He believes, however, that it has what it takes to be the connecting bridge between TT’s indigenous sound and the mainstream market.
His music is not going to sound like “straight ahead soca.” I pay respect to a lot of them, like the Machels, the Kes and a lot of those artistes.” In a one-on-one interview, he said, “A lot of the times, calypso and soca people are true to the genre. He gained popularity by doing covers of songs like Adele's Easy On Me.įor him, the EP’s release is timely although he thinks he is going to receive a lot of backlash. Will Gittens has got over 50 million views on streaming platforms and has 493,000 subscribers on YouTube. The release said the production company also did musical collaborations with corporate brands like Disney, Universal Music Group, Pandora, Converse, MTV, and Warner Music Group. He and his brother also wrote for artistes like Tank and Chris Brown through their company JB Entertainment. Since then, he has spent time in major US cities such as Atlanta and now, Los Angeles. Gittens’ strong digital and musical presence has led to collaborations with popular US entertainers like John Legend, Trey Songz, Trinidad James, Rick Ross and Ludacris.Īt eight, the Gittens family left TT for Nashville, Tennessee. His own song Zodiac also became a TikTok viral sensation last year. His many followers know him for doing covers of some of the world’s most popular songs today including Adele’s 2021 hit Easy On Me. Growing up, having that influence and being there, having the influence of the wider Caribbean like Bob Marley, when I think about the island sound that is what I think about.” “All of those different flavours are what the Trinidadian sound is. He is no stranger to the digital music space having amassed 493,000 subscribers to his YouTube channel and his work got over 50 million views on different streaming platforms.īut his overall aim is to broaden the definition of soca and calypso. Gittens studied at the Berklee College of Music, Boston, Massachusetts. Will Gittens says his sound is the evolving sound of soca and calypso. “Their Trinidadian background is organically embedded in the music they create with the incorporation of high-energy rhythms and groovy instrumentals, combined with their own multi-cultural influence to produce the final sound.” A blend of Spanish, reggaeton, Nigerian and Ghanaian influences can be heard throughout the EP. He began recording some of the songs in 2019 and throughout the pandemic but began putting more work into it last year.Ī press release said, “Each single on the EP is completely different and beautifully combines their time in TT with the years they spent living and travelling all over the states and the African Diaspora. There will be six songs on the EP including the singles Magik and Pressure. Gittens, 30, and his brother JR, the sons of Trinidadian singer/songwriter Sterling Gittens, worked together to craft it. Of course, that means, that soca and calypso form an essential part of it. He is set to release his new EP in September called Afro Island I which is mainly a mix of afrobeats and the Caribbean/island sound, he said.
His Trinidadian heritage forms a major part of the music he calls Afro Island. His work blends the sounds of spaces he’s visited and lived like Africa and the US but at the day’s end, he is, as David Rudder sang, Trini To the Bone. Will Gittens’ music is an amalgam of his life experiences and travels. Will Gittens says the genre is mainly a mix of Afrobeats and the Caribbean sound including soca and calypso. Features The Gittens brothers: Evolving the Caribbean Soundįriday 26 August 2022 JR, left, and his brother, Will, right Gittens have developed a new musical sound called Afro Island.