Speaker 1: Every generation produces artists, but only a few emerge as
Speaker 1: interpreters of identity, memory and resistance. Artists whose voices don't
Speaker 1: just ride the ridden but reclaim history. Artist who don't
Speaker 1: simply perform, but translate the soul of the people. This week,
Speaker 1: we are talking the things with one of those artists.
Speaker 1: Alex Cuffee, more popularly known as Muddy, born and raised
Speaker 1: in Grenada, is more than a Soca artist. He is
Speaker 1: an artist full stop. He is a storyteller, a cultural
Speaker 1: ambassador of the jab Jab tradition, a son of Grenadian
Speaker 1: soil and spirit, and what I'd like to call an
Speaker 1: engineer of ancestral sound, acting music that feels both rooted
Speaker 1: and revolutionary. Over the years, Muddy has moved through stages
Speaker 1: and seasons, earning second place at Grenada's National Soca monarch
Speaker 1: in twenty fifteen, third place in twenty eighteen, and once
Speaker 1: again second place in twenty twenty four. However, his music
Speaker 1: has never been about the accolades or about the trophies.
Speaker 1: It's about testimony. In twenty twenty four, he released The Moment,
Speaker 1: a song that opens not with bravado, but with clarity.
Speaker 1: I told them I will be back someday to come.
Speaker 1: It's not just a verse, it's a vowl, a reckoning,
Speaker 1: an arrival, and a promise. And while Payroll may be
Speaker 1: the song gaining international no acclaim right now, it's Muddy's
Speaker 1: full body of work that carries the weight of a movement.
Speaker 1: This is not the sound of a man chasing success.
Speaker 1: It's the sound of a man answering his calling. Plus
Speaker 1: some respector listener respector if you're listening to the podcast
Speaker 1: on Apple Podcast, please remember to rate and leave a
Speaker 1: comment below. Also, don't forget to follow us on Instagram
Speaker 1: at Let's Talk the Things Now, Grab your tea, coffee,
Speaker 1: or a glass of wine and let's talk the tings.
Speaker 1: Hello everyone, Welcome back to Let's Talk to Things, where
Speaker 1: we discuss personal growth, travel, music, beauty and wellness while
Speaker 1: encouraging you to live fearlessly and fabulously. I'm your host,
Speaker 1: Ash and this week we are talking to things with
Speaker 1: a trailblazer and trendsetter, not just in Grenadian Soca, but
Speaker 1: in Soca in general. One of my favorite Soca artists Muddy.
Speaker 1: Hi Muddy, how are you hello?
Speaker 2: Hello? Hello? I am great love the introyway.
Speaker 1: Thank you, thank you, very much. You know they're calling
Speaker 1: me the jemaic on Oprah, you know, so, thank you
Speaker 1: very much.
Speaker 2: Onto something, on to something.
Speaker 1: Thank you, no, thank you so much for coming to
Speaker 1: talk to things with me. As a little bit of
Speaker 1: an icebreaker for our first time guest and for per
Speaker 1: since listening for the first time, we begin each episode
Speaker 1: with our listener's favorite segment, and it's called that no
Speaker 1: sound safe. So basically, what I'm going to do is
Speaker 1: read messages or social media posts that listeners sent in,
Speaker 1: and if you think it sounds crazy or a little
Speaker 1: bit concerning, you'd say that sounds safe and explain why.
Speaker 1: And if you agree, you say you agree and explain why.
Speaker 1: Nothing scary? All right, cool, all right? The first person said,
Speaker 1: the only time West Indian parents let you lie is
Speaker 1: to tell someone that they're not home or not around.
Speaker 2: That's super, super accurate.
Speaker 1: Yes, I don't know why they're like that, right, They'll
Speaker 1: be telling you to lie about that, but in the
Speaker 1: same breath telling you not to lie. It's so confusing.
Speaker 1: So yeah, so that sounds safe because it's true, but
Speaker 1: it's not safe because it's very confusing for a child
Speaker 1: trying to differentiate what is an okay lie versus what
Speaker 1: is not an okay lie.
Speaker 2: It's like you have to turn to a parent to
Speaker 2: know if you have to lie. I know, I have
Speaker 2: to tell the.
Speaker 1: Truth exactly right. So typical Caribbean parents, very contradicting. Yeah,
Speaker 1: all right. The next person said, my patience is basically
Speaker 1: like a gift card. Not sure how much is left
Speaker 1: on it, but we can give it a try.
Speaker 2: That's safe.
Speaker 1: That's safe. So are you an impatient person?
Speaker 2: I would say, I've been patient for the most part
Speaker 2: of my life. Okay, at this point, I just kind
Speaker 2: of want what I want.
Speaker 1: Yes, I agree. As somebody that's very impatient, I can
Speaker 1: really resonate with this one. I feel like this one
Speaker 1: sounds safe to me. However, I will say being an
Speaker 1: impatient person there is a downside in that. Sometimes sometimes
Speaker 1: you can reflect and think, Okay, maybe I should have waited,
Speaker 1: or maybe I should have allowed things to happen. But
Speaker 1: I also understand from that point of view where like
Speaker 1: you said, you've been patient for so long, yeah, and
Speaker 1: now it's like you just want what you want, like
Speaker 1: you don't have time. We can't bother with the waiting,
Speaker 1: you know.
Speaker 2: Yeah, But but patient patience is you know you have
Speaker 2: to have it. You have to have it at some
Speaker 2: point in your life. You know that's true.
