By Latrishka Thomas
What has become a major global crisis is not dampening the spirits of local entertainers who are using their craft to engage and uplift others.
Jime Hunte – aka DJ Jime – is one of those who has begun using his DJing skills for a virtual party which has already garnered hundreds of viewers.
DJ Jime told Observer what led to the creation of ‘Club Isolation’ which involves playing an assortment of music on Facebook Live.
“I normally do a lot of travelling, a lot of overseas gigs and because of the coronavirus I’m stuck at home,” he said. “So, you know instead of just waiting home being bored, I just thought I’d be constructive and keep my skills sharp and play music and try to encourage more people to stay at home by tuning in and interacting with people online.”
Similarly, DJs Darin Byron and Cezar Freeland – known as Riddim Master and the Spaniard respectively – are using Instagram Live in a similar way and are also gaining traction.
“It originally started as a stay-at-home mixtape where we record us doing a simple routine at home, a half an hour or hour mix that we post up on Soundcloud.
“Then we decided, hey, why not do it live for people to see us doing it while recording it and then we post afterwards,” Riddim Master explained.
Additionally, comedian and DJ, Kwesi Jarvis, more commonly known as DJ Crutches, said that thanks so social media, he is still able to refine his art.
“Due the fact that I’m not only a DJ, of course, you know, I’m kind of a comedian…So I’ve been doing comedic sketches. It wouldn’t really affect me as hard as it would affect people doing full-time DJing. But I’ve just been doing sketches, sitting down, have more time to think and cope for things to get back to normal, whenever that may be,” said DJ Crutches.
Meanwhile, the entertainers are encouraging residents to make good use of their time indoors.
Both the Spaniard and Riddim Master opined that this period can be looked at as an opportunity rather than a challenge.
The Spaniard urged residents to “stay positive, because everything in life has a trial.”
DJ Jime gave some positive suggestions too.
“First of all, you need to turn off the news at some point in the day because that can be overwhelming,” he said. “And reach out to friends that you haven’t in a while, have a conversation, you know, I game online as well, you know, so being online and gaming that helps.”
“Tap home!” DJ Crutches exclaimed as he pleaded to the public to “listen to the government [and] do what you’re supposed to do.”