Visa woes taint music industry

FELLOW entertainers may not benefit from the group of five whose visas were recently revoked, as the entire industry has been tainted, said booking agencies.

Top artistes with US visas now include Capleton, Tarrus Riley, Elephant Man, Assassin, Chino, Voicemail, and Sean Paul, however, US promoters may avoid these and other local deejays altogether due to the risk of subsequent revocations.

Sizzla

Mavado

Busy Signal

Bounty Killer

Beenie Man

Aidonia

"Who is to say that they book an artiste today and two days before the concert they lose their visa. So, they may look at performers from other Caribbean countries or rap artistes," said Carlette DeLeon, administrative director at Headline Entertainment, the island's largest booking agency.

"I do not look at it as who will benefit, because the industry will suffer... the entire industry will lose out. Even if other artistes have visas, we have no guarantee," she adding that the five entertainers should jointly contest the revocation at the US embassy.

There is concern that the visa revocation may spread beyond the US into other key markets which would affect managers including Shane Brown, whose artiste Busy Signal has already lost access to the US in previous years.

"It affects everybody, it's like when an artiste shoots *****boy it affects all the industry," he said of the blacklisting of dancehall music as anti-gay and its negative effect on securing bookings.

"People are not sure what caused it, whether it was X or Y, but if it was tax -elated then it will affect other territories like the UK and Canada because Canada is even more strict than the US in that respect."

Brown, who also owns Jukeboxx booking agency, guided Busy Signal to create music which appeals to the markets of Europe, Japan and Africa in order to compensate for the loss of the US market.

"And it has paid off for him. You have to make music more appealing that goes to the wider cross-section beyond the ethnic market of the US," he said, adding that strong singing melodies and reggae rhythms will increase international appeal.

Up to print, Splash was unable to contact Solid Agency, which is the booking agency for three of the five artistes whose visas were revoked.

Last week top dancehall deejays Beenie Man, Bounty Killer, Mavado, Aidonia, along with veteran selector, Ricky Trooper, had their visas revoked by the US Embassy. Airlines were advised not to board the artistes as their visas were in the process of being revoked. The artistes themselves claim they had no knowledge that such a move was afoot and the US embassy offered no comment following the incident.

Other artistes -- including Sizzla -- have had their visas previously revoked, whilst Buju Banton is currently imprisoned awaiting trial in the US.