St. Thomas bar and band keeping reggae alive

Bringing reggae, back.

“The first opportunity we had was Hull Bay, and that was the first place that gave us a chance to start supporting reggae,” Jada Lark, Singer, INITY Reggae Xplosion

Jada Lark, one of the singers of Inity Reggae Xplosion said it isn’t easy to share their sound with the island.

Adding that many bars and restaurants play more main stream music then reggae and soca.

But when one island favorite gave them the green light the opportunities starting coming in.

“We moved down here several years ago and one of the things I realized when we were coming down here on vacation and it was kind of hard to find the local music,” former manager at Hull Bay Hideaway Tom Sweeney said.

Sweeny was the manager at the time at Hull Bay Hideaway that brought in Lark and the team in.

He saw them play at Abi Beach Bar two years ago and said he was blown away.

He said their unique sound and complexity brought something new to the stage every show they play.

“One of the things I love about them the most is a lot of times when you are dealing with bands they have a set setlist they come in and do the same show. These guys do everything,” he added.

And the band is happy to do it.

“I love my band!” Lark added.

After bars like Abi Beach bar got hit in the 2017 hurricane, there weren’t many places left to share the local sound.

But Hull Bay kept it going to give reggae a platform in the VI.

“It just turned out that it was a case of knowing where to look. I wanted that music down here because this is a community bar. This is a very large residential community, people have been coming here for generations and it’s the music they listen to. Soca, reggae things like that. It’s the music I want to hear,” Sweeney said.

Inity Reggae Xplosion continues to play at Hull Bay to share their music with a new generation and keeping reggae alive.

“Just hearing this music and live, you’re hearing the drum beat and the piano why would you not want to share it.” Lark said.

Inity Reggae Explosion continues to play at Hull Bay Hideaway. Check out their Facebook page for more information.