News
“Jack” says search on for the next TCI Voice; weekly show aims to unearth talent
By Shanieka Smith
Features Writer
#TurksandCaicos, April 26, 2022 – “Music is one of the most powerful tools that we have, not just for marketing… but also to kind of tackle some of the social issues that we may have.”
These are the words from a fervid and well known Turks and Caicos musician, who shared that music has changed his life. Recording Artiste and producer, Jack Lightbourne is the inspiration behind TCI Voice, the newest talent show in the island in search of new music talents.
TCI Voice, however, is more than a talent show, the idea behind the talent show and the intention going forward stem from a level of care and consideration for the development of Turks and Caicos Islands.
“It is really a community project that is designed to really go throughout the community and discover talent – hidden talent… for some of those [talents], it may be one of the only opportunities that they have at making a major move in their lives to really boost their confidence and interpersonal skills as well,” expressed Lightbourne.
It goes deeper than an individual based project, Lightbourne intends for TCI Voice to be one of the music projects in TCI to tackle some social issues.
“And we are trying to get the government to recognize that music is a very powerful tool for a destination like the Turks and Caicos,” he added.
Lightbourne said the TCI has not yet tipped the iceberg when it comes on to investing in the music industry. The government, he said, overlooks music and puts little emphasis on music and culture.
“The government needs to understand how powerful music is, not just for an individual, but for an entire nation, to really see the benefits of it, and start to invest not just thousands but millions of dollars into developing music because of the tourism implications,” he reiterated.
The official search for talent began on Wednesday April 6 and has been going on every Wednesday evening at 7:30 at the Karaoke Bar and Grill.
Each week, the talents go through a process of elimination. The winner in the end will be given the opportunity to meet with professional recording personnel: engineers, writers, producers, some are grammy winners. Some of these professionals are from the United States, there is one from Trinidad and Tobago.
All the professionals will give the winner of TCI Voice an insight into what it is like to make a song. The winner will also get a single deal, where they are able to record their own song.
Lightbourne profoundly expressed that it is not about perfection, it’s about potential. This view is one of the major reason why anyone with music talent can be a part of TCI Voice; no audition is required.
“We already know our industry is small and undeveloped so we are not trying to put too much pressure on people to be perfect… if you discover their ability, you can still work with them,” he said.
He further expressed, “everywhere has talent, black people are talented and what we are trying to do is give that talent an opportunity. Most of the time we see talent being used in churches [and] talent shows. But we really don’t have a well-established music industry where we can take that talent and have it organised in a professional way.”
TCI Voice is a rare opportunity for people who can sing to become professionals. Hence, the idea behind the name TCI Voice itself – the voices are already in the TCI and it’s just for them to be heard and nurtured.
“We need our own voice; it’s about time that the focus becomes Turks and Caicos, Turks and Caicos music. We have been neglecting that aspect of music. We haven’t been focused on us, we’ve been focusing on promoting every other culture except ours,” said Lightbourne as he highlighted that the music industry in the TCI has been centred around cover bands.
As such, the production side of music has been ignored. He explained that production is really what should be exploited.
“We need to dig out songs from these artists, from these musicians and have them move towards the professional side of this industry, where the money is, where the marketing is, and where the business is strong,” he said.
This will in turn establish a strong brand of music in and from the TCI and will also bring a worldwide awareness of the island.
Along with Lightbourne, the 43 year old recording artist and producer from Grand Turk, a few other people made the show come to life.
TCI Voice is being done through Paradise Beachfront Productions, one of the only professional recording studios on island. It is owned by Lightbourne and caters to international recording artists who visit the island.
Lightbourne shared that for the talent show, they are working with the Dept of Culture, the Tourist Board, Flow TCI, Provo Travel, and David’s Karaoke Bar and Grill, who hosts the event weekly.
Prior to the first TCI Voice on April 6, the team held a music workshop. Everyone on the island was able to attend and see firsthand what it is like in the music industry.
