I bleed red, white and black
And there’s no turning back
I see hope for the future
We must take it further
So much here to treasure
Gifted beyond measure
We have done such great things and continue to do much more
These pore-raising lyrics are excerpts from a powerful new single released by REMBUNCTION! entitled ‘WE ARE,’ a song dedicated to his homeland, Trinidad and Tobago, in celebration of its milestone fifty years as an independent nation.
The song began as a pet project for REMBUNCTION! and has evolved into a movement that has unified artistes and by extension the nation.
Always an introspective writer, the lyrics for this song were inspired by a sense of national pride and by a desire to celebrate the positive achievements of the many trailblazers originating from Trinidad and Tobago. After penning the lyrics to his song REMBUNCTION! called on fellow musician, Isaac Blackman, for the original music production. Isaac brought the musical magic of this song to the fore. REMBUNCTION! ever a multi-talented artiste, then used his production skills to create a video that highlighted many national heroes across different fields such as music and entertainment, sports, politics and social development.
Having been in the music business for some years, REMBUNCTION! recognized that he had to use a creative approach to get the word out about this song. He collaborated with his sister and her business partner in Atlanta, Marissa Williams and Jason Walker to develop a media campaign to create buzz with Trinbagonians throughout the diaspora. The campaign focused on celebrating the successes of the national heroes and was delivered through various social media and radio outlets. But, the poignant lyrics and the tear-inducing video could not be contained within the limited social media sphere.
The song soon caught the attention of another team based in Trinbago who wanted to make the unifying message of the song even bigger and so team ‘We Are’ expanded. Barbara-Anne Look Loy, Danielle Dieffenthaller, Carl Beaver Henderson and Douglas Brunton joined the team the and the song became more of a movement around national unity and pride. The team all worked diligently within very tight deadlines to secure the talent of local artistes and video locations for a new version of the song. The video was shot throughout the islands of Trinidad and Tobago. Everyone who participated in the project shared their time and talent for free and it includes apperances from various personalities including Miss Miles, Errol Fabien, the Soca Warriors and performancs by musical stalwarts such as Denyse Plummer, Baron, General Grant, Kees, Shadow, Ziggy Rankin, Michelle Xavier, Levi Mayers, Ricki Jai, Ravi B, Isaac Blackman, Marge & Nihelet Blackman, Shurwayne Winchester, Chris Garcia, Omari, Olatunji, The Lydian Singers, Brother Resistance, The Burton Sisters, Johnny King, Alternative Quartet, Colin Lucas, General Grant, Carol and Trini Jacobs, H2O Flow, Nadia Batson and other artistes on the collaboration.
REMBUNCTION! believes that ‘our nation has continued to thrive despite its challenges and that our people should continue to remember the national heroes who have paved the way for this generation to succeed so that we can move forward and grow even more as a nation’.
In this vain of positivity and nation-building, copyright proceeds from the song will be donated to the victims of the recent floods on the island. This song inspires nostalgia and an irreplaceable sense of national pride which leaves one asking, ‘what can we expect next from this talented musician?’