New Caledonia carries two histories: French penal colony from 1864, indigenous Kanak territory for millennia before. Marcus Gad, a roots reggae singer/songwriter born and raised there, addresses both on “Where Mi Come From”, his new single with producer Tamal, released 30 January through Gadda Productions, High Records and Big Scoop Records.
Gad was born in the French Pacific territory known by its Kanak name Kanaky. He now splits time between the island and Europe, working the festival circuit: Rototom, Reggae Sun Ska, Boomtown, Ostroda. His partnership with Tamal (Clément Thouard) produced the 2021 album Brave New World on High Records and Easy Star Records. Ready for Battle followed in 2023 on Easy Star and Baco Records.
Pacific reggae links places like Aotearoa New Zealand, Hawaiʻi, Fiji and Papua New Guinea, where reggae is tied directly to land, language and colonisation. Bands in those scenes often use roots rhythms with heavy bass and group vocals shaped by church and village choirs, and switch between English and local languages inside the same verse. Gad uses a similar approach: slower pace, focus on ancestry and clear South Pacific and Kanak references.
In “Where Mi Come From” he calls each person “native” with an ancestral story to carry and anchors the lyric in Kanaky and Melanesia by name. English and Jamaican patois alternate through the verses. Tamal builds the track around a low, sustained bass line and a simple drum pattern, close to their earlier work and open enough for full verses.
The official video, directed by Jules Gondry and produced by Tourbillon, stays close to the song’s focus on identity and South Pacific roots. Gad plays No Logo BZH in Saint-Malo on 7 August 2026 and Le Trianon in Paris on 30 October.
Stream and listen to the single HERE