Etana to release another music video

Leighton Levy, Gleaner Writer

Etana's latest video, People Talk, is set to hit the market within days.

The roots/reggae entertainer recently completed shooting the video for the fourth single from the upcoming album Free Expressions, due out later this year. Directed by Tseshai and Asher, who also directed Jah Cure's Unconditional Love, the video was shot in part at Sterling Sound Stage on Red Hills Road where her band played live during a scene.

According to the talented songstress, the video is about people needing to be who they are and not what people expect them to be.

"Basically, it's on people having their opinion of what Etana should be and what Etana should look like, and Etana saying that this is me and you just have to accept it," she says.

She says she has worked harder on this video than any of her previous shoots but came away feeling refreshed. "It was kind of a free vibe on this video. There wasn't much pressure. You know sometimes you're doing a video, you're well tired and you're drained, it was nothing like that," she said.

"And it's one of the videos I think I did the most work in; besides Happy Heart, because most of the shots that were done were all me."

The directors had a relatively free hand while working on the shoot. Etana said the script was sent to her weeks in advance and she made only minor changes, so for the most part what is seen when the video is finally released will be all due to them.

Like all her previous ones, the upcoming video is to be released worldwide.

And like her previous videos, she expects this latest effort to be as thought-provoking. She also expects it to strike a chord with her fans worldwide, in part because reggae music is once again going through an evolution of sorts.

"I love it. I think people are demanding real music because I think they've gotten over the trash of the past three or so years, and they are saying enough is enough and they want real music," she surmised.

"I am happy for that because I have been a solo artiste now for four and a half years, and when you listen to the radio outside Jamaica, when you go down to the Caribbean and England, you hear some songs (that you have never heard before)."

She continued: "You say 'wait de ... mi never know say Dean Fraser sings'. He did a song that was number one in London for weeks. Here in Jamaica, you don't hear that kind of music and it's from Jamaica. So the people are saying, if that's what you want in Jamaica, fine, but when you come out here we want to hear real music. I can deal with that."

Of her previous videos from the upcoming album, Etana says August Town got a lot love from Europe because of the "'dub wise' beats and the people are more into real hardcore reggae."

People Talk, she believes, is going to be well accepted. Before the video was shot, Etana's label VP Records conducted research to test public response to the song. Two songs - Heartbroken, which was already doing well overseas - and People Talk, were sent to disc jockeys in New York, Boston and in Europe. To a man, the disc jocks chose People Talk because of the requests made by people calling the radio stations. Based on that, "I think the video is going to do good," she said.