Speaker 1: That's true.
Speaker 2: I think patience without without knowing like what direction it
Speaker 2: would take at the end, I think we have we
Speaker 2: have to know what we want and know. Let's say,
Speaker 2: if let's say we're in a relationship or something and
Speaker 2: you have been in this far some time and you're
Speaker 2: having problems and you speaking to your partner over and
Speaker 2: over and over and nothing is getting done. There comes
Speaker 2: a time when in a man's life or in a
Speaker 2: woman's life, where you have to understand that this person
Speaker 2: is not going to change. So patience is not going
Speaker 2: to fix this situation.
Speaker 1: Oh Maddy, You're come to tak the things today, you know.
Speaker 1: Come to Ta Alex by your real name, because that
Speaker 1: is so true. And I'm sure a lot of people
Speaker 1: listening are really resonating with it, because you know, I
Speaker 1: think it's okay to be patient with somebody, but like
Speaker 1: you said, if you know that they're going in the
Speaker 1: direction that you need, whatever relationship you have to go in,
Speaker 1: that's different than being patient. And like you said, they're
Speaker 1: ignoring your wants and your needs and you're just wasting time,
Speaker 1: And I think to your point, people don't realiuys, time
Speaker 1: is very expensive. It's something that you cannot get back,
Speaker 1: you know. So I think that's really wow. I never
Speaker 1: thought of it like that, but yeah, that's really insightful
Speaker 1: for sure. Definitely. All right, Okay, I can agree with you.
Speaker 1: Then I can switch that song safe. That sounds safe,
Speaker 1: all right. The next person said, I stay away from
Speaker 1: people who avoid self reflection and accountability. If you can't
Speaker 1: be real with yourself, there's no way you can be
Speaker 1: real with me that song safe.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, that sounds.
Speaker 1: Safe for sure. Accountability and self reflection is definitely important,
Speaker 1: and I feel like a lot of people don't practice it,
Speaker 1: which is concerning. Yeah, you know, I think it's easier
Speaker 1: for a lot of people to tell you where where
Speaker 1: you went wrong or what you did wrong. But it's
Speaker 1: very rare that you meet somebody at any level, whether
Speaker 1: it's in your work space or personal life, that can say,
Speaker 1: you know, what I did this and that wasn't right,
Speaker 1: or you know I could have done this better.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's it's always a more difficult conversation speaking to
Speaker 2: the mirror, you know, because it's not like we don't
Speaker 2: know what we do wrong. We know what we do wrong.
Speaker 2: We know, yeah, when we go wrong or when we've
Speaker 2: hurt someone, when we've did a bad thing. But comfortability
Speaker 2: is a fight for most people. It's been a fight
Speaker 2: in my life as well, you know, really yeah, but
Speaker 2: growing up and mature and taking taking the time, taking
Speaker 2: the patience, you know, and mature and understanding that I'm
Speaker 2: not a perfect person. You know, I do make mistakes,
Speaker 2: and the only way to move past those mistakes is
Speaker 2: to to hold myself aurecomfortable for it, you know, and
Speaker 2: do the right work to be a better place. Because
Speaker 2: if you already think that you're in the best place,
Speaker 2: there's no grow. They're left.
Speaker 1: So true. And you're never not growing, I mean unless
Speaker 1: you're no longer on this earth. I feel like, you know,
Speaker 1: you're always learning. And that's something that I learned a
Speaker 1: lot from my dad. You know, at any age, he
Speaker 1: always instilled in us you are always learning, you know, Like,
Speaker 1: don't ever think you know everything about everything.
Speaker 2: Because you don't. You know, a little toddler on the
Speaker 2: street could teach you something about your life that you.
Speaker 1: Never Yes, yes, that's so true. And those that aren't
Speaker 1: interested in learning something new I feel like they stay
Speaker 1: stagnant too, Like they may get older in age, but
Speaker 1: mentally they're just at the same place because they don't
Speaker 1: feel like they can be taught, Like they don't feel
Speaker 1: like they're teachable.
Speaker 2: Because you put a ceiling on your brain, you know,
Speaker 2: you put a ceiling on your you already feel like
Speaker 2: you have at this level when you are on a
Speaker 2: way lower level. If you think you're the best, there's
Speaker 2: nothing better than the best. So you're just going to
Speaker 2: stay at this one one rate and the world is
Speaker 2: just going to leave you behind.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and that no sound safe? All right? Two more then,
Speaker 1: oh my gosh. The next person said, I know life
Speaker 1: can be tough, but you really have to start wearing
Speaker 1: the ordorant.
Speaker 2: Definitely, definitely, I can't manage.
Speaker 1: Yes, guys, you know, Carnival season is upon us, and
Speaker 1: I just feel like this is not the time to
Speaker 1: be trying out no anti perspriate thedoran.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think.
Speaker 1: It's very important that you smell you know, nice and
Speaker 1: fresh and clean.
Speaker 2: Yeah, because especially around Kinnival season, around kindival season, yes,
Speaker 2: is the time when you see the most shirtless people's
Speaker 2: in the world.
Speaker 1: You know, true, that's true.
Speaker 2: Hygiene is is something that you need to you have
Speaker 2: to get right because it's uncomfortable for not just for
Speaker 2: the other, but for even your friends. Your friends have
Speaker 2: to tell you about it. It's uncomfortable.
