- File
From top to bottom - Marcia Griffiths, Nadine Sutherland, Keiva Hibbert and Lady G.
Alicia Roache, Staff Reporter
SEX SELLS. That is the mantra to which many in the music business ascribe. Yet there are a few women in the local entertainment industry who have not been disrobed by that notion. They have made a conscious effort to move outside the expectations that for a woman to make it in the industry, she must aggressively exploit her sex appeal.
The reigning empress of reggae, Marcia Griffiths, has been performing professionally for 40 years, a major accomplishment by any measure in any field of endeavour. She has done over 12 albums, yet she has not had to bare her breasts or crawl provocatively on the floor to garner attention. A woman with an unmistakable sophistication and classy sense of style, Marcia impresses with her music and her outfits, not her body.
Marcia was unavailable for comment, but her manager for over 30 years, Donovan Germaine, explained why Marcia's success was never tied to an image as a sex object. "Marcia is from a different era. What happens 40 years ago does not happen now," he says.
Since her first hit single Feel Like Jumping in 1968, a record which still fills dance floors, Marcia has released hit after hit, performing on stage shows all over the world.
From her early '70s stint in the duo Bob and Marcia to her becoming a member of the I-Threes, along with Rita Marley and Judy Mowatt, Marcia has been a music and style icon. Her Electric Boogie with Bunny Wailer was a hit in the United States (U.S) in 1989 seven years after it was recorded and even inspired its own dance, 'The Electric Slide'.
But, according to Germaine, Marcia's success as a musician is not tied to her body, because that is not what she or her music represent. "This is Marcia Griffiths we are talking about," he says.
It is, in fact, hard to imagine a former I-Three baring her body for the public. However, Germaine asserts that because of that legacy and Marcia's "strong fan base", which allows her commercial success despite what is happening with current trends in music, she has never really had to market herself as a sex object.
"It's an inborn thing", explains Germaine of Marcia's style. "She just born with that; she just likes to dress up. I don't think it has anything to do with the music. Even if she wasn't in music she would still dress that way", he says.
Nadine Sutherland and Lady G, both of whom cannot boast the same volume of work or continuity as
Marcia, are women who were not coerced into baring their bodies.
Nadine began performing in 1980 when she was recruited by Bob Marley to Tuff Gong. In 1986 she toured, supporting Bunny Wailer in the U.S. along with Leroy Sibbles of the Heptones. From then on Nadine continued her solo career, one of her most well-known hits of the '90s being a collaboration with DJ Terror Fabulous called Action.
But Nadine did not bring the 'action' off the record and into her outfits. "Sexiness is not only taking off your clothes. Sexiness is something that is innate," argues Nadine. "I believe that a woman can be sexy without taking her clothes off. Sexiness is confidence, spirituality," she said.
However, Nadine claims, at one point in her career she experienced some pressure to go all-out sexy. "I got pressure; I've had my pressure but that's not me. I never wanted to go naked," she says. Nadine has instead gone 'funky'. "My personal style fluctuates depending on the mood that I'm in," she says.
Nadine describes her style as "schizophrenic", fluctuating from a "wig and tight pants" to "corn rows, long skirt and red, green and yellow" but never risqué.
The success of these women makes a lie of the suggestion that it takes sex to sell. Nadine says she still attracts the same fans as those who go the route of revelation. "My fan base is from everybody. My dressing is never something that holds me back. People accept me for who I am," she says.
Lady G has been championed as the 'sisters' DJ' for her music. Her song warning chauvinists to show her Nuff Respect and her comical altercations defending female rights with Papa San suggest that this sister will not subscribe to stereotypical notions of female sexuality. Lady G describes her style as "simple". "I'm a pants person; anything in jeans. I don't like to overdress or have on a whole heap of fashion. If I see something I like I'll buy it," she says.
According to her, wearing "a nice jeans outfit" on-stage make her more comfortable. She, like Nadine, suggest that her fans are the same as those of any other artiste. "When I do my thing I have all kinds of fans, from adults to teenagers," she says. "But it's up to an individual which road they want to choose, but I didn't do it and I'm happy I didn't do it."
Keiva Hibbert's ascendance to the title of 'Dancehall Diva' is unprecedented in a segment of the industry where women have become popular as much as a result of body-baring outfits and risqué performances as dancing talent. Yet Keiva has achieved immense popularity locally with entertainers and dancehall fans, despite not wearing revealing outfits.
Part of Keiva's success lies in the fact that, as she points out, she is a different kind of dancer than one who vies for the coveted 'Dancehall Queen' title. But while that may be so, she is still doing what few if any have done before, by keeping her outfits moderate yet unique. "It's not what you wear; is how you wear it and look in it," she says. "You don't have to
be X-rated to become a famous dancer or a famous person."
Keiva, who claims to have a talent for designing her own outfits, says she keeps her style unique by making adjustments to the clothes she purchases. "If I see something and buy it I tek off something or put on something. I love bright colours," she says.
But Keiva also has a passion for mixing and matching colours that also adds to her unique style. "I think when you are very colourful it makes you bright. The outfit gives a different feeling on-stage and make you want to work harder," she says.
The 'Dancehall Diva' says she has been in 40 music videos for various artistes, including Elephant Man, Kiprich, and General B, but feels no pressure to wear revealing clothes. According to her, both artistes and fans alike have warned her "Keiva anytime yuh start dress that way wi dun wid yuh."
Whatever the reason for dressing the way they do, each woman agrees that what really matters is talent. "If you have a look and people tek to it that's good. But music is the most important part of it. The talent is the most important part of it," says Lady G.
