Dazzle Magazine recently caught up with Shervon Monrose of One Drop Sound while he was on island to promote and market a few projects that the company is now involved in. He took some time to discuss with us the nature of these projects and the idea behind One Drop Radio.
Dazzle: Tell us a little about One Drop.
Shervon: One Drop Radio, an affiliate of One Drop Sound (2007), started in November 2014 by myself, Cuthbert Didier and David ‘Shakes’ Christopher as an online radio station which concentrated on Saint Lucian music. We went this route was because too many people had no idea that Saint Lucia produced music from all different genres and we wanted to let the world know that we had many talented artistes who produced quality music.
Dazzle: How did you decide on the name ‘One Drop Radio’?
Shervon: The term ‘one drop’ was birthed through Reggae but we put a spin on it – all it takes is one drop of music, one message. We then took it a little further and produced a radio app to keep up with technological advancements. It’s a free app and is available on iTunes, Google Store and Blackberry and currently we have over 45K users of the app.
Dazzle: Who is the current host of One Drop Radio?
Shervon: Most times, I am the active host although Cuthbert sometimes logs on and does his thing. We have 2 live shows – on a Wednesday we host ‘Soca Wednesdays’ and on a Sunday, the show is a reggae roots reality show, ‘I Love Sundays’.
Dazzle: What is your campaign ‘Stop the Violence’?
Shervon: On One Drop Radio, we push a lot of positive messages to try to influence the youth and because of this, I developed a school campaign, ‘Stop the Violence; take back Saint Lucia, one youth at a time.’ The initiative was launched at my alma mater, the Leon Hess Secondary School, on April 27, 2015 with James Adhodha of Wavemaker Photography and Leslie Collymore, President of the Saint Lucia Basketball Association, who are also heavily involved in this project. Students must concentrate on raising awareness by painting murals which deliver the message of the campaign, conducting research, creating action plans to communicate and deliver the missive of the programme, and participating in non-formal educational sessions to understand and discuss issues. We have developed a few slogans for a number of associations. E.g. for the Saint Lucia Basketball Association, we have ‘Shoot Jumpers, not Guns’; for Wavemaker Photography, the slogan is ‘Shoot Cameras, not Guns’ and for the National Boxing Association, we have developed ‘Hands in Gloves, not on Guns’.
Dazzle: Is One Drop involved in any other projects?
Shervon: One Drop is finalising another project called Made in Saint Lucia. It involves documenting Saint Lucian music as far back as the heyday of Dame Sesenne Descartes all the way up to budding artistes like Michael Robinson. We have no mediums for documenting music and this will provide one place from which to access all of Saint Lucia’s music.
Dazzle: How will ‘Made in Saint Lucia’ be different?
Shervon: My partners on this project are Cuthbert Didier and Earl Valmont and to date we have about 50 interested artistes spanning varying decades and genres. The project will not just be a go to resource but will inform and educate Saint Lucian and international audiences alike as each of the genres will be shot in different iconic locations on island. The One Drop Radio app will be adjusted to include this documentary and the video will be aired on local television stations. We have been in talks also with local cable service providers to discuss the airing on cable stations. 2 major international television networks based in Florida are also willing to air the project.
Dazzle: Where do you see One Drop in the next 2 years?
Shervon: We believe that by then, One Drop will be an international local house name even more than it is now. We are also hoping to be involved in a lot more than just radio and documentaries and produce a major show here to highlight Saint Lucian artistes alongside international performers– we will continue with the passion and drive that we have now to bring Saint Lucia to international awareness through one music, one medium, one message.
