Queen Ifrica

Ventrice Morgan, whose stage name is Queen Ifrica, is a reggae singer and disc jockey from the hills above Montego Bay, Jamaica. She is the daughter of ska music legend Derrick Morgan but was raised by her mother and stepfather.

A Rastafarian by faith, she is known for her work in the community and for writing songs about deeply personal subject matter in songs such as Below the Waist and Daddy.^[1][2][3] However, the subject matter of her work also has expressed homophobia, such as in Keep It To Yourself.^[4]

Biography

Queen Ifrica, began her career in 1995 after shining at a local talent contest in her hometown of Montego Bay, Jamaica. This eye-opening experience eventuallyled to major stage performances in her country including the esteemed Reggae Sumfest as well as a union with Tony Rebel’s Flames Crew in 1998.

With roots firmly secured in the Rastafarian faith, she blossomed as one of the top cultural artists in reggae swarming the airwaves with hits like “Randy”, “Jus my Brethren”, “Below the Waist” and “Daddy” and stealing the stages at major festivals and stage shows around the world (Summer Jam in Germany, Sierra Nevada World Music Festival, Bob Marley Festival, Reggae on the River in California and Reggae Sundance Festival in Holland). As an active community leader, Ifrica is involved in several outreach programs for children in Jamaica’s inner-city and charity shows where proceeds are donated to the cause.

She also recently signed a record deal with VP Records and they are working in the studio on her first album Montego Bay set to be released in July 2009.

Homophobia

According to The Jamaica Online Star, during a performance at the Grand Gala on Tuesday, 6 August 2013, Queen Ifrica made statements glorifying male straightness and heterosexual marriage. The Jamaica Forum of Lesbians, All-Sexuals and Gays (JFLAG) expressed disappointment over anti-gay statements stating that her sentiments are an example of the constant prejudice that is being allowed to take prominence on the national stage in Jamaica. They also stated that the remarks she made bears some resemblance to statements fellow reggae recording artiste Tony Rebel made at the same event last year. Her response was, "Like myself, I think they are exercising their right to speak for what they believe in. However, I think it is unfair for them to incriminate me when there is no incrimination there. I simply spoke for what I believed in. They should simply speak from what they believe in but not try to tarnish my character in the process." She went on to say, "I never caused the beheading of anyone. If I did then there would be a problem. Until a member of the gay community can give birth from their union they should not be abrasive to heterosexuals, because they came from that union."^[5]

In August 2013, a gay rights group, Jamaica Association of Gays and Lesbians Abroad (JAGLA, started an online campaign to have the Canadian government withdraw Ifrica from a concert called Rastafesta due to her history on using homophobic lyrics such as "no fish" and "no faggotism".^[6]

The Metronews Newspaper in Canada later reported that she was withdrawn from the show after pressure from the sponsors and other officials.^[7]

In May 2014 she was withdrawn from the bill of a concert in Queens, New York after protests over her homophobic lyrics.^[8]

References