Lebanese singer Fred Debs embraces reggae with debut single ‘Seasons’

Fred Debs heard plenty of stories about reggae while growing up in Lebanon. Some were positive, others negative. But while recording “Seasons,” his first song in the genre, the singer says he encountered the positive side of Jamaican culture.

The easy-listening track was produced by DubHut and features drummer Sly Dunbar, bassist Delroy Hamilton and guitarist Nicolas Groskopf. Debs, who lives in California, describes the song’s message simply: life moves in cycles, and neither difficult nor happy periods last forever.

“The only thing we truly own in this life is our perspective and our faith,” Debs said. “If you lose your perspective, you lose the compass. The song is about standing firm in whatever weather you’re in, keeping your heart open and your feet moving.”

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The only thing we truly own in this life is our perspective and our faith. If you lose your perspective, you lose the compass. The song is about standing firm in whatever weather you’re in, keeping your heart open and your feet moving.

Debs has performed since he was 14, appearing in bars and at festivals in Lebanon’s Freikeh region and competing on The X Factor Middle East. He discovered reggae as a teenager through CDs featuring Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff and UB40. Later, African artists Alpha Blondy and Lucky Dube deepened his interest in Jamaican culture.

He says confusion about reggae remains widespread in Lebanon and elsewhere. “Reggae was and still is being underestimated and misunderstood around Lebanon and the world,” Debs said. “It is stereotyped, associated with smoking herb and laziness.” He added that listeners often overlook the music’s wisdom, social commentary, self-awareness and nuance. “Seasons” is distributed through VPAL Music.

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Reggae was and still is being underestimated and misunderstood around Lebanon and the world. It is stereotyped, associated with smoking herb and laziness.