Saddis has been busy in the first half of 2020 producing new music. But the artiste has not limited himself to soca alone since two of five tracks are dancehall.
The singer whose real name is Reshawn Ince spoke to Bajan Vibes about the projects he has worked on and have now released.
“The tracks I have released so far for 2020 are dancehall tracks: S.L.Y. featuring LRG produced by CJuh at Starpoint Productions. It has over one million views on YouTube and has been getting lots of airplay throughout the region, especially here in Barbados and Trinidad.
“Wicked Gal features Altek produced by Shak and JFK Productions (Jamaica); Cut Dem Off features Maloney produced by JFK Productions & DJ Wally (Jamaica). In terms of soca, I have done Live In Love on the After Touch riddim produced by Mindset Productions and Ya Bad Self on the First Kiss riddim produced by Green Shanti.”
Saddis said he was elated to have put out music amidst all the challenges and uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 crisis. “I am happy to have some songs on the airwaves despite there being no Crop Over festival or major events. The fans and listeners seem excited to have music for the summer, despite events being cancelled.”
Some of the music was completed before the COVID-19 period, while others were done during the national curfew. “I wouldn’t say it was difficult. S.L.Y. was produced in early 2020 before the lockdown and the other tracks were done within the curfew times. We made the best of the situation. I don’t currently have any videos out for the songs, but I am working on that.”
Of the new projects, Saddis said: “I write all of my songs. If it’s a collab, it’s written with the featured artiste. Theå concept just simply comes based on the beat and vibe I hear in my head. I take 15 to 20 minutes to write a song. The collabs usually come about whilst I am in the studio with the featured artistes listening to various beats.”
The entertainer has been getting “overwhelmingly positive” feedback about the music which is currently being promoted via all social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Spotify.
The artiste is working hard to produce even more music even though he already has quite a few songs out. “Yes, look out for a soca track with L&S soon and I will be releasing more dancehall tracks for the remainder of 2020. It is still important to have music released and events to take place, where possible within the health protocols, as hundreds of persons depend on it as their money earner. For some of us, this is all we do.”
Saddis spoke about being a part of the historic and iconic This is Who We Are production.
“I was very honoured to be a part of the This Is Who We Are song. It was produced during the 24-hour lockdown, so it was quite challenging having to record some of the vocals via cell phone etc., but with the wide scope of technology, the engineers and producer did an amazing job with editing the vocals and video visuals.”
The news of the cancellation of Crop Over was a huge blow to Saddis for a number of reasons. “I was very disheartened and sad as thousands of dollars would have been invested months in advance in production and preparation for the Crop Over festival. That is the main time of the year that we as artistes look forward to, apart from travelling to other carnivals. But it was inevitable with the pandemic being a worldwide crisis and travel being restricted for everyone, visitors and artistes alike.”
He added: “It has been very rough for the past four months not working with any income and bills still to pay, but I am trying to keep my head above water. God is great! Always make sure to save for a rainy day or a pandemic. The pandemic is here — the pandemic is now.”
Finally, Saddis thanked his manager Ingrid Holder for pulling together the ideas in his head and making them a reality.
“I would like to gratefully acknowledge and thank my manager Ingrid Holder of Live Wire Entertainment and Mogul Entertainment Inc. who has been there for me from day one, as I bring my dreams to life and live by her motto which I have now embraced: ‘Meet me at the top, the bottom is too crowded’”, the entertainer said. (IMC)
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