By Leighton Williams, Staff Reporter
Mackie Conscious: I don't think a lot of producers are willing to go out of their way to invest in talent from this region and (right)A.J. Brown: They could work with each other and make a concerted effort to build their careers. - File Photos
IT IS said that a young artiste can find the going tough in order to get his big break. However, young artistes may tell you the going is even tougher when they are from western Jamaica.
"We have tried to get on rhythms before and they give us all type of excuses. I don't know if they don't respect MoBay artistes or others from this side make it bad for us. It is hard," said a young artiste who did not wish to be named.
The youngster adds that he has been on Reggae Sumfest for five years in a row, and in addition, has appeared on several shows in and around western Jamaica and still the going has not been easy.
He is not the only one who thinks it is a problem. Upcoming act Mackie Conscious supports the youngster's view.
"A lot of Montego Bay artistes are underrated, so it takes a lot of effort from them. I don't think a lot of producers are willing to go out of their way to invest in talent from this region, or young talents for that matter," said the singer, who is popularly known for his song What If.
The singer points out that many producers from the West have in the past relocated to Kingston due to the lack of recognition. Conscious explained he too has had to make the 120-mile long journey to Kingston to gain some recognition. Still, it has not been easy.
"Most people (producers) will call an artiste to come on a rhythm. However, I've never been called. I'm working so that I'm in a position that people will see the need to call me," said Mackie Conscious.
While the struggle has been rough for some acts, it must be said that the West, in particular Montego Bay, has produced several singers and musicians. A.J. Brown, who had popular tunes such as All Fall Down and You've Captured Me in the 1980s, hails from the second city.
In addition to Brown, E.T. Webster, known for Can We Meet a lovers' rock song in the mid-1980s was also 'born a Bay'. Industry players on that side of the island point to names such as Benjy Myaz and international star, Jimmy Cliff , singer and producer Richie Stephens, and reggae great, Peter Tosh.
The West has also produced many musicians with many coming from the Herbert Morrison Technical High School music programme.
Still, the problem of western artistes making it in Kingston seems to be a longstanding one.
A.J. Brown adds his voice to the discussion, saying that it was not easy for him in that time either.
Brown said that because of his personality, he did not allow the problem to bother him. Instead, he did executive productions for most of his work. This, he said, helped him to get the necessary projects done. The crooner, who sings Father Friend, summed up the experience of the young acts by saying: "It's going to be tough for the artistes if they don't have help."
SPACE TIGHT ON THE AIRWAVES
The Montego Bay producers tell a similar tale to that of the artistes. "It's hard to get airplay from the disc jockeys at time when you are from the West because they tell you that you're from the country, so you are not as good as the Kingston counterparts. However, if they like your tune they will play it. Otherwise, it is hard," said producer Daniel Barcon.
Cecil Sinclair, another producer, offered an explanation as to why artistes may find the odds against them. He said at times these artistes made the situation bad for themselves. He argues that sometimes the attitude of the artistes prevent them from getting the necessary exposure, since they generally change producers frequently. Still, he adds that the young acts are sometimes encouraged to go to Kingston, which inevitably makes it even more difficult for them to get exposure.
Putting a different spin on the issue, Sinclair added that most of the artistes that 'made it big' came through the hotel circuit and understood the intricacies of the business hence, they knew how to please an audience.
"It's not they were better than the current crop of artistes, but they understood that people like variety," said Sinclair.
While the artistes sing the blues, at least one Kingston-based producer with whom The Gleaner spoke, said he has worked with artistes from the West before. Producer Orville 'Gadaffi' Hart, manager of Merciless, said he had worked with such talent in the past and was still willing to work with new talent from both that region and elsewhere.
He, however, had his reservations.
"Most of the young talent is coming with the same thing. They're not really coming with anything different and they need to come with something different," said Gadaffi.
EXPOSURE KEY
Producer Vasco Carney said that oftentimes artistes in western Jamaica are not discovered, since not enough effort is made to contact producers in Kingston. He adds that if a producer is not contacted, then he or she is unaware of the talent that exists.
"If youngsters need exposure they need to market themselves. We won't know how good they are because we are in Kingston," said Carney.
Producer Mark Hudson of Stone Cold Productions, the entity responsible for the remake of Dennis Brown's Money In My Pocket by George Nooks gave his two pence on the matter.
"From the moment that act is talented I don't have a problem exposing him. I'm always looking for young talent," said Hudson.
He commented that it was a young artiste who made his label become recognised. As a result, he is prepared to work with young acts, no matter where they were from.
STILL PUSHING ON
President of the Jamaica Federation of Musicians (JFM), Desmond Young, explained that there are music expos geared towards helping young acts by giving them exposure. He points out that while the JFM was not in a position to fund similar programmes, they could provide the expertise needed.
In all of this, the western-based artistes have not been idle. They point out they have been busy working to promote themselves. Mackie Conscious has been on several stage shows, among them Red Stripe Reggae Sumfest 2002, promoting his music. He hopes that through this medium, his songs will make it.
As for the other young act, he, along with his crew members, have used the money earned from doing various gigs to promote themselves.
Still, A.J. Brown points out the young acts are moving in the right direction.
"They could work with each other and make a concerted effort to build their careers. If the business community in the West is serious, they could get into the music side and harness the talent that exist in the West," he said.
At the end of the day, all the western-based artistes point out the lack of new talent from the region and elsewhere is due largely to the absence of a record company in Jamaica to market and develop new artistes.
