Rising reggae star to release album in the New Year

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 16: Bermudian reggae artist Fiyah Marshall (aka Alex Marshall) is working on his album Blazin due for release in the New Year. The video for his latest song Take Me Away was shot in Bermuda to showcase “our little jewel in the ocean”. His unique musical style fuses “reggae and island vibes” with a growing expanse of sounds across multiple genres to create what has been called Urban Dancehall. His album launch party takes place on December 21 at Muse from 10pm and he will also be performing at a venue for New Year’s Eve. Marshall talked to the Bermuda Sun about his latest musical ventures.

How long have you been working on your music?

I have been doing shows, recording, and pursuing my professional music career for the past four years.

The current album we are about to release Blazin has been three years in the making.

How many tracks will be on the album?

At least 15 tracks. We have however also looked at the possibility of releasing a double album.

Which songs will the album definitely be featured?

It will feature the songs we have currently produced videos for and a few of the classic tunes along with a variety of brand new material. The main singles that will be featured are Rollin It, Shakin It, Ya Kill Me, Take You Away, Never Stop, and Searching amongst others.

Who else will definitely be featured on the album and on which songs?

We will have a few big surprises that I don’t want to let out of the bag, you will have to wait and see...But some of the highlights will be with artists such as Marlon Asher, Acafool, Latin League & DJ Trans.

What record label will the album be released on?

I have my own record label Hot Fiyah Sounds Entertainment.

We are also in discussion with several major labels at the moment as well working on possible deals.

Who has produced it?

The album is a melting pot of a variety of producers. I have done a good amount of the production myself too but we have some big guns behind us. Some of the main multi platinum producers of the album are Jimi Kendrix from Street Radio and Murder Inc fame. He produced numerous multi platinum records for Jay Z, Ja Rule, Ashanti, G Unit, Bone Thugs & Harmony, Shine and many other artists in the industry. We also have Jason Pennock of The Heavyweights who is one of the producers of the Pussycat Dolls and many more. DJ Trans also did alot of production on the album and there are a variety of other producers involved in the project as well.

Did you write all the songs?

Yes I wrote them all myself, I greatly enjoy the writing aspect of the music as well as production and performance.

When will the album be released?

The singles will be launching all at the end of this month and we are looking at releasing the album just before Spring Break.

Tell me about the new track – and where it was filmed?

The song Take You Away has been one of the most popular local songs of the past year on the island from what I’ve learned and it’s basically a song describing the love I have for our little jewel in the ocean. It is a romantic song about taking someone away on an adventure to a far away place they have never been or imagined existed and sharing special moments with them on what seems like a dream with palm trees, turquoise waters, and pink sandy beaches. Basically it’s describing our little desert island in the sun.

With the filming of the video I really wanted to be a pioneer and do something no Bermudian had ever done before and show off this island for all the beauty it has.

I wanted to make something visually stunning that would really be able to make Bermuda proud to see their island on film and attract tourists who would want to visit that place that looks so ‘unreal’.

It was difficult picking locations with so many amazing settings to choose from. You will have to wait and see the final video to know everything but a few places we chose to shoot due to their remarkable beauty are: Crystal Caves, Horseshoe Bay, Tobacco Bay, Turtle Bay, and the lighthouses.

Your music is always upbeat party music — what do you generally sing about?

I like to be versatile in style so I can be heard blending vibes from upbeat party music all the way back down to conscious reggae. I generally sing about whatever vision I get from the music when I sit back and vibe to it. I just run the instrumental and see where it takes me! A lot of the music is upbeat party rock music mixed with dancehall undertones and is about having a good time with that feel good vibe.

Then at the other end of the spectrum I like to sing about love, loss, this beautiful island where I’m from, feelings and emotions, and not letting things get you down. So really it’s all and in between...