Miami, FL -
Controversial Jamaican reggae artist Buju Banton, who has drawn controversy for his violent anti-gay lyrics, is in a federal lockup in Miami, facing drug conspiracy charges according to the Miami Herald.
Drug Enforcement Administration agents say Banton, whose real name is Mark Anthony Myrie, attempted along with two others to buy a large quantity of cocaine from an undercover law enforcement officer.
Banton is known for his violent anti-gay lyrics including his 1992 hit Boom Bye Bye that proposes pouring acid on gay men and shooting them in the head with a submachine gun.
In 2004, Banton was tried and acquitted on charges that he participated in the beating of six gay men. In his native Jamaica, anti-gay violence is rife and typically tolerated by the authorities. Gay sex is punishable by 10 years in prison.
Amid protests from gay rights groups, 2009 tour dates throughout the country, including Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Los Angeles, were cancelled.
In Chicago, the Gay Liberation Network lead vocal protests which effectively prompted LiveNation and AEG Live to cancel all of the scheduled concerts by Banton at company-owned House of Blues locations.
Banton has recently come under fire from gay rights advocated after his Rasta Got Soul album received a Grammy nomination for Best Reggae Album. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation has called on Recording Academy members not to support the nomination.
Banton is expected to appear in a Miami courtroom later this week and faces up to 20 years in prison on the drug charges.
Drug Enforcement Administration agents say Banton, whose real name is Mark Anthony Myrie, attempted along with two others to buy a large quantity of cocaine from an undercover law enforcement officer.
Banton is known for his violent anti-gay lyrics including his 1992 hit Boom Bye Bye that proposes pouring acid on gay men and shooting them in the head with a submachine gun.
In 2004, Banton was tried and acquitted on charges that he participated in the beating of six gay men. In his native Jamaica, anti-gay violence is rife and typically tolerated by the authorities. Gay sex is punishable by 10 years in prison.
Amid protests from gay rights groups, 2009 tour dates throughout the country, including Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Los Angeles, were cancelled.
In Chicago, the Gay Liberation Network lead vocal protests which effectively prompted LiveNation and AEG Live to cancel all of the scheduled concerts by Banton at company-owned House of Blues locations.
Banton has recently come under fire from gay rights advocated after his Rasta Got Soul album received a Grammy nomination for Best Reggae Album. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation has called on Recording Academy members not to support the nomination.
Banton is expected to appear in a Miami courtroom later this week and faces up to 20 years in prison on the drug charges.
