Classic Moments In Christian Rock History: Christafari Plays Reggae Sunsplash Tour

Last year we launched (and, sadly, have since suspended) a cool new feature in the pages of HM: "Classic Moments in Christian Rock History." We've taken space to re-tell stories about: the late Johnny Cash guesting on One Bad Pig's I Scream Sunday album; a giant tree roach turning up the volume knobs of Vengeance Rising's guitar amps; Norma Jean playing several "sans vocalist" shows; Larry Norman's cryptic "puzzle-crafting" lyrics; the infamous Furnace Fest; and the following story about a young Christian reggae band travelling as part of the huge Reggae Sunsplash Tour.

In 1995, Christafari were invited to perform on the prestigious travelling Reggae Sunsplash Tour. It was the first example of what is now a common occurance: bands of faith on major mainstream tours (like Warped, Ozzfest). The band was booked sight-unseen on the strength of its Soul Fire CD. Besides the incredible stamp of legitimacy this put upon the young Christian reggae band, it was actually the first ever tour for Christafari. “It was insane!” affirms vocalist Mark Mohr. “I am still blown away by how much God blessed us straight out of the gate on our first tour. To share the stage with legends like Aswad, Freddy McGregor, Buju Banton, The Wailing Souls, Big Mountain, Sister Carol and Wayne Wonder was surreal! And to be the first Christian act to ever grace a Sunsplash festival was an even greater privilege and a tremendous responsibility.” An interesting turn of events happened when a pamphlet comparing/contrasting Haile Selassie and Jesus Christ (written by Mohr) circulated its way through the rest of the bands on the tour. The ensuing tension culminated in a knife attack against Mohr by headlining artist Buju Banton in a hotel lobby. When later asked if he’d press charges, Mohr forgave Banton. Incredibly, the tour continued intact and many heart-to-heart conversations amongst the bands have taken place.

For your viewing pleasure, we have included the full-length interview with Christafari leader, Mark Mohr:

HM: Hey Mark, remember when Christafari toured with the Reggae Sunsplash Tour? I saw the Austin show!
MM: Yeah, that was way back in 1995. Even though I started the band in 1989, Sunsplash was our first actual tour. It was wild doing the World's biggest reggae festival as our first tour. It was 46 cities in 53 days on our own Prevost bus-what a blessing!

HM: How did this booking come about?
MM: Somehow the promoter had gotten his hands on our "Soul Fire" CD and he flipped out because it reminded him of classic reggae by the likes of Third World. He booked us on the spot.

HM: How did it feel playing in such a "legit" lineup?
MM: It was insane! I am still blown away by how much God blessed us straight out of the gate on our first tour. To share the stage with legends like Aswad, Freddy McGregor, Buju Banton, The Wailing Souls, Big Mountain, Sister Carol and Wayne Wonder was surreal! And to be the first Christian act to ever grace a Sunsplash festival was an even greater privilege and a tremendous responsibility.

HM: I heard that your lead singer wrote a tract about the truth of Rastafarianism, exposing it as a false religion, pointing people to Jesus. I heard that it circulated around the bands on the bill, and they slowly turned against this singer. What are the exact details?
MM: Yeah, that was me. At the completion of my first booklet titled "Rastafari and the Bible (An Eschatological Study of the Second Coming)", we, (Christafari) began making my writings available at our shows in booklet form. When we joined the Reggae Sunsplash tour we handed the booklets out for free to searching souls that we spoke with after the show. The writing simply compared the life of Haile Selassie (who many worship as Christ) with the life of Christ and how the Scriptures say he would return. Somehow the writing began circulating among the artists. After all of the other artists on the tour read my booklet the verbal abuse and spiritual attacks began. In fact, the headlining artist on the tour Buju Banton, (then the World's most famous Dancehall DJ) took a brief visit to Jamaica during the tour and brought the writing to the Rastafari elders. They said that my writing was a fulfillment of Rastafari prophecy that a wolf would come in sheep's clothing and try and infiltrate the flock. They called me an antichrist.

HM: How did that feel?
MM: It was tough to hear, and it definitely bummed me out at first, but I tried to take it in stride because I knew that persecution is the mark of a true believer. It was almost validating. As I sing on our latest album To The Foundation, "Persecution is a promise, it's a guarantee. If they're not against us then you should worry. So don't fret, it's not a big thing-you'll never find a servant treated better than his King."

