Ravin Wong: Developing talents with the Midas touch

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – JAMAICAN producer Ravin Wong of Portmore knows a star when he sees one. He is the man responsible for numerous Jamaican acts by giving them their first exposure.

Recently, Mr. Wong, as he is popularly known, linked with a local promoter to help establish a partnership that would develop artiste from St. Kitts and Nevis. 

He visited the Federation recently for the Liberation Concert held in Nevis that featured the busiest dancehall artiste around - ‘Busy Signal’. Wong, who has helped Ernest ‘Ibal’ Jeffers established Ibal Records, said that when it comes to the music industry his focus is always about developing and producing fresh new talents. 

“Some of the big mega stars you see out there, I have been like the main man who have created the start for them and bring them up to being big mega stars,” he told SKNVibes in a recent interview. 

Some of those acts include I-Wayne, who was under the wings of Wong before he released the mega hit ‘Can’ Satisfy her’ back in 2004. 

Jamaican reggae artiste Gyptian was also under the guidance of Wong and, according to Wong, it was because of Gyptian that he first travelled to St. Kitts in 2006 for a concert. 

“He came up to my studios even before he had a song and I’m the first one to take him and put him on shows and tell him what to do. I gave him the guidance and introduced him to people who can help with his career,” Wong said. 

According to Gyptian’s biography on answers.com, his parents trusted Wong, having seen the promoter turn many an unpolished talent into reggae stars. Wong said that for some time he managed Gyptian, whose success made him and his studio even more popular. This made numerous young artistes and DJ’s of Jamaica sending him their demos. 

“A lot of artistes come through my studio from all parishes, and even if I can’t manage them I will give them the hook up. I got tons of tape to listen to in my car, whether it’s a disc jockey or an artiste,” he said. “It’s not like a hype or any exaggeration, but whenever I select a talent and put a mark on that talent and say watch this one, they always become a star. It always happens for them. It’s like I have a Midas touch, because whenever me take an artiste me know him going be big, and if me recommend an artiste, them know he going be big.” 

Some artistes who have gotten their start at his studio in very early years of their careers are Deva Brat, Macka Diamond, Bascom X, Vybz Kartel, Guidance and many more from Portmore. He was first introduced to Ernest Jeffers through a show he did with Eversley Liburd, a Kittitian residing in New York, who has been in the entertainment industry for a number of years. 

“He told me he knows I buss talent and that St. Kitts has some crazy talent, and he will hook me up with someone from down there and see how we can buss some of these talents. So they were doing a show, so I can come down and select some of them and then start do works with them. Eversley encourage me, then we link up with Ibal, and now we can have a link with St. Kitts and Jamaica,” he said. 

Wong said they would be doing their best to help the local talent and he feels strongly that once he puts his Midas touch on one of the acts he sees with the most promise, that artiste would excel. 

However, he said that they also have to make sure the artiste is ready for such a change. 

“We have to talk to the artiste first. It’s not just about seeing the talent and signing the talent. One thing is we have to get to know the talent, do a character check, make sure the mind ready, because nuff of the artistes all they care about is the hype and the bling and they don’t think about the journey. So it’s in the nursery stage right now but we gonna see how we work on that and look as it develops.” 

Wong told SKNVibes that he was most impressed with local artiste Ashkenaz, who performed on the Liberation Concert on September 18 in Nevis. He said the artiste has “mega star quality”.