Corry BanksA story appeared today on the LAWeekly about famed Pharcyde producer who put in work on the classic Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde. The article, entitled PHARCYDE PRODUCER J-SWIFT FACING DEPORTATION TO SPAIN, talks about J-Swift’s legal battle where he faces deportation to Spain where he was born even though he’s been in the US since he was 2 years old.
Writer Jeff Weiss explains;
Last month, the original Pharcyde producer traveled to Vancouver to play a show with his former bandmates. He presented Canadian officials with his work visa; everything seemed to be in order.
But at the airport coming home on Jan. 15, U.S. customs authorities denied the Inglewood-raised 43-year old entrance to the country he’s lived in since the age of two. Rather than return to his four children and wife, he’s been detained him in Canadian federal prison awaiting deportation to Spain, the country in which he was born.
“L.A. is the only home I’ve known. I’m terrified I won’t be able to see my wife again or my kids grow up,” Swift, born Juan Martinez, says by phone from a federal prison in Vancouver. “My mom is 70 years old, handicapped, and afraid that she’s going to die without ever being able to see me again.”
Read the entire news article on LAWeekly.com
Peep the in-depth interview by Robert Herrera of Frontrowliveent.com with J-Swift back in 2012 where J-Swift discusses his embattled past and overall outlook on his future.
For nostalgia’s sake here is the classic Passin’ Me by video by Pharcyde.
Photo by John “L.A. Jay” Barnes III