First Openly Gay Dancehall Artiste Demaro Releases Debut Single ‘Mi Readi’
Jamaica’s first openly gay dancehall artiste Demaro (not to be confused with Demarco) has released his first song called ‘Mi Readi’ as he tries to get dancheall fans to adopt more open views about the LGBTQ community. This will be no easy feat as dancehall culture on the island nation is notorious for its anti-gay prejudice.
Little is known about the artiste but he recently sat down with Billboard magazine to discuss his new single as well as some of the challenges that he’s faced so far in bringing his music and lifestyle to the forefront. He’s already begun to confront some of the issues as the video for his song shows him in the company of a Rastafarian man. Rastafarians are known for their strong anti-gay beliefs.
He definitely is not afraid of raising eyebrows as in the video he also features Jamaican drag performer Jahlove Serrano dressed in a skirt dancing in a laundromat.
The song itself is a nice blend of his voice with more of a melodious reggae beat as opposed to a fast Dancehall beat. The 34-year-old doesn’t only want to just change modern attitudes towards LGBTQ people but to take over dancehall as well.
In another interview with Mobimag, he said Mi Ready is about acceptance and taking his life to the next level. “‘Mi Readi’ is about putting myself in the forefront as an LGBTQ artist. It’s all or nothing. It’s a dancehall song over this afro-caribbean beat. It’s about me going after my dreams,” he said.
He told Billboard magazine: “I want people to listen to my music with an open mind and know that I’m a gay artist who’s been through some struggles, but I’m still here not giving up,”
Demaro whose real name is Demaro Brown said he wrote Mi Readi in 45 minutes.
He revealed that he knew he was gay from a very young age but kept it hidden as Jamaica does not have laws that protect sexuality at this time. Another reason he kept his preference hidden was because he grew up in Westmoreland.
Demaro said he was stabbed by someone in Jamaica but escaped to New York at the age of 22. He’s been living there for over ten years now.
“I’ve been told that I would go to hell. In Jamaica, you just cannot be a gay man down there at all. That’s a no-no. Even now, you have to be on the DL. We still had our way of getting around, but you had to be discreet in the streets.”
He added: “I just knew that I wanted more, and Jamaica never had much to offer me. I never had much help in Jamaica navigating myself and knowing that I had these feelings. There was no one there that I could talk to about what I was feeling.”
Demaro also revealed that it wasn’t easy for him after he got to New York either and even though he landed designing work, he still ended up homeless at one point and because of this he entered into therapy.
“It’s good to talk to someone about what’s going on with you. I just started writing and expressing myself. A lot of things weren’t right with me, and therapy reminded me of my value as a human. It was like starting my life all over again.”
His debut EP, Good Vibes Only, may be released in spring 2020. It’s now up to Dancehall fans to decide if he can make the grade and join the genre regardless of his sexuality.
Watch Mi Readi below.