Speaker 1: Yes, it's very uncomfortable. And we don't deserve that. Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's very.
Speaker 2: We We deserve to have a conversation where we could
Speaker 2: just talk and I don't have to think about about
Speaker 2: about the scent. You know, let's have a conversation. It's
Speaker 2: me and you're talking, not me and you and your perspiration.
Speaker 1: I can't manage. Oh my gosh, I literally have tears
Speaker 1: in my No, that is one hundred percent true. I
Speaker 1: just wasn't ready.
Speaker 2: Sorry for being so sorry.
Speaker 1: For being so oh No, I love it. I love it.
Speaker 1: I just you'll notice I really love to laugh. So
Speaker 1: you're gonna hear me fight from my life a lot.
Speaker 1: But it's so true because my mom used to always
Speaker 1: tell me, like you know, as a little girl, I
Speaker 1: will always tell you things that you need to know,
Speaker 1: like your friends probably aren't even always going to tell you, because,
Speaker 1: like you said, your friends should tell you. But some
Speaker 1: friends don't say anything, you know, and that's concerning. Like
Speaker 1: some friends even when it comes to like as a woman, Okay,
Speaker 1: you go out with your friends and you see a
Speaker 1: group of women and you see, let's say there's three women,
Speaker 1: two women. They look beautiful, their makeup is intact, you know,
Speaker 1: even though we're outside, like everything is together. And then
Speaker 1: you see their friend and her makeup is dripping off
Speaker 1: her face, and you know, she just kind of looked
Speaker 1: popped down, and you're thinking, why would you let your
Speaker 1: friend come out like that? You know, like, why wouldn't
Speaker 1: you say something? So it's like, to your point, your
Speaker 1: friends shouldn't have to have that conversation, but you should
Speaker 1: do it for yourself because you don't know if you
Speaker 1: have a friend that wouldn't tell you that, that wouldn't
Speaker 1: tell you smell bad, you know what I mean. And
Speaker 1: then maybe you see some guy you like and you
Speaker 1: go up to him and he said, geez, no, it's
Speaker 1: not work. That say, oh my gosh, hilarious. All right,
Speaker 1: final one, the person said envy no one. For whatever
Speaker 1: you see, a price was paid.
Speaker 2: Yeap. Yeah. I strongly believe that same undercent.
Speaker 1: I think that people, especially like when you get to
Speaker 1: a level of success in your life. I find that
Speaker 1: people only see that even the people that have known
Speaker 1: you for a long period of time, it's like they
Speaker 1: forget all that you had to go through to come
Speaker 1: to that point, and they just have this perception like, Oh,
Speaker 1: you're so luckier, Oh you made this money, so sureley
Speaker 1: can give me a bly, surely can give me a thing?
Speaker 1: You can, you know, and they don't consider all of
Speaker 1: what you've had to sacrifice to get there. I think
Speaker 1: that's such a real thing.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Growing up, my mom would always tell me, do
Speaker 2: not envy. Do not envy people, you know, because you
Speaker 2: do not know what they've done, are the sacrifices they
Speaker 2: have to make to achieve what they have. Yes, and
Speaker 2: I've been a victim of it when it comes to
Speaker 2: even my musical career or even just my life. The
Speaker 2: things that that are accessible to me in my life
Speaker 2: is all things that was created by me. It wasn't
Speaker 2: a hand out that did. I didn't have it easy
Speaker 2: right to work for it. I had to work for it.
Speaker 2: So whatever whatever situation I am in right now, it's
Speaker 2: tanks to me and and my my feet and my
Speaker 2: Because I have a praying mom, right she does not play.
Speaker 1: Yes, Yes, thank God for them.
Speaker 2: Mate, Yeah, thank God for that. So I would never
Speaker 2: envy a man because I I personally see what I
Speaker 2: do the work, you know, and I like to see
Speaker 2: progress is something that I love seeing no matter where
Speaker 2: it's coming from. That is just motivating to me. So
Speaker 2: I agree, I will see the outcome or the results
Speaker 2: of what, of whatever, but I do however, I am
Speaker 2: very interested in the process. So even though I see
Speaker 2: the big blow up, I will ask questions to try
Speaker 2: to know how how did this happen? You know, how
Speaker 2: did you grow this business from from one single mod
Speaker 2: billing five blocks to to know you're producing five to
Speaker 2: blocks a week. I just want to know the process
Speaker 2: of that, how the work is done, so me envy.
Speaker 2: Envy is never in the cards from me. I like
Speaker 2: the work behind it.
Speaker 1: That's so beautifully said, and I think it's such a
Speaker 1: really important message to put out there, because again, we
Speaker 1: live in an area an era excuse me, of social
Speaker 1: media where everything is so instant, you know, and people
Speaker 1: think they can just go on Instagram or go on
Speaker 1: TikTok and make a video and then they're just going
Speaker 1: to be the next big thing. And you know, it
Speaker 1: just seems like people don't really especially within music. You know,
Speaker 1: I grew up in the music business. My dad is
Speaker 1: a drummer, and I just find that what I witnessed
Speaker 1: when I witnessed him creating music is so different than
Speaker 1: what I see now, you know, like the machines and
Speaker 1: the AI and all this. And it doesn't mean that
Speaker 1: it's all bad, because it's helpful in some ways. But
Speaker 1: I find that we've lost like that concept of hard
Speaker 1: work and wanting, like you said, to learn what it
Speaker 1: took to get there rather than just wanting the.