HM: So what happened next?
MM: Things just started escalating and comments that were once said from afar were now being said to my face. I'll never forget when we arrived at our hotel in Cleveland, I ended up getting in the same elevator as Buju and he was going off on me, cussing me out and vehemently shouting curses against me invoking Jah to "Fire burn me". It was intense! Then when we finally got to my floor I quickly exited the elevator only to realize that he was staying on the same floor as me in the room across from me! All night long I could hear him shouting curses at me through the walls so I called our pastor for counsel and got the band together for a prayer session.

HM: What happened after that?
MM: It was early in the morning on the Fourth of July and some real fireworks were about to go off! We had a bus call at around 11am and three of my band members were kind enough to escort me as my security detail. While in the elevator on the way to the lobby my bassist mentioned that he had seen Buju sitting in the lobby since 8am. When I came into the lobby of the plush hotel there he was still waiting for me. Once he saw me he stood up and vigorously walked towards me yelling; "Tansoback (That was my nickname), if you're a soldier, yuh haffi cyan defend it (You must be able to defend yourself)!" He punched me in the throat, which took me by surprise, and then pulled a six-inch blade from his belt, whipped it open and took a strong swing towards my gut. If I had not lunged backwards each time he swung at me I surely would have been sliced open. Once this happened His band members and mine tackled him. He managed to break free and swing his knife at me three more times before I fled the lobby and waited for the police to come. When the cops arrived they found his knife and asked me if I wanted to press charges. If I did, Buju would not be able to tour the U.S. for at least another 10 years. Despite the advice of others, I forgave him and refused to press charges. I figured that he would never accept my God of grace and forgiveness if I didn't first offer it to him as an example and representative of Christ.

HM: Did you guys stay on the tour?
MM: Some of the other band members wanted to leave but I insisted on staying. If we had left, the enemy would have been victorious. We still faced persecution on the tour and had everything from beer bottles to rocks thrown at us while on stage, but that didn't waver my determination to keep preaching the gospel. I wrote the song "Warriors" from the experience while on the tour so it was very cathartic. As the tour progressed we managed to reconcile with the rest of the performers and by the last show, I even had a heart to heart with Buju and managed to earn his respect. I think that one of our greatest witnesses on the tour was in what we did NOT do or say when under pressure. Our actions spoke louder than words.

HM: What lessons, if any, did this event teach you guys and (possibly, through sharing) the entire Christian rock community?
MM: Expect persecution. If you are truly doing the Lord's work the enemy will try and attack you from all sides-even from within if possible. If you are a BAND you must band together. Read and pray together for a chain is only as strong as the weakest link. Make sure that everyone in the band shares the same vision and is willing to submit to a pastor. Have that pastor on speed dial-you'll need him from time to time.

HM: How do you think this tour perhaps helped changed the perception in Christian rock music circles about touring with secular bands? (especially in light of the many Christian bands that play Warped Tour, Ozzfest, Total Chaos, etc).
MM: I think it clued in a lot of bands to the fact that their audience doesn't have to be sitting in pews to receive the Word of God. After all, it's the sick that need a doctor and sometimes you have to go into the heart of the epidemic to heal the masses. I have always said that I don't care where I play; I have performed at Rastafarian Festivals, for every Christian denomination, Catholics, Mormons, the stinkiest bars and even Clinton's Inaugural Ball. Heck, I'll play almost anywhere just as long as I can hold the mic and sing/speak from my heart. Back when we where doing the Sunsplash tour, the MC was actually introducing us as a Rastafarian group every night, though I repeatedly asked him not to. So we set out for the next 35 minutes on stage with the mission of representing our Lord Jesus Christ.

HM: What do you think of now when you look back on it all?
MM: I realize that the fruit of your labor isn't always immediate. It's not easy for the sower to mark his progress. But if you look far back enough you should see some fruit. You remember that Sunsplash MC that I mentioned earlier? He is now a born again Christian partly because of all of our tour bus reasoning sessions during Sunsplash. A few other artists on that tour that used to persecute me are now Christian music ministers. For that I give thanks!

HM: Anything else to add?
MM: Never Compromise!

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After 18 years of ministry Mark Mohr and Christafari are still going as strong as ever. Their latest album "To the Foundation" is available in stores now or online from the band's website: www.christafari.com
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©2007 HM Magazine - All Rights Reserved

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