Lightbourne speaks fervidly about TCI Voice, and so far, the talent show seems to be running successfully. It will go on every Wednesday until the finale on Saturday, May 7. The show is live for viewing but is also aired on facebook at Jack Music TCI and on Instagram at Paradise Beachfront Productions.
Caribbean News
Agriculture Ministry Providing Two Water Trucks to Serve St. Elizabeth and St. Catherine
#Kingston, Jamaica, April 24, 2024 – The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining is to unveil two more water trucks this week, which will be used to service communities in St. Elizabeth and St. Catherine.
Portfolio Minister, Hon. Floyd Green, made the disclosure during Wednesday’s (April 24) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.
He also informed that of the $90 million earmarked to support farmers being impacted by the current drought, the Ministry will be
providing additional support for storage and drip-irrigation systems.
“So, we have targeted about 600 water tanks and about 400 12-millimetre drip irrigation hoses, and that distribution has already started. Additionally, we have earmarked about $8 million to really help with our livestock farmers,” Mr. Green said.
“We know the difficulty that you’re facing now in this time; [it’s] very hard to get the right nutritional support for your animals. As such, we will be providing some hay, and we will [also] provide some trucking of water to you. Again, our livestock farmers, if you are in need, please contact the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) and let us see how we can help in these times,” he further stated.
Mr. Green also encouraged farmers to download the RADA App, so that the Agency can “help guide you, not only in relation to what is happening on the rainfall side, but also in relation to your integrated pest management”.
“We do see some increases of certain types of pests during this time, and it’s important that our farmers are paying attention to that. It’s also important that you’re taking drought management seriously [by undertaking] soil mulching, looking at planting drought-tolerant crops, timely harvesting, implementing land husbandry treatments and contour ditches,” he stated.
Contact: Latonya Linton
Release: JIS
Photo Caption: Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green, speaking during Wednesday’s (April 24) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.
Donald De La Haye Photo
Dana Malcolm
Staff Writer
#TurksandCaicos, April 19, 2024 – In an attempt to move to 24-hour-a-day operations Turks and Caicos Islands Airports Authority (TCIAA) is steadily recruiting Air Traffic Controllers to work at the Providenciales/Howard Hamilton International Airport, according to Godfrey Smith, TCIAA CEO, reporting to the Appropriations Committee.
Speaking on April 8th Smith said a cabinet paper would be sent soon requesting six more Air Traffic Controllers to make round the clock operation at the Provo International possible and to open the airport in Grand Turk till 12 a.m.
Currently, 17 posts are filled and seven are vacant.
Smith was candid with his responses to recent industrial action from ATCs which led to resignations and firings.
“What we have to do is find systems to mitigate such actions and that has to start with filling these jobs, putting people in that want to
work and doing right by people – and we always try to do right by our staff. Persons may not think that we are but we always do – we ain’t pick no fight,” he said in the meetings held at the NJS Francis building ahead of the National Budget Communication.
Smith indicated that recruitment was an issue across the board, ‘we need to find ways to recruit a little bit better’ he told the committee. Also in need of a push was capital spending or projects according to the CEO, who said the agency had ‘not been very good’ at meeting that mark but insisted they had recognized the issue and could do better.
A very important key performance indicator drawn up by the TCIAA is increasing passenger satisfaction at the Howard Hamilton International Airport. For the TCIAA part of this means a 30 percent increase in seating by Q2 of this year.
When queried on if they could even handle this increase the CEO said,
“The fact of the matter is we already have the capacity there. What we need is to make the service a bit better.”
Staff shortages have become such a frustrating issue that the TCIAA is instituting a scholarship program created by Authority Chairman, Selvyn Hawkins
“What the board wants to do is basically allocate $25,000 annually for a scholarship and they’ve approved it already.”
This process would cover tuition and all other costs for one student.
The student would return as a summer intern and other breaks to work at the TCIAA and upon graduation, assume a role at the company.
“We identify a particular skill we need, we go after it and we build capacity that is in a nutshell the nexus of the program,” Smith said.
The Turks and Caicos Islands Airports Authority (TCIAA) is allocated $49 million this financial year; over $20 million goes to salaries.
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