Johannesburg - “The journey is the destination”. This quote just about sums up UK rapper Cashh, who is using his experience of being deported to make music and to highlight the plight of immigrants.
He recently released an album, ‘Return of the Immigrant’, in which he shares his deportation experience. The internationally acclaimed rapper was born in Jamaica but the family emigrated to the UK when he was 7. After living there for 12 years, his life was turned upside down when he was deported because of an issue with his documents. Or that’s the story he was told.
Not only was Cashh torn away from his family, he was forced to return to Jamaica where he had no history left.
“I was 19 years old when I returned to Jamaica. I was alone and when I stepped off the plane, I wasn’t even sure if the person who was going to pick me up at the airport would even be there. I am a family man and my family was broken when I was deported,” he said.
Five years would pass before he saw his family again. Cashh spent the first two-and-a-half years in the country of his birth in what he calls “a mental prison”.
“I kept thinking that I would return to my family when the documents issue was sorted and that it would only take a couple of days. I could not have been more wrong,” he said.
Although it took him a long time to accept his new fate, he made the most of his remaining years in Jamaica to get to know his country of birth, once again.
“I believe in experiences. Everything happens for a reason. I was once again connected to this musical community from which I came,” he said.
Forced to make a life in Jamaica, he became a sort of musical attaché, connecting UK artists with those in Jamaica.
“If you wanted a location for a video shoot, I was your man. If you wanted to collab with Jamaican artists, I was your man,” he said.
Despite the despair his deportation brought to his life, Cashh decided to turn that awful experience into something he could use on his journey.
“When I returned to the UK, I was not as known as the younger rappers but I was afforded the respect of a veteran. I started over and in no time I was one of the most recognised rappers in the country,” he smiled.
Growing up, Cashh showed a keen interest in soccer but once the music took hold, he was hooked.
“My older brother was a rapper and I wanted to be everything he was. I think if my brother was into gardening, I would have done that too. I fell in love with making music and using music to tell the world about my experience. That’s what rap is about. You speak your truth,” he said.
Keenly aware of the fact that rap is not everyone’s forte, the 28-year-old said he did not force his music on anyone but believed that music in itself was magnetic.
“Everyone is into different things. If people don’t get you or your concepts, that’s okay. I am a journalist of sorts, telling my story. I have learnt that if I pay close attention to the people around me and my surroundings, I can make music,” he said.
His latest album, “Return of the Immigrant”, received 8 million streams worldwide and this success planted another seed. Cashh and his team are preparing for the launch of a foundation that will assist immigrants in the UK faced with similar challenges as he was at the age of 19. Three songs on the “Return of the Immigrant” album, “Starving”, “Wash Clothes” and “Trench Baby” seem to be resonating with millions around the world, which Cashh hopes will start the immigrant debate globally.
“I want to use my experience to bring the immigrant message back. We have already started the work and receive daily calls for help from immigrants in the UK. We hope to have the foundation up and running before the end of this year,” he said.
Cashh added that he harboured no ill feelings against the UK government for his deportation.
“I decided to use what’s happening with me on the outside. I digested it and I’ve used it in my music. For me, music is not just an album, it’s an experience,” he said.
The rapper is on holiday in Cape Town but he has already used his time to make connections that will ensure his music and his foundation leave a footprint in the country.
“South Africa has so many countries in one. This place is the most beautiful I have ever seen. I will definitely be back,” he said.