A Monrovian native, but having grown up in London until he returned to his homeland in 2018, Jonathan Samuel Baker’s music is a fusion of flavours which give us a taste of his cultural duality, but it also bears witness to the world through the unique lens of a young refugee. With the latest track, “Good Time LIB”, JSB seeks to paint a radically different landscape of Liberia than how it is framed
on the news. “Liberia is known for its 14-year civil war,” he explains, “and most people don’t know the beauty of the country: it’s amazing sights, people and culture. I want you to hear what a good time in Liberia sounds like.”
Tapping into the thriving Afrobeats scene before it had established itself on UK shores, as JSB travelled between London and Liberia, he began mixing these sonic worlds from the age of twelve. Resources were limited, but through sheer determination, he put together his own studio and taught himself how to produce and engineer his own music. “I was so hungry to make music; I would wake up to record and not rest until the early hours of the morning the next day.”
Part of his experience of having to leave his war-torn home country was this drive to do more, be more, “and to one day come back and help my country rise back up again.” Having at last moved back to Liberia three decades down the line, JSB is helping to craft and showcase the budding talent of his country, enlisting Afrobeats masters F.A. and Geno on “Good Time LIB”. JSB has collaborated with the finest artists of the African nations, including renowned Ghanaian rapper Sarkodie on his track “What I Live For”, and fellow Liberian and hip-hop artist Geno who features on JSB’s latest single. His statement of intent is clear: “Through my music,” JSB says, “I want to help try and grow our music industry to the level of our African brothers and sisters.
