By Iana Seales
“My name is Sherwin Rose by birth but I sing under the name I-San,” says the short, dreadlocked singer as a form of introduction before he starts to chat at length about his music and its purpose.
The slightly serious look on his face is temporary, or rather he wears it when he is discussing something important, and for the past fifteen years very few things have been as important to I-San as his music.
It is unfortunate for him that after fifteen years of campaigning locally, the name I-San is still new to audiences here. But he declared in a recent interview with The Scene that “the focus is on getting the message out.”
What is his message? It’s as simple as the man who bears it, I-San explained, saying he just wanted to interest people in listening to music which is clean, entertaining and thought provoking. He has been singing for years, but it was only within recent years that he started to push for recognition and he believed he was on his way to building a fan base that respected him.
“I sing for the people and they have embraced me over the years, but not in a huge way yet,” I-San said, opening up about that aspect of his up-and-coming career in music. He was being honest about the fact that people basically do not know him or his music. But that his why he continues to campaign; he is serious about changing how people see him.
Speaking about the type of artiste he is, I-San readily identified with reggae: “I sing reggae, that is who I am, a reggae singer.” But he added that he was versatile and had worked on soca and dancehall tracks.
Since he started singing he has performed with a few local singers, naming Spida among them, saying they collaborated on a song called, ‘Mama Africa.’ The song, he explained, was a reflection on African foreparents who struggled to “make us free.”
‘We need love’ is another one of I-San’s songs which he is currently promoting. The singer disclosed that he has been based in Trinidad and Tobago for some two years working and promoting his music prior to returning home in December last year. He said the move to Tobago offered a lot of opportunities and he made the most of it.
Currently I-San is working on album called ‘Share ya bread.’ He explained the concept with the phrase, “Men gain the world and lose their soul.” He cautioned that ‘Share ya bread’ should not be taken literally as in food, but translated into sharing anything, particularly knowledge.
I-San said the album should be out shortly, but in the interim he was looking for gigs to promote his music. He has performed at two recent concerts here which featured international acts.
The singer was frank enough to say that while music was a passion, he had to work to support himself and a small family. When he is not singing I-San works in construction and as he put it, “This is how I earn me keep.’ He considered himself an ambassador of local music and was keen on achieving his goals.
I-san, which he said translates as ‘Natural One,’ was confident about his future and the impact of his music on people. He added that music was in his nature. (ianaseales@yahoo.com)