Passi is a man who is used to spearheading several different projects at the same time. In fact, he appears to have a veritable passion for multi-tasking in the music world. Having masterminded the Bisso na Bisso collective and, barely a few months ago, released his own solo album Odyssée (with its accompanying DVD 30 ans chrono), Passi is back in the music news again with a follow-up to the best-selling Dis l’heure 2 zouk compilation which scored such a big hit last summer. "When we were working on Dis l’heure 2 rimes in 2002,"he says, "it became obvious that we could turn round andmake a ‘Dis l’heure’ compilation of just about anything we wanted! By that time, we’d worked out how you went about the production side of things and how to develop spin-off singles by the different artists involved. And, given this experience and the success of Bisso na Bisso, we went on to make a ‘Dis l’heure 2 zouk’ compilation. And at the back of our minds we knew we wanted to turn round and do a ‘Dis l’heure de ragga’ compilation afterwards because we’ve always been into the whole reggae/ragga thing. Ragga’s basically the electronic offspring of reggae. We’re all sons of Bob Marley, who still ranks as one of my favourite artists of all time!"

While rap is American and ragga is Jamaican, the two styles of music began to fuse on the French scene from the early 90s onwards with artists from both movements bridging out to work with one another. The leading pioneers of this crossover went by the name of Nuttea, Raggasonic (formerly known as Rapsonic) and Lord Kossity. "These days," says Passi, "you’ve got major stars like Shaggy and Sean Paul whose success has proved the strength of the ragga culture and shown it could be exported, too … and fans in this country have an ear for this kind of music." And, lest anyone doubt it, Passi has put together a new compilation which aims to "show just where the ragga scene’s at in France right now."

While Passi is the first French rapper to have taken such a great interest in a musical style other than the one which made his name, similar projects have been launched in the past by leading figures on the French ragga scene such as Tonton David and Pierpoljak. Banking on the success both had earned as solo artists, Tonton David and Pierpoljak attempted to give a boost to French artists evolving Jamaican-style on two different compilations (Tonton’s called Sans limite, Pierpoljak’s Plus de cœur= soleil). However, both albums proved to be complete flops. Interestingly enough, many of the artists involved in Passi’s ragga project featured on one or other of these failed ragga albums - or, indeed, both if you take the case of the singer Supa John. Despite his vocal talent and his status as one of the out-and-out veterans on the French reggae scene, Supa John has never really emerged from the shadows until now. Daddy Mory, one of his co-stars on the Dis l’heure de ragga compilation, has been around on the French ragga scene for a good many years, too. Mory, formerly half of the double act Raggasonic (who failed to impress with his recent solo album Ma voix résonne) teams up with the group Neg’marrons on Passi’s compilation, while his former partner Big Red duets with Passi himself on a track called On contrôle la foule. And it is these unexpected pairings that represent one of the highlights of Dis l’heure de ragga with no less than 40 different artists featured on 20 tracks.

Only a few rare artists such as Lyricson benefit from a solo performance on an entire track. The latter makes the most of his moment to shine, too, revealing the full extent of his vocal talent and the emotional charge he is able to put across. Lyricson sprang to fame after a duet with Manu Chao, guesting on Mr Bobby (a tribute to Bob Marley featured on Chao’s best-selling album, Proxima estacion:Ezperanza). He also accompanied the former Mano Negra frontman on his ‘Radio Bemba’ world tour in 2002. On This Is My Way – the only song on the Dis l’heure de ragga compilation recorded in English – this young up-and-coming talent from Guinea establishes himself as one of the most promising newcomers on the French ragga scene. Strange then, to learn that Lyricson still has no solo album under his belt. Nor does Taïro, the former Pierpoljak protégé who came to Passi’s attention by way of guesting on DJ Flya’s single Elle veut.

When Passi, master rapper of all trades, committed his Issap label to promoting the French ragga scene, he decided to engage the services of a number of leading producers "in vogue right now." (Not all of them come from a ragga background, however, and this explains, in part, why the compilation displays certain weaknesses every now and then). In the making of his album, Passi listened to over 100 instrumentals and considered just as many singers who came with recommendations from former colleagues. Passi also found room for these former colleagues, too, involving Jimi Sissoko, Doc Gynéco, Disiz la Peste, Arsenik and French female rap star Diam’s on his Dis l’heure 2 ragga compilation.

"It’s like one big ragga party," Passi exclaims, celebrating the sheer diversity of guest stars involved in the project. Looks like many of the participants may well hook up together again at some time in the future, too. As Passi points out, "Certain ties beginning to develop between artists when we’re all locked away together working like this. I’m really into the idea of organising a series of live shows featuring the best of each ‘Dis l’heure’ compilation at a major Paris venue like Le Zénith. I could do a bit of my solo stuff, too. It would be like hooking up as one big happy family again!" All we ca