Beenie Man Explains Why He was Not at Merciless’ Funeral – Watch Interview
King of the dancehall Beenie Man is clearing the air about his absence at the funeral of Leonard “Merciless” Bartley, which had sparked a lot of speculation. The dancehall giant was a no-show, along with his comrade Bounty Killer, who had spoken frankly about why he did not attend the service. Beenie Man, born Anthony Moses Davis, sat with the Entertainment Report Podcast in Canada and spoke to Muscle about the situation.
His absence at the laying to rest of dancehall heavyweight Merciless was only one of the things he cleared up during the interview. Beenie, who is widely believed to be 49 years old, first sought to clarify his age. Contrary to what Google and Amazon Alexa say, the Who Am I singer is actually 50 years old and not 49.
“This I wanna clear up. People, when yuh born in your house in Jamaica, they register you the year after. I’m home-born. Mi neva born inna hospital. Nuh doctor neva tek mi—a midwife tek mi out ah mi madda, zeen?” He explained while saying that he was “sexy at 50.” According to the artiste, he was born on August 22, 1972, the same year as Buju Banton and Bounty Killer.
As the interview continued, he addressed the naysayers who had a mouthful to say about his absence at Merciless’ burial service on September 15. Speculations claimed that Beenie Man and Bounty Killer decided not to go to the funeral together. However, Beenie Man explained that he did not attend the service because he arrived late.
“I came late. I was coming from Trinidad. I came the same day. I came at 6:00 in the evening. The funeral supposed to be finished…I was upset because mi leave the day after the first nine night…my humblest apology. If I wasn’t there, I wasn’t there because I could not be there,” he explained.
Emphasizing that he respects his friend Merciless, Beenie expressed condolences to the deceased’s family and friends. He also voiced his disapproval of the infamous mural that depicted the 2000 Sting clash, where he, Bounty, and Ninjaman were all defeated by Merciless. Reportedly, the mural was removed from the burial site in October, but Beenie begged, “Can you please take my face out that grave?” He indicated that he was okay with a statue or a full-body painting.
“I love and respect him for all the job that he did and for all that he have done for Dancehall music. I really do appreciate it,” he continued. Beenie went on to say that he did not know the cause of Merciless’ death. However, Bounty, who had announced that he was not friends with Merciless, claimed that the deejay died due to drug usage.
Watch the interview with Beenie Man below:
