Earlier this month a sponsored promotional video for the show Son of the Soil popped up on hundreds of Saint Lucians’ social media feeds. It advertises DBL’s first-ever live performance on the island. Then billboards and posters started showing up. But like me, many must have wondered about the identity of DBL and why his show called Son of the Soil. The answers were provided to the STAR on Thursday. Firstly, the star of Son of the Soil goes by no other name but DBL. He was born in Saint Lucia and, at about the age of fifteen, he moved to the United States. “I told my aunt I was bored; I didn’t have anything to do. I’m an only child. She said, ‘Well, that’s not my problem. Find something to do!’ So I did.” He set out to build himself a career in showbiz.
He began practising dancing and singing. “I was getting bullied because I enjoyed dancing and performing. It wasn’t the most macho thing to do. That’s actually what got me into martial arts because they were literally beating up on this ‘coolie’ boy that wanted to dance. They’d pull me by the hair and call me Michael Jackass. It was pretty bad,” he continued. But DBL persevered. Being the nephew of popular Saint Lucian songbird Sandra Lord was an added bonus . “My aunt Sandra got me in the business,” DBL said, “and I was able to meet the Jacksons through my performances and hard work. I got discovered by them and they kind of brought me into the family. They started nicknaming me ‘Little Michael’ and taught me the ropes.”
So what brought Little Michael back home? Well, he wants to establish a special relationship with his island home. “I’ve been back and forth for several years but this is really special. It’s the first time I’m actually going to perform my own original music. I just dropped my first EP called Island Vibes and it was executively produced by Jackie Jackson of the Jackson 5, who’s a long-time mentor of mine and like a father figure. There are some new songs that the world has never heard yet. Saint Lucia has the exclusive,” he laughed.
As for the producer of Son of the Soil, he said the show will introduce DBL to many more people. “I just want Saint Lucians to see I want to bring our culture to the world. I’m filming a music video while I’m here, to Your Love, and the basis is to take the landmarks of Saint Lucia, the people of Saint Lucia, the talent of Saint Lucia, and bring it to the world.”
Apart from the show, DBL hopes to establish collaborations with local performers and musicians including those that he follows online from the US. One of his favourites is the Dennery Segment pioneer, Motto. “My music has a strong influence of where I’m from, with where I’ve been. I took my culture and I brought it to mainstream which is something a lot of artists might be afraid to do, because the people wouldn’t accept it or love it,” DBL said.
Son of the Soil takes place at Sandals Grande on May 4, 2019. Produced by Ronald ‘Boo’ Hinkson, it will include local performers as supporting acts. –
