Written by Ayeola

Q&A

1. Can you describe your sound?
It wouldn’t be up to me to describe me … cause somebody’s opinion of me is not in anyway connected to my opinion of myself… I don’t know if I can describe my sound… I know what I try to do is put a riddim to a poor man’s cry with Selassie-I as the backdrop, but that’s about all I can tell you.

2. You seem to be very busy-performing at several major Reggae and Music Festivals plus you have a lot coming up in 2012. I am sure you have a strong following but would it be fair to say you are niche/underground artist in the sense that you are not really known in the region nor featured heavily in regional media?
It all depends on who is interviewing me and who is asking questions.  I kind of realize sometimes because certain people don’t know who you are it doesn’t mean you’re underground or a niche artist… some people just don’t know who you are. I mean I’ve been accused of and been called a so-called elitist songwriter, and maybe I don’t sing about jumping and waving a flag or something enough so maybe I don’t get covered in the regular Caribbean Blogs. Caribbean people want to listen to a certain kind of music right now and these are the people they push over and over you know.

3. You say you became a professional artist after you left St. Lucia in the sense that you were getting paid for your talent. Having experienced the business side of the music business have you seen any changes back home since your initial departure towards the business side and have you done anything to help bring about any of that change?
I will answer second part first. I have been back to St. Lucia, plenty times and since then we’ve had a musical society which collects royalties for people. It was first known as Heranowa Music Society and now has grown to encompass the entire Eastern Caribbean as ECCO – Eastern Caribbean Collective Organization for Music Rights. We didn’t have that when I was growing up. That has come into play; but also the advent of the Internet has changed the entire musical landscape completely: a man can make his music in St. Lucia, have it on the Internet and sold across the world. As far as taking music seriously in St. Lucia, I’ve come to realize it’s not a Caribbean thing. Whenever resources are limited, people tend to focus on academics, and anything to do with sports or creative lifestyle whether music, painting, dancing; these things are always considered secondary. I think too its based on the size of the country. When a man know you live down the road he cannot see you as a professional or a star because, you know, he used to play foot ball with you around the corner. How can he all of a sudden see you as this incredible human being? So all of this has something to do with the whole idea of the stifling of music and creative industries in the Caribbean.

4. It’s funny you mention that because when I look at your Websites I don’t think independent, small-islander, struggling artist. It is just so well-presented. I think many regional artists especially from the Eastern Caribbean can take a cue from you when it comes to the presentation of your band/artist image. I know you’re inspired as far as singing the music, writing the lyrics etc, but how much of the presentation is you?
Its all me. We have an independent operation so I see everything and sign off on everything that happens. The images you present especially on the Internet, are the things that represent you. You cannot put out a sloppy something and expect people to take you seriously. Also, because I’m from a small island don’t mean I have to be small. Like my mother and a lot of Caribbean mothers say, when you going through hard times, the outside people don’t have to know ..you put the same face on. So even if I didn’t have breakfast you wouldn’t know.

5. I read you do work with diabetes in St Lucia? Why did you chose that cause?? Was it a personal or national issue for you?
It’s national issue there is nobody in my family with diabetes. I had gone to St. Lucia to give away 500 soccer balls and 600 uniforms and in the process I learned we have the highest rate of diabetes per capita in the world and I kinda realized in an island with all them fruits that wasn’t necessary so I took it upon myself to try to bring it more to the spotlight and make people really aware of what it its that we were dealing with .. you know we tend to say in St. Lucia that this person has sugar not realizing that that sugar will kill you. We came back with a PSA, I brought 3500 diabetes testers with me and I made a diabetes documentary.

6. Your charity TOCO (They Often Cry Outreach), how long has it been in existence and what prompted u to create it?
We’ve always given in some form but after the song “Orphans Cry” came out we met someone at the UN (Dr. Hope White-Davis) she has since passed on but she asked us to focus our attention on the Caribbean. Cause usually when people talk about under-privileged children you don’t think of the Caribbean. Its sunshine coconut rum and water. So I try to bring whatever I can into the light. We have Dominica in focus then St. Vincent but charity begins at home so we started with St. Lucia in 2009, but the organization was formally created two years earlier.

7. What have you learnt from being a father?
I have three boys. They have taught me I cannot be as rigid as I think I want to be and I should learn to bend a little more.

8. What do you like most about your St. Lucian heritage?
Seeing the profession I chose is music I think the most beautiful part is when I was growing up in St. Lucia the musical education we got was quite varied. As you know the radio stations are not formatted so we got a little bit of rock and country and calypso and reggae. Also when I was growing up life was a lot freer than it is now. So you can get up in the morning go to the beach, come back juggle your ball, eat, go hang out with friends, you know I loved the liberty I had as a child and this is what made me who I am today.

9. If you had three hours in your favorite city, where would you go and what would you do?
I would go to Paris, my favorite city so far … wouldn’t do much, probably just sit in a café and drink wine.

10.What is your favorite:
soccer team and player: mancity and I like Ballatelli for now anyways
place to watch the world go by: in my house with my children
thing about the pposite sex: the mere fact that they are the opposite sex
fashion item: handbag/satchel older than two of my children given to me as a gift
TV show: I don’t watch tv
breakfast food: oatmeal with blueberries and raspberries

11. Zouk or soca?
Zouk

12. Nice smile or pretty hands?
Nice smile

13. Knowledge or wisdom?
Wisdom

14. Homebody or socialite?
Depends on time and place, I like both

15.Summer or winter?
(laugh) Well that one is obvious, as a Caribbean man. Summer

16. The last book I read was War Talk by Arundhati Roy; about how conniving human beings can be.
17. Everyday before I get off my bed I kneel down and pray.
18. Condoms-everyone should have; and pay no attention to the pope.
19. I once fell asleep and woke up with a beautiful song in my head.
20. Taj Weekes the last of 10 children on a little island named St. Lucia with loving parents and loving siblings