Speaker 2: Outcome, you know.
Speaker 1: Yep, all right, So now we're gonna talk the real things.
Speaker 1: So I would love it if you could tell me
Speaker 1: about your earliest memories of sound. And the reason I
Speaker 1: asked that is because I had the CEO of Jahm
Speaker 1: Balassi Grenada on here and he explained to me a
Speaker 1: lot about jab and you know the sound of the drums.
Speaker 1: So anytime I think of Grenada now, I just think
Speaker 1: of sound and music and particularly drums, right, yeah, So
Speaker 1: if you could tell me your earliest memory not just
Speaker 1: of music, but literal sound, like what did Grenada sound
Speaker 1: like to you as a child.
Speaker 2: As a child, I would say, like my upbringing was
Speaker 2: I grew up in church. You know, my mom was
Speaker 2: a regular church goer, so I've always I've always been
Speaker 2: fascinated with the music, fascinated with the music in church.
Speaker 2: So I've always had love for that song, right, yeah,
Speaker 2: but you know, growing up, and I didn't used to
Speaker 2: take but I think kind of a I would admit
Speaker 2: I was not kind of a baby because I am, yeah,
Speaker 2: my mother's last child, so I was I was well protected.
Speaker 2: I couldn't do a lot of stuff. So when I
Speaker 2: did pick up the singing that, yeah, it was it
Speaker 2: was different. But I would say kind of our song
Speaker 2: like mmm, I would give flowers to the elders, that's
Speaker 2: the Tangla and the Jamo and the Inspector, even the
Speaker 2: younger elders like Lava Man and mister Killer and them,
Speaker 2: I would I would love to give them the floors
Speaker 2: because this is what I knew about what music was
Speaker 2: supposed to come come from. I supposed to song like
Speaker 2: coming from my and my culture.
Speaker 1: I love that. I love that beautiful. And did you
Speaker 1: know that, I know you grew up in church and
Speaker 1: our own music, but did you know that you always
Speaker 1: wanted to be an artist?
Speaker 2: Particularly I did not. I always loved singing. No, I
Speaker 2: always loved singing. I would sing with my friends, I
Speaker 2: was singing with my family. And I remember the first
Speaker 2: time I recorded myself. Hated my voice, you know, I
Speaker 2: told my brothers, I hated my voice.
Speaker 1: Yeah, Oh my gosh, I cannot believe that.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean it was my first time doing it,
Speaker 2: and it was uncomfortable hearing my voice or the song
Speaker 2: of what I'm saying coming from a different device, you know.
Speaker 1: Really, yes, so crazy, wow, wow, wow, that's so crazy
Speaker 1: to hear, just because obviously I know your voice as yeah,
Speaker 1: the superstar that you are now, so that's hard for
Speaker 1: me to conceptualize, but I get it for sure.
Speaker 2: And I had to go. I had to go to
Speaker 2: the whole long process of learning my voice and stuff
Speaker 2: because ever since I started, I've always been producing myself,
Speaker 2: always been mixing my own vocal. Has always been doing
Speaker 2: the mixing by myself. So it's by yourself. Yeah, it
Speaker 2: was a learning experience, up and up and up. So
Speaker 2: now I found my voice. You know, I like it.
Speaker 2: I'm comfortable with it. I'm guessing the world it's comfortable with.
Speaker 1: It, because guessing, hello, that's okay. Be humble, be humble,
Speaker 1: that's fine. No, But speaking of your voice, right, your
Speaker 1: music plays with a little bit of dance hall, Soca afrofusion,
Speaker 1: and it even touches on a little bit of hip hop.
Speaker 1: So how intentional is that cross pollination for you? Like,
Speaker 1: is it a strategy or is it more of an
Speaker 1: intuitive reflection of who you are as a person.
Speaker 2: I would say the second one because I wouldn't say
Speaker 2: if is cross pollinated because it's actually rooted. I soka
Speaker 2: is actually the last genre I started doing.
Speaker 1: Okay, Okay.
Speaker 2: I started singing in high school and I was singing
Speaker 2: hip hop music and dance all music, reggae music for years.
Speaker 1: Really, so internally, you're really a Jamaican, is what you're taking.
Speaker 2: I don't want to say that now, but I would not.
Speaker 1: No, no, I'm just joking, guys. Don't don't kid me.
Speaker 1: I'm just joking through and through.
Speaker 2: I will say that I am deeply influenced by the
Speaker 2: Jamaican culture when it comes to music because what I
Speaker 2: do believe that it's music is my thing and I
Speaker 2: don't consider myself like a Soca artist. I just consider
Speaker 2: myself like an artist because it doesn't matter the success
Speaker 2: of what happens to me in SOCA, I will sing
Speaker 2: dance all music. I still want to be in rooms
Speaker 2: with the big dance all names and the big hip
Speaker 2: hop names.
Speaker 1: Yes, okay, So and would you say your would you
Speaker 1: say your style leans more towards dancehall than soca or
Speaker 1: is it? Is it really like in the middle, because
Speaker 1: to me it seems like such a like a well
Speaker 1: placed mix, like I can hear the dancehall influence, but
Speaker 1: then I can kind of hear the Soca the job
Speaker 1: in there as well. But how do you perceive it?
Speaker 2: I would say it's in the middle. I would say
Speaker 2: it's because.
