BAJAN SUN MAGAZINE
OCT 2014
Ayana John
PHOTO BY ZICO MILLER
I
magine that you could enter a time capsule and
quantum leap to the year 1998. The album, ‘The
Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ has just dropped and is
causing a stir in the United States and the world over.
The infectious vibes have spread all the way to the
Caribbean; Barbados, to be exact, becoming a catalyst
for the 2005 emergence of one of Barbados’ most
prolific
singer/
songwriters,
‘Ayana
John’.
Now imagine that you have blended the pulsating
rhythms and bass lines of reggae and fused them with the
hypnotic melodies of soulful vocals paired with a fierce
live act. You would have defined the first steps in the
evolution of this magnetic entertainer, emerging with a
massively successful self-titled debut LP in 2009 which
spawned a series of national hits, ‘Guns n’ Roses’,
‘Paper Chase’, ‘Caught Ya!’ and ‘Pose’ featuring Bad
Boy Recording Artiste, Elephant Man, out-of-Jamaica! A
record haul of Barbados Music Award Nominations
followed, making for the most nominations acquired by a
solo female for the year, 2009 and subsequently 2010:
Soul
Female
Entertainer
of
the
Year
Best
Collaboration
(Paper
Chase)
Song
of
the
Year
Female
Entertainer
of
the
Year
After the release of two EPs entitled ‘Royal Blue’ in
2010 and ‘Ignite’ in 2011 which featured successful
singles, ‘Can’t Keep Up’ and ‘Baby’ (2010) and ‘Iron
Heart’ and ‘It Ends Tonight’ (2011), respectively, a
desire to qualify in Performance Arts and Music resulted
in a Distinction in Popular Music Practice from Tech
Music School in London with certification from the
London College of Music in June, 2012. In a career
highlight, this energetic live performer was also chosen
as the headline act of the Graduation line-up held at the
Legendary Shepherd’s Bush Empire (Grace Jones, The
Police, U2, other acts featured at the venue, to name a
few). Just visualize being the recipient of a Bachelor’s
degree in Mathematics alongside having a Diploma in
Music. Crazy, some say ... but that’s just the paradox that
is
Ms.
John.
Known affectionately as ‘A.J.’, this former Ms. Barbados
Bikini and 1st runner-up Ms. Barbados has a slew of
surprises in store for loyal and potential fans who can
expect a fresh, exhilarating and soul-bearing album for
2014. Armed with her blend of R&B/Reggae, the new
effort promises to be a reflection of all that has been
lived and learned. The 2014 EP, S-Curve 1.0, the first
part of a two part album series will feature brand new
music for fans to listen to and download. The album is
available for digital download on August 15, 2014 on
Bandcamp.com and August, 21, 2014 on iTunes.com
For under a decade, Ayana John has been a fixture on the
Barbadian Music scene as an 'individual' artiste bringing
a
unique
style
of
Soul-Pop/Reggae.
With two (2) LPs and two (2) EPs on resume:
Ayana
John
LP(2009)
Royal
Blue
EP
(2010)
Ignite
LP
(2011)
S-Curve
1.0
EP
(2014)
Available
on
Band
Camp:
15-08-2014
See:
www.ayanajohn.bandcamp.com/releases
Available
on
iTunes:
21-08-2014
See:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/ayana-john/
id300478441
A multiple award winner and revered lyricist, notable
works
include:
Guns 'n Roses, Paper Chase, Pose feat. Elephant Man,
Baby and Iron Heart, to name a few.
The 2014 EP, S-Curve 1.0, the first part of a two part
album series will feature brand new music for fans to
listen to and download from the featured sites above.
Contact Info Email [email protected]
Website http://www.reverbnation.com/AyanaJohnVOX
www.bajans V