Krista Henry, Staff Reporter

Biggie Irie - Contributed photos

A versatile entertainer with a booming personality, Barbadian singer Biggie Irie is making his name on the soca and reggae scenes.

Born Carlton Cordle in the United Kingdom, Irie moved to Barbados at the age of three and has since been integrated into the Caribbean lifestyle. Known for his sugary sweet voice and his commanding presence onstage, Irie has been in the business for many years.

He told The Sunday Gleaner that "It all started at a very young age at eight when I joined the St Michael's Cathedral in Barbados. From there I was in the reggae band Exodus, mainly playing reggae. That lasted two to three years, then I went into di Splash Band. My real entry into music was playing at the Warehouse in Barbados, the biggest club there".

Irie toured extensively with the Splash Band and later with Spice and Company, including two visits in Jamaica - one for Reggae Sunsplash and the other for Byron Lee's Jamaica Carnival in 1997. While in Jamaica at Sunsplash, Irie appeared onstage with internationally renowned artistes such as Maxi Priest, Beres Hammond, Garnet Silk and Byron Lee & The Dragonaires.

Irie cites reggae artistes Bob Marley and the Wailers, Beres Hammond and Third World among his many influences.

While still on a high, Irie took a break from the music business from 2002 to 2005, spending his time in Bermuda. He explained that "I took a hiatus for four years because I was fed up with the way things were, how di music scene was in Barbados". Biggie came back late in 2005 to a show with the Splash Band and recorded a song that would changed his career.

Creating history

In 2006, Irie recorded the soca song Nah Going Home, which was a huge hit across the Caribbean. In 2007, Biggie won the International Groovy Soca Monarch Competition in Trinidad and Tobago with his hit song, capturing the hearts of the entire Caribbean, creating history as the first non-Trinidadian artiste to ever win any competition in Trinidad.

"That song opened up a lot of doors for me. Winning the soca monarch was great not only for me, but for people in Barbados. You know people in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago have a slight rivalry," he said.

The video for Nah Going Home was shot in Barbados and directed by Jamaican film-maker Jay Will. It was released on MTV's Tempo and shot to the number one position, where it remained for six weeks. Since then Biggie has been touring constantly and will be in Jamaica soon for the traditional Easter Sunday show, which he is looking forward to. He said "the times I have performed in Jamaica have been great. I find that Jamaicans like good music. It doesn't matter if its reggae or soca, they enjoy everything".

Irie is also looking forward to doing a lot of work in the island, which he describes as the "entertainment centre of the Caribbean".

"Reggae is my heart. I don't know if its because my father is Jamaican or what, but most of my songs are reggae. Now that people know who I am, I wanna push the reggae I've done before, plus doing the new stuff," he said. Hoping to work with a vast number of reggae artistes, Biggie is planning to re-release his reggae album Where Is the Love.

Irie terms his version of soca as 'groovy soca', not as fast paced as the regular fare. Biggie Irie also hopes to release a soca album this year as well as a reggae album and continue to tour the world.