JASL open to sensitising Shenseea about HIV

"So persons who are living with HIV are not living their best life?"

That is the question and suggestion that can be inferred from Shenseea's latest song, Best Life, according to executive director at the Jamaica AIDS Support for Life (JASL), Kandasi Levermore.

Released last Friday, the singer declares being content with her life, with the supporting line, " damn right mi love the life cause mi live cause mi HIV negative..."

The video, with more than 200,000 views on YouTube, has attracted mixed comments, with some users labelling Shenseea as insensitive to the realities of HIV patients.

"For some, being positive was never something they had control over, and they, too, love their lives," Keba Taliam said.

Nelson Green added: "It was like she was putting down those with HIV. She also promotes raw sex in Pon Mi."

Levermore applied a softer approach, and said that the organisation is open to educating Shenseea on the scope of the virus.

EXPOSURE NEEDED

"We expect better from our artistes. Shenseea has not come across as someone that can't be educated about the issue, so we are open to exposing her to what people living with HIV go through and how she can be a better voice to the issue rather than further stigmatising it," she told THE STAR.

"She is very popular. She's trending, as she says, and a lot of young people listen to her. It's not that we are saying people who are HIV-negative shouldn't do everything to remain negative, but we are also saying you have to respect persons who are living with HIV and see how we as individuals can play a role in helping them to live their best life."

Producer of the song, Slyda Di Wizard, told THE STAR the song was created as a way for Shenseea to "re-engage her dancehall fans" in light of her recent deal with Interscope Records.

He said that while he is not surprised at the backlash, he insisted the lyric is innocuous.

"Shenseea is very creative with her writing content. Any line in any song can be dissected and cast a negative spin on," he said.

"The line was discussed during the writing session, but she felt that the line was not offensive as she was referring to herself. The song has garnered a lot of positive feedback, and my Instagram is filled with reposts of it, which suggests it has the potential to be another hit for her."

Established in 1991, the JASL is a non-governmental organisation, offering full-service HIV education, treatment, care and support in a non-stigmatising and non-discriminatory environment from offices in Kingston, St Ann's Bay and Montego Bay.

Their Artistes Against AIDS campaign in the early 2000s integrated entertainers like Tony Rebel, who participated in the organisation's public education and prevention mission. Levermore said that the current discussion is evidence that such campaigns are still relevant.

"The truth is HIV is in existence, and new people come on the scene. All our knowledge surveys are showing that the knowledge is not where it needs to be, so we have to challenge ourselves as an organisation and say how are we gonna increase the country's knowledge on these issues for persons to really make informed decisions and be a bit more sensitive to the plight of those persons who are living with HIV," Levermore said.