August 19, 2010 - 19:04 
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Interview With Dub Reggae Star Aruba Red
Tags: Aruba Red, SW1 Productions
Area:
Truro Last seen in Cornwall supporting reggae artist Natty at a sellout show in Falmouth the fresh, soulful and rebellious songstress Aruba Red (who is touring in the right part of the world considering she is aptly named after a female pirate legend) has just finished touring Cornwall including a performance at the SAS Ball. Our very own Amy Dennis took some time out to catch up with Aruba just before she began her Cornish tour last week.
1. Hi Aruba! Firstly, please give us an idea about yourself, talk the readers through how you first got involved with music right up to where you are today.
Hi, thanks for having me :) essentially what I do is write songs and sing about what inspires me... change, rebellion, passion and all the things that come with it. Love, pain and back again. Music has always been a part of my life and although it wasn't something I intentionally set out to do as a job, after performing at a lot of open mic nights and basically creating a vibe I ended up collaborating with Nitin Sawhney for his latest studio album and things snowballed from there. I've put out an independent album which got featured in the iTunes 'best of' section as well as 'Hottest Homegrown' on BBC Radio 1 and 'Best Alternative' on Radio 1Xtra. I got to tour with Natty twice, Fat Freddy's Drop and do a lot of shows and I fell in love with the journey. I have been lucky enough to collaborate with some amazing artists including Jah Cure, Mad Professor, Jah Mason, Nathan 'Flutebox' Lee as well as many more and I just love the creative process and getting the vibe out there to the people. What I'm doing right now is touring Cornwall, I just got back from performing a couple of live acoustic tracks for BBC Cornwall and am looking forward to playing the SAS Ball, WIg and Pen and the Gylly Beach Bar and The Taphouse was a wicked opening night to the tour.
2. Who were your influences, in the music world or otherwise, growing up?
My influences come from everything in the world around me, vibrations I catch in the air, things I see on the news and obviously other musicians and artists. Some of the biggest musical inspirations on me have been Erykah Badu for her vocals and style, Tricky for his production and experimentation, Bob Marley for his insight and the ability to get millions of people all around the worked dancing to songs of freedom and revolution and the rapper Immortal Technique for the truth and realness that he brings. Also my father for reading me amazing books and introducing me to important political issues and so many musical styles and genres.
3. Your music is very much about the lyrics. What is the key message you hope to portray to listeners through your songs?
I never set out to write rebellious or political music but I guess it's just what comes out. I'm just about trying to encourage people to question things and not always be taken in by what is put in front of them by the powers that be. Voicing the voiceless as well as just letting people know that they are not alone in their frustrations. I think it's really important to be able to come together and party for freedom and peace! I don't like preaching, it's about bringing a positive and good vibe mixed with a bit of knowledge and passion about the truth.
4. What has triggered your return to Cornwall? How much does it differ to London in terms of playing gigs and the audience?
I played at the Princess Pavilion in Falmouth back in May when I opened for Natty and it was an amazing gig! We has such a wicked time that night and the audience were on fire. When the promoters at SW1 got in touch to book us for our own mini tour, we couldn't wait to get back to Cornwall. It's great to be able to travel. I love London but it's always nice to spread the sound further and if you can do it in a beautiful place like Cornwall then why not! We're staying right by the surfers beach in Porthtowan and feel very happy to be back.
5. Describe your style of music for those thinking of coming to your Cornish gigs.
Rebel soul music with twists and turns. The best thing to do is to come down and check out a show and make up your own mind. All the solo gigs we're doing in Cornwall this week are free and we've also got some limited edition copies of the 'Aruba Red Live & Unplugged EP' with us, which you can only get at our shows. Plus I'm sponsored by the ethical clothing company THTC and they've given me some really nice T-shirts to sell on the road so you can come and have a fully musical experience as well as take some really nice pieces home with you, all wrapped up with a dose of good karma :)
6. I’ve read you plan to visit Jamaica to release and promote your single ‘Light Up Light Up’. When are you releasing the single, and why Jamaica?
I recorded this track and shot the video in Jamaica with Jah Cure so it feels like the natural place to go back to to release it. The video for 'Light Up Light Up' is up on youtube and we're waiting for the right time to officially release it. It's going to get put out on a big compilation label in Jamaica first and then I might do a limited edition vinyl release over here. There's also a special acoustic version on the new EP which you can get a sneak preview of on my Reverb Nation page: www.reverbnation.com/arubared
7. With one self-titled album under your belt so far, what are you currently working on, and what are your future plans?
Right now I'm working with some great writers and am going to come back with some really exciting news and new sounds in the new year. I'm just feeling grateful that I've had the opportunity to do what I love and I'm busy enjoying the journey.
8. What do you feel has been your biggest achievement to date?
That's a difficult one, I'd probably have to pick between collaborating with Nitin Sawhney on our song 'Last Train to Midnight' or getting to travel to Jamaica to record with Jah Cure in the legendary King Jammy's Studios. Then again the thing I am most proud of is being featured by the Morning Star newspaper as well as staying true to my beliefs and getting to work with some really amazing musicians, especially my current band, Charlie Laffer, Camilo Tirado, Chantelle Nandi and Julie Iwheta. One of the best things about all this is getting to meet some really amazing people.
9. Where would you like to be in 10 years time?
Happy, peaceful and still making music I love and preferably somewhere sunny and warm with nice food, family and good friends lol
10. And finally, I’m intrigued, where does the name ‘Aruba Red’ come from? Apparently it has something to do with pirate legend?!...
Aruba Red was a legendary female pirate from the Caribbean, my sister Kyla chose the name for me. I was drawn to the story of this strong, rebellious woman. I also like the piracy aspect of the name... I think piracy plays a huge part of the modern world of music, some for good and some for bad. My music is also a melting pot of different sounds which I have interpreted from around the globe, i see it kind of like collecting treasure but instead of keeping in stashed away buried somewhere, we're all about sharing the wealth :)
Hope that's cool! Many thanks and much love, Aruba x
www.myspace.com/arubaredmusic | www.itunes.com/arubared | www.twitter.com/arubared | www.reverbnation.com/arubared | http://www.facebook.com/pages/Aruba-Red/15269017341?ref=ts
Aruba was Interviewed by Amy Dennis for CornwallsCoolest.com - Amy Dennis is a student about to go into her 3rd and final year of a Journalism degree at Staffordshire University, but has lived in North Cornwall all her life.
Can't wait!!