Speaker 1: In the middle. Okay.
Speaker 2: Even in my SOCA music, I do tend to draw
Speaker 2: out a reference and references to dance all lyrics as well,
Speaker 2: because to me, Soca is fun. Soca is real fun.
Speaker 2: But the dance all side of me wants to express
Speaker 2: different stories than just what's fun. So you would get
Speaker 2: me to sing some fun stuff, but is really the
Speaker 2: side of dance all that would make me say something
Speaker 2: like when stars aligned, greatness outshines all het it in
Speaker 2: space on time, because that is my song.
Speaker 1: You know you got it? But yeah, that is my song.
Speaker 2: I would say that I know what you mean though.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's true. We were talking about I forgot what
Speaker 1: episode we were talking about it, but saying that Soca
Speaker 1: is so fun and so happy. But to your point, like,
Speaker 1: when I think of songs with like a message and
Speaker 1: wanting to empower you, I truly do think of dancehall
Speaker 1: or reggae. However, there are some Soka songs I can't
Speaker 1: think of the top of my head, but there are
Speaker 1: some that are very empowering as well. So I see,
Speaker 1: I definitely see what you're saying.
Speaker 2: Yeah, sure, yep.
Speaker 1: And speaking of that, you also write your lyrics, and
Speaker 1: there's this kind of rawness I would say in your lyrics,
Speaker 1: a kind of emotional honesty that comes through. So where
Speaker 1: does that come from? And do you write from personal
Speaker 1: experience or are you also channeling like a collective story
Speaker 1: of maybe your peers or people in your community.
Speaker 2: I would say, first off, I do not write music.
Speaker 2: I haven't penned a song in the last eight years. Really,
Speaker 2: I do not write. I vibe music. I would listen
Speaker 2: to a beat and they really will tell me what
Speaker 2: to sing. I sometimes I use personal experiences. I use
Speaker 2: experiences from my friends, what they go through are just
Speaker 2: world experiences, just different ways of creating because I like
Speaker 2: my stuff to be open, you know. So it's not
Speaker 2: just it's not just a about me. It's not just
Speaker 2: about what I experienced. But I have people around me.
Speaker 2: I have things that I've experienced, like not not personally,
Speaker 2: but around with my surroundings. Okay, and we yeah, we
Speaker 2: come up with a good project just by listening to
Speaker 2: a couple of beats and vibing.
Speaker 1: So just for my clarification, when you say you don't
Speaker 1: write music, right, you mean you don't write the actual
Speaker 1: like sound, but you come up with the lyrics.
Speaker 2: I don't write the lyrics though, So.
Speaker 1: How do you how do you come up with the lyrics?
Speaker 2: Like?
Speaker 1: Is it like a group efforts?
Speaker 2: I would say sometimes, but most times I'm just in
Speaker 2: the studio by myself. I would listen to a beat.
Speaker 2: I would listen to a and then you just speak it. Yeah,
Speaker 2: but I wouldn't say a freestyle.
Speaker 1: Okay, I know exactly what you mean, now, Okay, okay,
Speaker 1: So you come up with the idea and then you
Speaker 1: kind of just just flow whatever comes out and then
Speaker 1: you piece it together.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: So basically you're like the Jay z of Sokan Data.
Speaker 2: Got it?
Speaker 1: Okay, perfect, perfect.
Speaker 2: That's somebject right up.
Speaker 1: Well, I'm gonna hear. I'm gonna be on here and
Speaker 1: say it. You don't have to say it, but yeah,
Speaker 1: that's a gift because that's what I was talking about
Speaker 1: earlier when I mentioned Paul, my dad, you know, and
Speaker 1: my uncle's formulate songs like I'm talking, you know, the
Speaker 1: Bearest Hammonds and things like that. They just come up
Speaker 1: with sounds and like rhythms, and you know, things just flow,
Speaker 1: and that's what I'm used to seeing. And I find
Speaker 1: that these days, you know, you hear people cutting different
Speaker 1: tracks and they'll record a track on Tuesday and then
Speaker 1: come back on Friday and then and I'm just used
Speaker 1: to seeing them having one track like old school, you know,
Speaker 1: and you just better not mess up because everyone's playing
Speaker 1: live instruments and you just sing whatever you can sing
Speaker 1: or come up with. So that's why I want you
Speaker 1: explained that. I'm like, Okay, like now I understand what
Speaker 1: you're saying. You don't hear that very often these days,
Speaker 1: so that's really nice to hear. Okay, So Grenada, right,
Speaker 1: You're welcome Grenada to me. I think has such a
Speaker 1: rich but underrepresented musical identity. So what do you feel
Speaker 1: is misunderstood or overlooked about Grenadian artistry on a global stage.
Speaker 2: Overlooked?
Speaker 1: Yeah, Like, I feel like a lot of people don't
Speaker 1: know how much Grenadians like contribute to Caribbean culture. I
Speaker 1: feel like they just think of the Trinidad at least
Speaker 1: when it comes to Soca.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I would say publishing and marketing is different. I
Speaker 2: would say it has a lot to do with the
Speaker 2: population of the country as well. Oh, interesting, because we
Speaker 2: have to admit that. Yeah, when we we find something
Speaker 2: that we like, it doesn't matter who likes it or not.
Speaker 2: But it's also a thing where this song has five
Speaker 2: hundred thousand views, so it must be better than this
Speaker 2: song that has thirty thousand views, you know. So there's
Speaker 2: the onlookers that look at it that way as well.
