2 March 2021
There is no better place to party than the Caribbean region due to the intoxicating strains of sweet melodic music, pounding beats and pumping rhythms that turn every day into a celebration of life itself.
Rich in spirit and sweet, seductive sounds, the intensity of the music in the Caribbean region is joy, elation and celebration from the northern tip of The Bahamas to Trinidad and Tobago in the south. Synonymous with the deep, pulsating rhythms and rich, rolling melodies, the Caribbean’s beautiful music tradition owes much to its history books. Today the melodic sounds of calypso, R&B, soca, soul, reggae and dancehall swirl on warm Caribbean breezes, delectably interfused with an intoxicating mix of Afro-Caribbean beats. Dancing refrains evoke the relaxed carefree attitude, and playful lyrics so endemic of the culture and the people of the islands. Music is the lifeblood of the islands: coursing through its arteries, pumping its beating heart and powering every unforgettable Caribbean party.
1) Rihanna (Barbados)
With her striking photogenic good looks, and sassy image, theisland girl from Barbados has enjoyed huge worldwide fame. Though she looked at home at the top of the worldwide music charts with her mix of pop and R&B, Rihanna came from modest beginnings. Growing up in Barbados, she struggled with an unstable family environment, faced down personal illness, and never graduated from high school. However, her fortunes changed when the young songbird was discovered by an American record producer in 2003 - she wowed Beyoncé’s husband Jay-Z, signed to his Def Jam Recordings music label and wa soon in the Guinness Book world record as the female artist with the most US number-one singles in a year. Since then, she has become one of the richest female musicians in the world and has snagged multiple Grammy Awards plus a long list of number one hits all over the world. Rihanna is currently working on studio material, has been honoured by Harvard as ‘Humanitarian of the Year’, has launched a beauty empire ‘Fenty Beauty’, starred in a film with Donal Glover and became a Tourism Ambassador for her Caribbean homeland, Barbados.
2) Bob Marley (Jamaica)
JamaicanBob Marley was not simply a Jamaican reggae singer but instead a trailblazer for the genre and a cultural icon. And today he remains a phenomenon, and a symbol of Jamaica, and Rastafari beliefs even after death. Marley released reggae, ska, and rocksteady music as a solo artist as well as collaboratively with others. Specifically, in 1963 he formed a group called Bob Marley and the Wailers, together with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer, later adding other Jamaican musicians. Five of Marley's albums are on Rolling Stone's list of "500 Greatest Albums of All Time." However, "Roots, Rock, Reggae" (1976) was, in fact, the only single to reach the US Billboard Hot 100. The following songs found minor success at the time on the R&B and/or dance charts. Of his 11 children, born to seven different women, several make music and perform, including Ziggy - Bob Marley’s first child, who has himself achieved some international success.
3) Gloria Estefan (Cuba)
Gloria Estefan brought salsa to the world, making it accessible for everyone - not just Spanish speakers. Yet she remained fiercely loyal to her Cuban roots and is considered almost like royalty in modern. She married fellow Cuban musician Emilio Estefan, Jr. after joining his band, the Miami Latin Boys, which subsequently morphed into the Miami Sound Machine. She is highly prized for her philanthropic work, monitorships and musical pedigree, earningaccoladesthat include the Presidential Medal of Freedom, induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the American Music Award for Lifetime Achievement. Thirty years ago, Gloria Estefan's life changed forever, when in March1990 — at the height of career - a semi-truck crashed into her tour bus on a snowy Pennsylvania highway, breaking her back. Despite being told she may never walk again, the star pushed herself in a gruelling rehabilitation schedule and not only regained full functionality, she was also able to continue touring and singing.
4) Boney M. (Aruba, Jamaica, Montserrat)
While they drew huge audiences and record sales Europe-wide, Boney M were slow to impress an American audience and spent almost all of their career making 1970s disco hugs. Today, the Euro-Caribbean vocal group remains known throughout the world for hits such as "Daddy Cool" (1976), "Sunny" (1976), "Ma Baker" (1977), "Rasputin" (1977), and the Caribbean Christmas tune, "Mary's Boy Child – Oh My Lord" (1978). Incredibly, they sold over 100 million records with an original lineup from three different Caribbean countries: Liz Mitchell and Marcia Barrett from Jamaica, Maizie Williams from Montserrat and Bobby Farrell from Aruba.
