rhythm and dancehall) flag. Where else would you like to see that sound go?

Putting dancehall on any beat is very important to me. I hear rap on every beat, I hear pop on any beat… we have to spread culture and show out. When you put dancehall on a different beat, maybe the pop lovers get into dancehall because of the production. I just want to spread love and culture, because it’s all music at the end of the day. That’s why this moment is so important for me. It’s such a privilege. I still can’t believe this is happening — because this usually happens when you die, bro!

Would you be down for an official remix? How about appearing in the music video or performing it live with her?

S—t, just let me know when and where! This is what me and my team have been working for.

Have you started to notice new listeners that have found you through “Current Affairs?”

Since the day it dropped, I’ve been watching the Instagram followers increase. [Laughs.] I’m seeing some new people, and I was like, “Where are these people coming from? Must be from Lorde!”

We got the Trilogy album last year, and you’ve put out some music already this year. When can we expect the next Dexta Daps album?

This year, I told myself that I’m not gonna give the fans another album yet. I’m gonna give them some singles, though. I have something special coming out very soon, so I’m not going to starve them. But I’ll put a proper album together next year. I wanna do some mainstream collaborations and go real huge with this next one. I don’t want to force or rush it.

Not to jinx anything, but who do you most want to collaborate with?

I would say TOBi. People wouldn’t think I would like TOBi, but that’s one of my favorite artists right now. And I’m kind of old-school, I want to get in the studio with Alicia Keys. I want to do stuff that fits me. I don’t wanna get a collab just to get clout. And, I don’t wanna jinx it, but Lorde, of course. On the rap side, Busta Rhymes has been one of my favorites since I was a kid; I always wanted to do a song with Busta.

What excites you most about where dancehall is right now?

For me, it’s the togetherness. That’s what was always missing for me. Everything was in portions. I don’t want to say “segregated,” but it was in portions. But I think everybody’s understanding how it works now, so they’re putting their brains together to work together. And that’s where the real benefit and power are.

Where’s your dream venue to perform a mash-up of “Morning Love” and “Current Affairs?”

Oh my God, I would love to be in England with that one. There’s a huge fan base over there for both of us, so that would definitely be a crazy show!

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