From left to right, Theron Thomas and Masai Harris.
The USVI has two new reasons to radiate island pride, as two homegrown musicians receive recognition at the 65th Grammy Awards on Sunday, February 5th.
Theron Thomas was part of the team that gave life to “About Damn Time”, Lizzo’s 2023’s Record of the Year. The songwriter, who signed a global publishing deal with Sony Music Publishing (SMP) in 2021, has worked with other one-name icons like Beyonce, Rihanna and Usher, Ciara, and Saweetie, as well as Doja Cat, Miley Cyrus and Adam Levine, among others. At the time of his signing, SMP’s Senior Vice President in charge of Creative Katie Welle called Thomas “one-of-one in talent, work ethic and spirit, inspiring every room he enters.”
On Monday, Mr. Thomas spoke to Music Week about the birth of “About Damn Time”, working with Lizzo and with Ricky Reed, founder of Nice Life Recording Company. “I love Lizzo’s music because I’m like, ‘This is the only place that I can go to get this.’ I feel like she is having a conversation that no one else is having right now,” Mr. Thomas told the publication.
“I enjoy the way that Ricky Reed makes music because he makes it in sections. He might say, ‘Hey, Theron, I’ve got this cool guitar loop and I’m going to put drums to it and send it to you.’ I will send Ricky an idea that he won’t use, but he will be like, ‘Oh, man, that idea was crazy, it inspired me to do this – now take it up a level and try this.’ We’ll go through all these layers until we get to an About Damn Time or The Sign,” Mr. Thomas continued.
Theron Thomas with his wife, Veda. (Credit: UPI)
Meanwhile, fellow Virgin Islander Masai Harris was part of the production team that worked under the overall direction of Damien Marley to bring forth the 65th Grammys’ Best Reggae Album - “The Kalling”, Kabaka Pyramid’s second album which features Marley, Peter Tosh, Buju Banton, Proteje and others. Mr. Harris, an up-and coming producer in demand for years among artists on the local music scene, now has a Grammy-winning project under his belt.
The pair - Theron and Harris - have received accolades from their colleagues on the Virgin Islands Music Scene, with a congratulatory Facebook message from local recording artist Rudy Live reading in part, “They just need to update VI history books time after tonight.”
Senator Samuel Carrion was also among those offering their early congratulations to Mr. Harris and Mr. Thomas, with a post on his social media pages on Monday morning.
