Thanksgiving service for Fantan Mojah today; funeral Saturday

There will be two thanksgiving services to honour the life of dancehall and reggae artiste Owen ‘Fantan Mojah’ Moncrieffe. The first service takes place in Kingston this morning, and the second service and funeral rites are scheduled for this Saturday in St Elizabeth. Fantan Mojah passed away on July 14 at age 49.

Fantan Mojah’s manager, Carey James, shared with The Gleaner that Perry’s is the funeral directors and that “everything is in place for the programmes to run smoothly” starting today.

“There will be a public viewing and thanksgiving service this morning at 11 o’clock at the University Chapel on The UWI, Mona campus,” James said.

It is expected that persons – especially those in the entertainment fraternity – who will be unable to attend the official funeral service in St Elizabeth will pay their respects this morning.

“The family and community funeral service will be held in Fantan’s community of Elderslie, St Elizabeth, on Saturday. He will be buried on that day at his family plot in the same community,” he explained.

James shared that a candlelight vigil was held shortly after the entertainer passed away one month ago, and that a tribute event had been organised for last Wednesday evening at Rebel T HQ on Dumbarton Avenue in St Andrew. He said that the idea was for Fantan’s musical friends in the business to come and give tributes and remember the great person he was and his contribution to Jamaican music.

Sound system

Fantan Mojah was born in White Hill, St Elizabeth, on August 5, 1976. Music was his passion and, like many before him, he came up through the ranks of the sound system, travelling on the truck across Jamaica and performing during the sound checks. His very first name was Mad Killer, a nod to one of his favourite artistes, Bounty Killer.

With his decision to embrace Rastafarianism came a name change to Fantan Mojah and a more conscious approach to songwriting, which saw his faith being reflected in his lyrics. He gained legions of fans with songs trumpeting themes of praise for Jah and messages of Rastafari, positive portrayal of women, and burning fire on loose morals and corruption. With his signature knapsack on his back, Fantan Mojah became a sought-after performer and was later signed to Joe Bogdanovich’s Downsound Entertainment.

His début album, Hail the King, was released in 2005 and featured popular singles such as the title track, Nuh Build Great Man, featuring Jah Cure, and Corruption. The album did extremely well in Europe, and this led to three consecutive European tours in 2006 and continued success worldwide. By 2008, he had released his second album, Stronger and, four years later, the critically acclaimed dub album, Rebel I Am. Soul Rasta, a Young Veterans production, dropped in early January, followed later that year by Fantan Mojah & Lutan Fyah Defending the Roots.

However, he did stir controversy later in his career when he ventured down a slippery path of salaciousness with a what was dubbed a “freaky” song titled Fire King and the accompanying raunchy music video. Fantan stoutly defended the 2021 single by saying that he was simply extending his range and embracing all fans, and that he had not departed from his original roots.

Following his death on July 14, Fantan Mojah’s music was granted new life on the charts. Over on the US iTunes Reggae charts, his 2016 album, Soul Rasta, climbed to No. 13; Stronger (2010) rose to No. 18, and Hail The King (2005) re-entered at No. 73.

Fantan Mojah died at the University Hospital of the West Indies in Kingston after suffering complications related to his heart.

yasmine.peru@gleanerjm.com