Sandra Salazar: It seems that you like to be in France?
Juan Nelson: France is our second country. We spend a lot of time here, more than in the United States. There, they just begin to understand our music. That pleases us, even if I like France.

Sandra Salazar: You said in the past that you had chosen to work with Ben 'cause he makes a positive music. In what Ben Harper's music is positive, according to you?
Juan Nelson: His songs evoke the injustices of this world, even if this last album (Burn To Shine) evokes lightest sides, there are more songs of love, of fun. But in a general way, the message is a message of love and integration, it's there that are the positive elements of his music.

Sandra Salazar: From here, we always have the impression that this message of tolerance emanates rather from the Black community than the White Americans, even at the time when the Blacks were the most discriminated. How do you explain that?
Juan Nelson: Our two communities must live in peace. Otherwise, we're heading for disaster. It's necessary to make peace with the past and the present. For the good of our children, it would be better that things turn out all right and quickly. It's necessary to preach the love of his neighbor.
"Jah work is never done", sure!
We've fought during all our existence, we try to transmit the message. There are enough people who die, it's such a mortar. To my opinion, it's crucial.

Sandra Salazar: Would you say that this desire of tolerance ensues from a past of oppression of the Black population either that the Black community is by nature more spiritual, more turned to God?
Juan Nelson: This is a part of our cultural heritage, sure! We are very spiritual. When a people is reduced to slavery, when there is nothing else that God and the spirituality to rise, people try to free themselves through that. You can be a free man in your mind, even if you are chained. You reach your freedom by touching God. It's what we continue to do now.
I believe it's also that which attracted me to Ben, he wasn't indifferent to what happens in the world, around him. He writes songs about things which preoccupy me, and not only "baby, I love you" or Hip-Hop, even if there is positive and negative things in the Hip-Hop. Ben is a guy who speaks about things deeper than what you can find in a lot of songs and he makes a good music too. Will we do a difference in this world? I don't know, but we contribute to make it a little better.

Sandra Salazar: In the life of every day or in a large-scale?
Juan Nelson: In the life of every day, there are people who say me that we have changed some things in their life. To know if that changes the life of people, it's different for each one. It's what Bob Marley did for me, at least. What he had to say made a difference in my life. I believe that it's for that that we are successful, we do what seems good.

Sandra Salazar: You are the most older member of the band, you chose to stay with Ben, even if in a time, peopke proposed to you better?
Juan Nelson: It's true, some people have proposed me things which were better paid, in the short run, but on the long term, I am there for the music, I play because I like that. I believe that I made the good decision and then I have more and more freedom on stage, I enjoy myself more than ever, I improvise a lot. It's moreover my nickname: Juan "Improvise" Nelson!

Sandra Salazar: What was your musical education?
Juan Nelson: I began with Gospel and Soul music. Later I learnt Jazz and Blues, because I wanted to study the differences between these two music styles. All the musics have different musical approaches. My parents listened of everything, I had the luck to listen to any sorts of stuff when I was kid.

Sandra Salazar: They were musicians?
Juan Nelson: Yes! My mother plays keyboards, my grandfather plays saxophone. When I was twelve years old, my mother bought an organ, I played it non-stop. I invented things on the organ. One said to me: "uses this chord" and I invented around that, it was great! There was music all the time at home.

Sandra Salazar: How many instruments do you play?
Juan Nelson: The one that I play seriously, it's bass, but I tried drums and keyboards... I write also my own music and I co-wrote the song "Fight for your mind"....
I continue to write. I hope to release an album, one day, later. At the moment, I'm with Ben and perhaps that one day, one of my stuff pleases him, and he will put it in his album. Now, we are in mission, both.

Sandra Salazar: What mission?
Juan Nelson: Make a difference in the life of people, in the music industry, the most possible touch of people. The music stays, even when you've left this world. It's your heritage, it's important that this heritage is positive.