UMI
THE MAN AND HIS MUSIC

When Bmobile Synergy's Soca Star made its premiere in 2006, it gave rise to a new generation of up-and-
coming Soca stars who possessed an unquenchable fire, bringing with them their own distinctive thumbprint to an industry that felt static. On the cusp of the burgeoning scene was a then young 19 year old Umi Jaja Marcano, a performer who would ultimately snag the Competiton's title on February 1st, 2007, cementing himself as the second winner of the franchise. Thanks to his distinctive fusion of R&B and Soca, accompanied with his sleek dancing, that partnered his catchy, crowd favorite tune "move that body". Since being introduced to Trinidad and Tobago sixteen years ago, a lot has changed professionally and personally for the now 34-year-old Marcano.

Umi proved that the adage practice makes perfect is true when, at the tender age of three, he made his grand debut performing Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal" for his kindergarten graduation. His mother would play the pop icon’s music in the home frequently, as he was her favorite musician, and as such Umi would soon develop an affinity for Michael’s music, and flawless dancing himself. During his adolescent years Marcano also discovered the artistry of Usher Raymond, which further influenced his stage persona and sound. On the other hand, his father, a professional guitarist and pannist who played professionally internationally for work, preferred the reggae styles of Bob Marley, and the two would often sit together, composing their own renditions of his songs. At the time, a young Umi would use whatever available nearby to create drums whilst his father strung the guitar chords. It should come as no surprise that at fifteen, Marcano would have constructed his first musical beat on the relatively obscure beat-making program "Fruity Loops."

Marcano was reluctant to enter the Bmobile-sponsored contest at first; it wasn't until his friend Chucky Gordon informed him of the grand prize, a 2007 Daihatsu Terios, that he made the decision to participate. At this point already, he had begun making a name for himself on the "Party Flavour" scene. The St. James Secondary School alum admits “I had already grown accustomed to renting cars, so when I heard I could win a car, I knew that I had to compete” he states. "I was a real gas brain; from the time I could have been on the road driving, I was driving," he further confesses. Umi never doubted his capacity to prevail; when quizzed about his thoughts on his then victory, he had this to say: "I knew my abilities and my talent so know for sure I would have won,". With his sweeping victory in the rear-view mirror of his new Daihatsu, he was now focused ahead. However, the young Marcano had already begun garnering the attention of Soca heavy hitters, one such powerhouse being Macheal Montano, who would declare Marcano "the next big thing in Soca", swiftly snatching him up for his newly minted HD Family, a branch off from this own band "HD".

This is the part of the story that has always been cloaked in confusion for the general public, and as a country that enjoys a good gossip, rumors of a contentious split between Marcano and Soca stalwart Montano after Umi's ostensibly abrupt departure from the very successful HD family have been ongoing. "Me and my then manager had already decided that I would only be a part of the HD family for two years, so after two years, I sent in my letter of resignation. There was never any drama or anything like that, and I'm still cool with my former band members. People want there to be something, but the truth is that eagles cannot fly with eagles, and I have always been focused on carving my own lane," Marcano stated in an effort to put an end to the protracted antiquated chatter. We had to press him about the illusive "Soca Mafia" while we were already on the subject of rumors; similar to how there are reports about the Illuminati in Hollowood pulling strings, did one such nefarious entertainment group exist locally? A solid "yes" was given after a subtly amused guffaw that was followed by a "no comment," thus shutting down any more questions on that topic.

Post-HD, Marcano has been experimenting with his own sound as he simultaneously builds beats for his
contemporaries, yet musical exploration is nothing new to him. Recently, he has tapped into the cultural
phenomenon that is "Trini Bad Music," but what exactly drew the multitalented artiste to the dancehall-inspired genre? "I love the darkness of it, the darkness as in the black keys on the keyboard used to create the sound; it has more depth as opposed to the white keys on the keyboard, which are lighter and more
happy-centric," he asserts. Trini bad music, specifically its lyrical content, which often depicts violence and
promiscuity, is frequently criticized, so his views on the subject are welcomed. "It is seen as grimy, but it is a
reflection of the artist and where they come from and what their world is. The thing about Trini bad
music is that it allows for many topics to be put forward, as opposed to Soca, where it is generally about
happiness. Trini bad gives us the music in its raw artistry," Marcano explains. But has the crooner forgotten
his Soca roots? NO! He does contest that significant adjustments need to be made if we are to see progression in the industry. "There isn’t a hub artiste can go to like there was back in the days, like how artiste would pass through Synergy TV; there also needs to be more unity; everyone is more concerned with their own personal brand instead of coming together to promote Soca as a unified unit; where is the Soca festival outside of carnival?" he commented sitting back and allowing his words to permeate. The subject of DJs becoming artist was brought up at this point, and Marcano candidly expressed his thoughts, saying, "After JW and Blaze won Soca Monarch, it opened the door, and now the natural flow of music and new artists has become tougher, cuz they have the platform to push their own work and others coming in have a harder time.", Making his statement with concern rather than maliciousness.

With a natural-born knack for creating melodious beats and hooks, it came as no surprise that a simple trip to his pantry for a quarantine snack would spawn a catchy 2020 parang that he would ultimately pitch to the parang king himself, Scrunter, and thus beget a collaboration no one would have seen on the horizon. The tune, adeptly titled "We Parangin," serves not just as a fun traditional Caribbean Christmas song with an additional flare that only Umi can add to it, but it also echoed the advice of the health professionals during the pandemic, specifically for everyone to wear a mask and to sanitize their hands. "When I was in the studio working on the melody I had come up with at home, I told my manager I wanted to work with Scrunter because he is parang, so after reaching out and he agreed to it, it made me feel like he recognized my talents and I am grateful to him, he really doesn’t do collaborations and things like that," he explains. Umi Jaja Marcano has a couple more tricks in his sleeve. "I am currently wrapping up production on a movie; it would have been done already, but one of the leading female roles had to be recast. I have some incredible people on and off screen working on this with me, so I'm excited about that", he continues. "I also pitched and sold a folklore series to an international company, so there is that as well in the works," he beams. If it wasn't already obvious, Marcano is passionate about creating and preserving our culture and nothing seems amiss in terms of his professional endeavors.