Dancehall

Dancehall Icon Nadine Sutherland Calls Out Entertainers Who ‘hide and jook’

Nadine Sutherland says some entertainers in the Jamaican music industry are getting vaxxed in secrecy.

The veteran dancehall deejay called out other artists for their hypocrisy in taking the vaccine in secret but maintaining an anti-vaccination stance in the public domain. On Wednesday night, the “Chatty Chatty” singer did not call any names, but she did say that there were entertainers who were publicly against taking the vaccine but ended up “hide and jook” so that they benefited from the vaccine travel restrictions imposed by countries.

“Yesterday, I realized that some people are hiding and ‘jook’. Hide an jook is a talk on the streets. Some Entertainers are taking the jook secretly, not wanting their fans to know. Hmmmm,” the outspoken deejay noted. “November is going to be interesting, I guess some will be outed. The US dollar beckons!” she said.

Nadine Sutherland was speaking in reference to the travel restrictions imposed by the United States that takes effect in November. It requires that all non-US citizens traveling to the country be fully vaccinated. Those who aren’t cannot enter the country, something that would particularly affect Jamaican entertainers who perform and tour in the U.S.

Nadine Sutherland Spragga Benz
Nadine Sutherland & Spragga Benz

While some entertainers like Mr. Lexx have publicly supported the vaccines and urge people to get vaxxed so everything can get back to normal, others like Buju Banton and even some popular DJs have been against the government’s efforts and are actively telling people not to get jab.

Meanwhile, Sutherland noted that the hypocrisy appears to be a result of artists being trapped by their own support for the anti-vaccine culture, which fans have bought into.

Responding to a comment on her post, Nadine Sutherland says while some entertainers are anti-vaxxers others feel trapped into supporting the popular anti-vaxx culture in which many of their fans believe.

“My thoughts are some are ‘trapped’. They personally understand how important it is to be vaxxed, but they publicly endorse the anti vax mindset of a lot of people in Jamaica, which includes their fan base. Some are just anti vaxxers,” she said.

In a new post on her Instagra, Nadine Sutherland makes it clear that she is not retracting her statement despite criticism from some quarters of the industry.

“Yesterday, I made a post highlighting a current situation in the Jamaican music industry, about ‘hide and jook’,” Sutherland said. “I’m not retracting, as this is a true phenomenon that is occurring, not only in our Entertainment industry, but generally, in societies, across the world.”

“The reality is, people a ‘hide an jook’. It’s crazy how this blew up, as my intent was to humorously state this fact,” she continues. “Some people got it and laughed, some wanted to understand this occurrence from a deeper level, while others … Wow, unnu deep sah. There is no evidence in that post that had me incrimnating or judging anyone for this choice! None at all! I know, I cannot control the lenses of how people interpret the world, or my words.”