‘Third World’ singer ‘Bunny’ urges creativity

Vincentian artistes who want to succeed in the music industry are being encouraged not to be afraid of being more creative and passionate towards their goal.{{more}}

That’s the advice from renowned Jamaican reggae singer, William “Bunny Rugs” Clarke.

Clarke has been the lead vocalist/guitarist and a songwriter for Third World since the mid-1970s.

He told SEARCHLIGHT there is a need for more original materials from new and upcoming artistes.

“Don’t be afraid; just get creative and do something different. And if you find out that you really love it, then your fans will find out how you really feel when you are performing. They’ll feel and understand that joy and passion that you have in your performance,” Clarke said.

The “96 Degrees in the shade” singer said continuous practising is also a key to perfecting musical talent.

“If you can play an instrument, then practise with your instrument. If you are a songwriter, keep writing songs and if you have a beat that’s not like the ordinary, then that’s fine. Try and do something different … That will get people to listen and people will be saying ‘Wait, I never heard that before.’

“Don’t just come with what you hear every day and just follow the regular pattern,” Clarke advised.

He also revealed that one of the main reasons behind the 39 years of continuous success of the reggae band, Third World, is their choice to always be original and create music with a difference.

“When Third World started, for years we were criticized that we are not roots reggae. We surpassed those criticisms because we never took it on, because we figure whatever we created on the inside and were able to express it on the outside, then people would appreciate that, you know?

“Next year Third World reach 40 years and I think there’s hardly any group that has made it to 40 years so successful as easy as we did,” Clarke further stated.

Apart from being the singer with the golden voice behind Third World’s success, Clarke has also embarked on a number of solo projects.

In 1995, he released his first solo album, “Talking to You on Black Scorpio,” and released his fourth album “TIME” earlier this month, on his Raw Edge Production label.

Clarke explained that the title was chosen to reflect his belief that if you don’t have respect for “TIME”, you don’t have respect for yourself.

The first single from the album released to radio in 2012 was “Land We Love,” which follows on the three digitally released tracks in 2011: “Love Is Blind,” “Tune In” and the beautiful lover’s rock tune “Just Can’t Deny”.

Rugs’ singing has been creating positive vibes in reggae music for over 40 years.

He was born on February 6, in Mandeville, Jamaica, and raised in downtown Kingston. His grandmother nicknamed him “Bunny” because he liked to “jump around like a damn rabbit”. His band mates nicknamed him “Rugs,” “when they found out I liked to sleep on rugs and the floor,” he explained. (AA)