BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – SINGER Akeem Manners, popularly known as Footsy, is letting his voice be heard and expressing his disgust over the many young lives lost by gun-related incidents.
The singer recently penned and released ‘Gone Again’ in which he pleads to the nation’s youth to stop killing each other and making mothers cry. He said instead of violence they should be focused on building a better nation.
‘Gone Again’ was recorded at Yard Tune Productions Studio and the beat was produced by Cliff Richards of SKNVibes.
Manners said he was inspired to pen the song after thinking about a friend he lost almost one year ago.
“I was also in a mystic mood just thinking about all the things that are going on in the country,” he added.
Manners said he had a song with the same beat and decided to reintroduce it but with different lyrics. And after spending some time going over the lyrics in his mind, the chorus started flowing and he immediately began penning the song.
The 22-year-old said he is hoping for the song to reach all around the Federation and also at the international level because it is one with a very strong message for everyone.
“I am trying to send a positive message to the children because they are our biggest fans. Stay upstairs, don’t follow bad company and remember education is the key,” the young artiste stressed.
The song has been receiving lots of positive feedback via blackberry and also the internet, and some DJs and individuals have already named it the best local song for the year to date.
At the end of the sad sounding track, the artiste listed a number of individuals who were victims of gun-related crimes, while advising individuals to put down the deadly weapons.
Manners told SKNVibes that he intends to start shooting a music video on Saturday (Apr. 16) and would appreciate the public’s help, as he would like as many people as possible to be part of it. He said it would be recorded at the various areas where the victims were shot.
Since he started singing in 2005 with Silk when the duo formed Musical Hype Entertainment, Manners has been known for many positive tracks such as ‘Me No Like How De Youths A Gwan’, ‘About Us’ and ‘Right Motivation’.
He is of the view that artistes do not have to sing certain kinds of songs to catch the ears of people, but instead should sing songs with messages that people could relate to, and in that way it would automatically become a good song.
“I would like to encourage everyone to stay positive and, as Nicha B said, ‘Don’t make friends boost you up.’ Look out for my new single ‘If I Die,’” the singer concluded.