Speaker 2: But when it comes to performances across the world, though,
Speaker 2: I think that Greenie that does a beautiful job when
Speaker 2: it comes to shows, because I've been to the London,
Speaker 2: I've been to Canada, I've been to the US to perform,
Speaker 2: and it's always like when you perform, it's always well received. Yes,
Speaker 2: they know of the job.
Speaker 1: Yes, yes, yes, people like me that are new to
Speaker 1: it are learning, But I feel like I've gotten a
Speaker 1: lot of good lessons these last few episodes. I feel
Speaker 1: like I'm pretty much Grenadian at this Yeah. No, that's
Speaker 1: definitely true. I think that more persons are becoming aware that, yeah,
Speaker 1: you know, Grenada has a place in the whatever you
Speaker 1: want to call it, yeah, in the music scene, because
Speaker 1: I just think that so many people will hear a song.
Speaker 1: I'm one of the people I'm raising my hand and
Speaker 1: just automatically assume the person singing is from Trinidad because
Speaker 1: they just don't know, you know what I mean, like
Speaker 1: when you just don't know something. And that's why I
Speaker 1: think these conversations are so important, and that's really why
Speaker 1: one of the reasons why I have this platform, because
Speaker 1: I think a lot of people might hear songs and
Speaker 1: they don't know the artists, and they don't know where
Speaker 1: they're from, and they don't know where it comes from.
Speaker 1: They just hear it and love it, but they're not
Speaker 1: able to associate it with the country or with the person.
Speaker 1: You know.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, so, but.
Speaker 1: Yeah, Grenada's Oh my god, you guys full of energy.
Speaker 1: That's very true. You're welcome. And speaking of that and
Speaker 1: the stages that you've graced, we have to talk about
Speaker 1: your stage presence. Now, I've never seen you live, but
Speaker 1: I've watched a lot of your shows online or what
Speaker 1: have you, and your energy is undeniable. So what would
Speaker 1: you say you're welcome? What would you say is your
Speaker 1: mental or emotional state when you're performing, Like do you
Speaker 1: feel like yourself or do you kind of like morph
Speaker 1: into someone else entirely?
Speaker 2: I would say it's a different person, but yeah, it's connected.
Speaker 2: I don't want to disconnect myself from it completely. But
Speaker 2: I introducing me on the stage and me touching the stage,
Speaker 2: there's a huge difference from me having the mic in
Speaker 2: my hand and being on the step and me being
Speaker 2: on the stage. You will introduce me. I will have butterflies,
Speaker 2: I want to use the toilet, I want to do you.
Speaker 1: Know, Yes, I didn't know that feeling.
Speaker 2: Yeah, And then the music started to play and it just.
Speaker 1: I can still resonate with that. Yeah. Yeah, And I
Speaker 1: feel like it's also a reflection of a reminder, I
Speaker 1: should say, of that's where you're truly meant to be.
Speaker 1: It's just you have to get on the stage, you
Speaker 1: know what I mean, Like, it's just once you get
Speaker 1: on there, it's like you transform into like an avenger
Speaker 1: or a power ranger or something. You know. Yeah, No,
Speaker 1: I can definitely resonate that for sure. And what's a
Speaker 1: song of yours that that you would say changed you,
Speaker 1: not your career, but you as a person, like maybe
Speaker 1: it taught you something about yourself or unlocks something deeper
Speaker 1: within you.
Speaker 2: I would say there was a song a couple of
Speaker 2: years ago that I did on a bit from No ExM.
Speaker 2: We actually did two songs like the back to back
Speaker 2: two different years.
Speaker 1: Oh okay.
Speaker 2: One one was liking Myself that was a groove and
Speaker 2: also Tanks, you know, because those those Liking Myself. It
Speaker 2: was just a song about me accepting that this is
Speaker 2: who I am, you know, and don't matter what what
Speaker 2: you do or what you say. I love who I am.
Speaker 1: Oh I love that.
Speaker 2: And the year after I would say that's my favorite, okay,
Speaker 2: and that that that kind of changed me when it
Speaker 2: comes to the way I look at myself and also
Speaker 2: love that. The year after I did a tribute to
Speaker 2: Tanking the fans that that's the name of that song
Speaker 2: in stands and that that is a song that really,
Speaker 2: you know, it made me appreciate the fans, made me
Speaker 2: appreciate myself a lot.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I love that. I'm gonna have to look those
Speaker 1: up when we can talk. I love those nice, very nice.
Speaker 1: And you know you're representing Grenada speaking of like the fans.
Speaker 1: You know you're representing Grenada in rooms and on stages
Speaker 1: that generations before you couldn't even dream of doing. You know.
Speaker 1: So do you carry that with you, like the weight
Speaker 1: of that responsibility or do you just try to focus
Speaker 1: on the know and not really think about, you know,
Speaker 1: the real deep meaning behind that.
Speaker 2: I do think about the meaning. I do think about
Speaker 2: the meaning. However, I just see it as I'm doing
Speaker 2: my part, like this is what I really genuinely feel
Speaker 2: like this is what I'm supposed to do, Like I
Speaker 2: would be doing this even if I wasn't getting the
Speaker 2: reception are paid like that I would. This is my thing.
Speaker 2: Music is my thing.
Speaker 1: I love that and it's definitely felt through your music.
