Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer
Entertainer Joseph Current - CARLINGTON WILMOT/FREELANCE PHOTOGRAPHER
WESTERN BUREAU:
WAYNE 'JOSEPH Current' Thomas has come up with a plan to get talent on record and out to the public, as well as those who can make things happen.
He calls it the 'He-art of Love Opportunity'.
"There will be no audition, no singing, no performing," he said in a recent interview with The Gleaner. "You come in, register, go straight to the studio," said Thomas, a poet who has recorded AIDS is a Killer with Gregory Isaacs.
The project, open to all singers, DJs and poets will be run from Isaacs' African Museum studio at Roberts Plaza, 92 Red Hills Road, St. Andrew, for a month, from Tuesday, August 2 to Wednesday, August 21. It will run from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Mondays to Fridays.
"We are going to record them professionally. Even if you do not win, you will have a recording in your hand. You will leave with something that you might not have been able to pay for," he said.
NOT FREE
The opportunity is not free, though. There is a fee of $2,500, for which the entrants will be able to record on one of three rhythms that have already been composed, either on the same day, if they are prepared, or on another day.
The top singer, DJ and poet will each get the chance to record with a renowned performer, while the top 10 recordings will be compiled on an album, which Thomas said will be sent to the top producers. The producers will in turn choose the persons they wish to work with.
And he is confident that each person on that compilation will get to work with a reputable producer.
Among the producers Thomas has confirmed for the project are Cleveland Scott, 'General' from Good Times and, of course, Gregory Isaacs of African Museum.
Thomas noted that the opportunity is open to not only totally new persons, but "it is for people who started already, but never got the break."
And there is one set of persons who are encouraged to make use of the He-art of Love Opportunity. "Poets are especially welcome," he said.
