I met K-Illa, real name Dwight, by chance while talking to Reddz. After that encounter I had the opportunity several more times and he is a really cool person, very savvy musically and overflowing with confidence. I heard a couple of his songs and thought, yeah he is nice with it; but then he brought over his new joint ‘Swagger Man’ in the middle of the night and I realized after hearing it that he is not just nice with it…he understands how to be special.
The 25 year old artist has drive, lyrics, punch lines and a wealth of talent; all are heard in ‘Swagger Man’, a sure anthem for those “swaggerific” people. The hook is catchy, the concept is dope and the word play is fire. Belizeans….stand up
Sat down with the talented and beautiful Ms. Denise Castillo a few weeks ago to discuss her hit radio single ‘Til Da Mawnin’ and talk about the Belizean music industry.
Denise Castillo is a 22 year old singer, writer and University of Belize student. Denise acknowledged that she gets overwhelmed when people compliment her on her track ‘Til Da Mawnin’ which has been getting steady radio play.
Her style, seen in ‘Til Da Mawnin’, is Reggae Souls mixed with hints of R&B and Dancehall; which is accompanied with a beautiful and classic voice. Like many others, Denise started singing in the church. But being urged by family, friends and even Tanya Carter has brought her to this point.
In terms of memorable moments in her young career, Denise cites coming in 2nd in the Next Level Project at the Bliss. She talked about learning a lot in that competition and meeting artist and being a part of something that brought latent Belizean talent to the forefront, which she expressed a desire to see more of.
Denise surprisingly stated that Celine Dion was one of her biggest musical inspirations attributed to her parent’s musical taste and LOVE FM (thanks for all those old hits). As for now, she takes interest in artists like Alaine, Tammy Chin and Alicia Keys.
Currently the independent artist says she is working on more singles, so prepare to hear more of her melodic voice on the radio.
Last words? Denise Castillo: I want to shout out everyone that has supported me. Friends, family, everyone…especially my fans.
Floyd “Redz Di Mastapiece” Lacayo is the producer behind ‘See I Rise’ from Mr.Programme and with that intrigue driving me, I went over to the Doted Quaver studio in Belize City with an old friend, Edmund who runs Inspirational Promotions to interview the cast he was currently working with.
After spending half hour in the room it was clear that Redz’s Materpiece Productions was the engine that could drive the careers of a lot of talented Belizean Artists. Within a two hour listening session I heard hits in the Soca, Hip-Hop and even Brukdown genre. I promise you that ‘See I Rise’ was not a fluke production; this camp has undeniable sounds that Belize will be proud of, end of conversation.
With that said below is the first of a series of videos I will be dropping from this interview. The first video introduces a sparkling young artist affiliated with Masterpiece Productions; I bring to you, TY.
The Sunny Season fashion show featuring the amazing Fancy Purple Paint clothing line was held in Belmopan, Belize and I was in attendance. It was a bit of an adventure getting to Belmopan by 7 on a Friday evening but it was well worth it. Great designs, stunning Belizean models, a beautiful audience and a great atmosphere meant a great time.
Congragulations to Rebecca Stirm, the designer of ‘Fancy Purple Paint’, for pulling off a great show with stunning pieces. We will have more from Rebecca when she does an interview with BZHypeMeter.com in the near future.
For now, check out the rest of pics from the fashion show below.
So I visited the Belize agricultural tradeshow 2011 last weekend. It was everything I expected after my 5 year hiatus. Live music, great spirits, lot of people and ofcourse, lots of heat 🙂
Fact, Belize is very diverse culturally but what really makes it unique is how small it is for its great diversity; so everyone basically sees and interacts with everyone…pretty cool by me.
Whose a cute puppy wuppy???
Jag Camp gave a great performance with Jacob Diggs, Deady and Jeanie tearing it down…but that most adorable little girl stole the show asking Jeanie “how long she has worked with Mr. Jag?”,everyone said a collective awwwww. More pictures of their performance in the set below.
BZ Hype Meter - A Belizean blog for Belizean Music, Belizean Fashion, Belizean Sports, Belizean Art, and Belizean artisans and businesses, cool Belizean music, cool fashion in Belize, sports in Belize City, cool Businesses in Belize 