Speaker 1: So that doesn't that doesn't surprise at all.
Speaker 2: Thank you.
Speaker 1: You're welcome. Okay, So before we transition to our final segment,
Speaker 1: I have been allowing my guests to ask me one
Speaker 1: question this season, since you guys don't get to ask
Speaker 1: me anything. So is there anything you'd like to ask me?
Speaker 2: What would I would like to ask? Have you ever
Speaker 2: been to Grenada?
Speaker 1: I have? Actually I have, Yes, I've been, so technically
Speaker 1: i've been twice, but I only like to count once,
Speaker 1: which was a couple months ago for my birthday. And
Speaker 1: here's the reason. So the first time I went, I
Speaker 1: went on a cruise. And I know when people tell
Speaker 1: me they go they've been to Jamaica on a cruise,
Speaker 1: I instantly roll my eyes because I like, I feel
Speaker 1: like you don't really get Jamaica by going on a
Speaker 1: cruise and getting off a book for a couple hours.
Speaker 1: So when I went a couple months ago, I really
Speaker 1: feel like I got to experience like truly Grenada, Like
Speaker 1: it felt like I had never been there before, and
Speaker 1: I absolutely loved it. And I will be back this
Speaker 1: year because it's become like one of my favorite favorite
Speaker 1: favorite places.
Speaker 2: Yeah, awesome, awesome, Come come for Carnival this year. See
Speaker 2: me put that crown on my head.
Speaker 1: First of all, I will be there. That's a number one.
Speaker 1: I will be there, and I would love to see
Speaker 1: you put that crown on your head. I feel like
Speaker 1: this is the year. I feel like this is the
Speaker 1: year for you. I feel like you are so incredibly
Speaker 1: talented and if I mean, you've deserved it before, but
Speaker 1: I feel like you're really you know, this is really
Speaker 1: going to be the year for you.
Speaker 2: Thank you.
Speaker 1: All right. So for our final segment, I'm going to
Speaker 1: ask you seven quick, rapid fire questions and you have
Speaker 1: to answer with the first thing that comes to mind. Okay, okay,
Speaker 1: all right? What is one thing that people misunderstand about you?
Speaker 2: They think I'm a womanizer?
Speaker 1: Really? And is it? Because I usually don't do follow
Speaker 1: up questions, but I do have to ask is it
Speaker 1: because of your music or because of the way that
Speaker 1: you present yourself? Would you say?
Speaker 2: I would say my music, okay, because I'm usually not
Speaker 2: out that much. I'm literally at home all the time.
Speaker 2: If I if I go out, there's a few places
Speaker 2: that I hang out just to chill with my friends
Speaker 2: and to to online and reason. And if I had
Speaker 2: if you see me out, is either I'm at my
Speaker 2: friends or I'm performing somewhere.
Speaker 1: Oh okay. So when they hear things like bile upon
Speaker 1: the job job, they assume that that is who you
Speaker 1: are twenty four to seven.
Speaker 2: Yeah, okay, okay.
Speaker 1: Yeah, man, I know the things them. Yeah, okay, I understand.
Speaker 1: All right. What is a song that always uplifts your spirits?
Speaker 2: Mm? That song from Chronics when I look at where
Speaker 2: I'm coming from?
Speaker 1: Oh I love yeah, Yeah, yes, I love that song
Speaker 1: and I love Chronics And I'm crossing my fingers and
Speaker 1: my eyes that he's coming back this year.
Speaker 2: We need him so.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I love that. All right. What is your dream collaboration?
Speaker 2: I have a lot.
Speaker 1: Yeah, but what okay, what's your top Okay, what is
Speaker 1: your top five?
Speaker 2: How about that? Since you have a lot, okay, top
Speaker 2: five collaborations?
Speaker 1: Yes, besides me, besides me?
Speaker 2: First off, who I'm gonna have to do it. I'm
Speaker 2: gonna have to take one of my favorites. I would
Speaker 2: say Lyrical.
Speaker 1: Oh, yes, I love him. Yeah, that would be Oh
Speaker 1: my god, that would sound amazing.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I would say lyrical. I would say, also say
Speaker 2: skinny fabulous okay, mmm, Marshall Montano.
Speaker 1: Ah nice, I would say popcorn. Oh, now, that would
Speaker 1: be amazing. Oh my god, I would love to hear that.
Speaker 2: Yeah. And for the last one, I'll boy.
Speaker 1: Oh that's also a good one, and honestly, I think
Speaker 1: those are all possible. I don't even think those are
Speaker 1: really dreams. Those are all within the realm of possibility
Speaker 1: for you, for sure, especially once you have this grown
Speaker 1: on your head. Okay. Next question, would you rather beachside
Speaker 1: date or a late night studio session.
Speaker 2: I'll have to go to a studio session. But however you
Speaker 2: say that, Yeah, if I do have to do a date, though,
Speaker 2: I'd rather do a beachside date rather than something fancy restaurant.
Speaker 2: We could sit down and spread a blank, we can
Speaker 2: have a picnic and chat.
Speaker 1: So something different. But if you had to pick between
Speaker 1: the two, you would do a studio session.
Speaker 2: I love studio. I love studio.
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, nice, nice, all right. Next question, If your
Speaker 1: music had a color, what color would it be?
Speaker 2: That's a good question.
Speaker 1: I told you I'm the Jamaica operh.
Speaker 2: My music had to be a color, what would it be?