Williams and Farrell never sang on the records but did sing in live performances. Their record producer was Frank Farian, the same German record producer who was behind the infamous duo MilliVanilli in the early 1990s.
5) Heavy D (Jamaica)
Jamaican-born rapper Heavy D came into this world known as Dwight Arrington Myers, and even though his family moved to the US as a child, his music retained a Caribbean influence. During the 1980s and 1990s, he performed as a solo artist, featured artist, and with his group of backup vocalists and dancers, dubbed Heavy D & the Boyz. Heavy D was instrumental in influencing his music label to hire Sean "Diddy" Combs as an intern - a big break that powered P-Diddy’s music industry success.
6) Billy Ocean (Trinidad & Tobago)
For many Caribbean music lovers, it is Billy Ocean’s Grammy Award-winning 1984 pop song, "Caribbean Queen (No More Love on the Run)” that has been the soundtrack of the islands overseas.Fittingly, the man who sang it is from the Caribbean island of Trinidad - though he was born as Leslie Sebastian Charles to a family of local calypsomusicians. On moving to London when he was 10 years old, Billy Ocean enjoyed singing at his local church and community events. He achieved massive international acclaim, and is considered one of the nicest men in show biz. Ocean continues to tour, retains an island accent from his boyhood, and won praise when at the height of his fame, he walked away from his career to help raise his three children.
7) CamilaCabello (Cuba)
Born Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao in Cojimar, Cuba to SinuheEstrabao and Alejandro Cabello, Camilo Cabello rose to prominence as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, formed in the X Factor USA in 2012. She began to establish her solo credentials whilst in the group before enjoying successful with Machine Gun Kelly and Shawn Mendes. After leaving the group in late 2016, Cabello achieved success with Hey Ma by Pitbull and released a debut studio album that soared to number one, received a Platinum certification. Its lead single "Havana" topped the charts in several countries including the US and UK, and follow-up single "Never Be the Same" reached the top ten in multiple countries. Cabello's 2019 duet with Mendes, "Señorita", became her second single to top the Billboard Hot 100. Her second studio album, Romance (2019), peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 chart and in 2021 Cabello is set to star in an upcoming film adaptation of Cinderella (2021), for Sony Pictures. She has amassed dozens of accolades including two Latin Grammy Awards, five American Music Awards, and one Billboard Music Award. She has also received three Grammy Awardnominations.
8) The Baha Men (The Bahamas)
In 2000, we were all enjoying asking “who let the dogs out?” As we sang along to an contagious one-hit-wonder for the chill Caribbean group known as The Baha Men. It was a global hit, achieving success everywhere but the US - until it was picked as part of the Rugrats in Paris:The Movie soundtrack and became an anthem at athletic events. It earned the Baha Men millions and a Grammy Award - and has one of the most instantly recognisable choruses in recording history.
9) Wyclef Jean (Haiti)
He became a mainstream artist as part of the Fugees and has also featured on hits such as "No, No, No" by Destiny's Child (1997) or Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie" (2006). Jean, a Haitian rapper and singer who relocated to the US with his family as a child, formed a hip-the hop trio with Lauryn Hill and fellow Haitian-American Pras Michel in the 1980s but they splitin1997 to pursue solo careers, after achieving more musical acclaim in Europe.
10) Nicki Minaj (Trinidad & Tobago
She is full-on, provocative and overtly sexual and renowned for her pneumatic chest, skimpy clothes and daring fashion trends. Yet Nicki Minaj - born Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty in Port Of Spain - has earned a place in Billboard 100 history with her Bally rapid-paced vocals. The parents of the singer and rapper were two part-time gospel singers, but Minaj had a disruptive childhood. It promptedthe girl to develop alter egos, other personas who could cope with her emotional needs, and led her to acting and singing when the family relocated to the Bronx in New York City. In 2009, the Trinidadian musician was discovered by rapper Lil Wayne and signed to a recording contract. She has since appeared as a judge on American Idol, contributed to several major films and achieved a Guinness Book of World Records for the most Billboard Hot 100 entries by a solo (female) artist. Amazingly, seven of Minaj's R&B singles were simultaneously on the chart.
