I not did ASIA and not AUSTRALIA ... if not i was on every continent!
Allot of people was discussing about who made the first version of rise up ... and i admit that we left this question open, it feed the buzz ;)

But the first rise up version is the one we made with Yves Larock! He gave me a House track to sing on it... there was already the main instrumental and the melody... I made the refrain ... after a long reflection how could house being mix up with reggae ... in the studio with Yves and P.Brunkow we work on the chorus ... and there came out RISE UP .... then the rest i wrote quite quick ... all this happen in 2005-2006 ... the first version was maybe too much reggae and not enough house ... even the professionals was not really interested in RISE UP !!! so Yves continue to mix it more and more House until a version that became "interesting for the marked!" beginning 2007!

mai 2007 everything went fast... BBC 1 played rise up on heavy rotation... and then it went everywhere...

Rise Up was then just the right song presented by the right persons at the right time! But not only!
Rise Up was also a song that that catch many people's heart! Yeah many people from all around the world from different regions from young to old the people love rise up!

Often people ask me if I'm not bored to sing Rise Up one more time and one more time! And no!!! I'm happy that it was Rise Up that Hit ... i think is still a nice song! But also as longest the people want to hear it ! I will sing it!

I personally learn so much out of Rise Up!
I flight all around the planet and yes i admit that my ecologic karma must be very bad!!! I had all kind of experience from hysteric to ignorant, from happy to sad situations, from countries that i even don't know their existing to countries that i never though to go! (I will develop Rise Up Stories later ... have many of them :))

The most funny thing was always when i came in this Snobby Clubs ... they was looking at me and though, who is this hippy ;))))) and after the performance all of them want a picture with me ;))) Some of them say :(even promoters!) ahhh YOU are Jaba ??? i though you where black !!!! .... my answer was: hmmm nobody is perfect ;)))))) One of the phenomena is that the poorest countries they have the hugest clubs, cars and the most expensive DJ's!
$10'000 bottle Champaign in the club and outside the club the worse ghetto situation i ever saw...!
Another phenomena : More the people pay at the door as less they have fun ;)))
I don't judge all this at all ... is just my own observations .... (more to come...)

I will come back to the question that allot of people asked:
Why i was not in the Rise Up clip???

Well first of all ... all went really quick ... lucky that yves was in the video!
Then also i don't want to be in the video from the beginning because of a couple of reasons!

Before Rise Up i already had moonraisers over 15 years ... with a very clear line how the things have to be done (I will write about this, also later!) with Moonraisers we still don't found the investment to make video that could really represent the music and the message we want to spread out! I though is maybe not a good idea to having as first clip a house track in my career ;) That was one reason!
Second reason: House was not a new thing to me! I worked already on couples of House productions, but more as musician or then songs that was not came out huge! But i did not want to become the house singer ... i was not agains to mix my reggae style with other stiles, but i want to stay the moonstyle reggae man ;)) And this is also the reason why i refused more than 2000 House production from all over the world ... even big names ... but the songs often not permit a reggae mixup...

And another reason, the one i fully support, is that you can not bring two Artist Up the same time and Rise Up is mainly Yves work, but also P.Brunkow is a main part in Rise Up and I'm happy to had the chance taking part of it!

In the end the financial aspect .... For sure allot of people think that all the ones who worked with Rise Up are millionaires!!! And let me make clear that if we made rise up 5 to 10 years earlier .... yes we would be!!!

But in a time where everybody download more than he buy, in a time where (almost!) all mobile devices having bluetooth sharing for songs and ringtones, where the most countries or clubs not even hear from musical rights (for house music)! i a time where you can have 24 millions youtube views without a cent, where developed countries sale almost 80% less CD's ...

The reality is there ... 3 years later ... don't count on money from a world hit like this!

yes there are live performance that i can make ... ! everywhere in the world ... in places where i would never pay to go in without performance ... being away from my family almost every weekend without sleep (or only in the plain ;))
And musically it is very poor ... i think I'm more a musician than a singer (will also talk later about this!:))

But all in all i have no right to complain!!!
I had a wonderful experience that i will remember my whole life!

RISE UP RISE UP RISE UP!
more to come....