Speaker 2: I would say red?
Speaker 1: Really? Why? Because that's my favorite color?
Speaker 2: Why it's also my favorite color as well. But I
Speaker 2: would say red because I aspired to stand out and
Speaker 2: read it is something I always stands out.
Speaker 1: I love that. Very nice, very nice, all right. Second
Speaker 1: to last question, And we kind of talked about this earlier.
Speaker 1: The first song you ever wrote or recorded that made
Speaker 1: you say, yeah, man, I hate this, like you knew
Speaker 1: it would be a hte.
Speaker 2: First song that I recorded in that way, m h,
Speaker 2: and I knew what was going to happen, I would say, yes.
Speaker 2: I would say last year, I did a song called
Speaker 2: The Moment for Sokamoraka play second with it.
Speaker 1: I love that song. That's my favorite song.
Speaker 2: And that song from the day that I recorded it, yeah,
Speaker 2: I say, well, yeah, I actually sent a message to
Speaker 2: she actually sent it back to me, one of my critics,
Speaker 2: and the day I recorded the song, I sent it
Speaker 2: to her and I sent a message. I said, screenshot
Speaker 2: this message. This song is going to be the song
Speaker 2: that's going to do it for me. Geez sound and
Speaker 2: she screenshoted and like the year last year when I
Speaker 2: released the song, I actually sent back the screenshot to me.
Speaker 1: Yeah, mannish, I love that though. That's honestly one of
Speaker 1: my favorite songs of yours, So that doesn't shock me
Speaker 1: that that was the one. I absolutely love that. Okay,
Speaker 1: And last but not least, if you could get in
Speaker 1: a time machine and you could speak to your sixteen
Speaker 1: year old self, so your high school self, per se,
Speaker 1: what advice would you give him?
Speaker 2: I would tell him to focus on music, And I
Speaker 2: don't know because I really I would say my experience
Speaker 2: of this life kind of lead me up to the
Speaker 2: point that I am today and music is something that
Speaker 2: does it for me. So I would tell them to
Speaker 2: focus on music and love the people that you are around. Love.
Speaker 2: Always tell the people that you that you care about,
Speaker 2: tell them how much you feel. Because on this journey
Speaker 2: I lost a couple of people that was very important
Speaker 2: to me.
Speaker 1: Oh no, I'm sorry to hear that, but that's such
Speaker 1: a powerful message because it's true. I think we think
Speaker 1: we have so much time, but I heard this thing
Speaker 1: the other day, and it's so true. Time is everything
Speaker 1: we have and we don't have, like in the same breath,
Speaker 1: you know. So that's a very important message. I love that. Beautiful,
Speaker 1: beautiful all right, So you have to let me do
Speaker 1: my little thank you. Try your best not to cry.
Speaker 1: But Muddy, you have given the Caribbean diaspora more than
Speaker 1: a voice. I feel like you've offered us vision. And
Speaker 1: what you're doing isn't just for the charts or the accolades.
Speaker 1: It's for the culture. It's a reminder that the Caribbean
Speaker 1: and Grenada in particular has never lacked power. Only platforms
Speaker 1: and you money are building the stage and the language.
Speaker 1: You're not just composing songs, You're turning them into archive
Speaker 1: and performance into presence. And in doing so, you're not
Speaker 1: only claiming the moment, you are expanding the meaning of
Speaker 1: what a moment can be for Grenada, for job, job,
Speaker 1: and for the Caribbean as a whole. You are not
Speaker 1: just an artist from Grenada, but through your music, you're
Speaker 1: sending a message that says we belong here, or in
Speaker 1: your words, they're gonna have to put the job, job
Speaker 1: on a pay So thank you so much for coming
Speaker 1: to talk the things with me.
Speaker 2: Thank you. It was a pleasure. It was that was
Speaker 2: so beautiful, by the way, it was a pleasure being here.
Speaker 2: Thank you, Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1: Thank you, You're welcome. I was trying not to break
Speaker 1: out in song, you know, because that is my song.
Speaker 1: So you're gonna have to invite me so I can
Speaker 1: be front row acting a fool my jam Macon and
Speaker 1: Grenadian flag because now I'm.
Speaker 2: You're gonna take a You're gonna take a picture with
Speaker 2: a crown on your head this.
Speaker 1: Year, Yes, I have to, and I love a crown.
Speaker 1: Don't get me tempted, Okay, I will not give it
Speaker 1: back to you. No, thank you so much for coming.
Speaker 1: And before you go, is there anything you want to
Speaker 1: share with the audience, like where they can follow you
Speaker 1: all that good stuff?
Speaker 2: You can follow me on all social media, all handles
Speaker 2: at Muddy on the school, the original and yeah, remember
Speaker 2: when stars aligned, greatness out shines all hatred in space and.
Speaker 1: So Mandy, you couldn't just bless me with a little
Speaker 1: bit of singing that last part.
Speaker 2: I could let me try.
Speaker 3: Let me try when it stars align, greatness outshines all
Speaker 3: hatred in space and time and still with rise, with
Speaker 3: grace and with faith in the morning, with chains and
Speaker 3: I Hi, I'm a backpack and already backpack and already promoted,
Speaker 3: don't laughing.
Speaker 2: Already with our backpack and fil now they're going to
Speaker 2: put the people I fresh like wicked.
Speaker 1: I mean, you're so gracious for blessing me with a
Speaker 1: doubt plates I love that m