T.O.K. Reunites For BBC Radio 1Xtra With New Music
Dancehall’s most beloved quartet T.O.K. is back with new music and, yes, the harmonies are still exquisite.
Void of Double X (formerly Flexx), who was in Maryland, United States, Alex, Craigy T and Bay-C reunited for a special BBC Radio 1Xtra performance which aired on Tuesday to the delight of fans who haven’t seen them consistently together since they disbanded in 2015.
Between singing classics and solo tunes, they performed their new single NPLH, released by Shamz the Producer, in early February.
The song, an acronym for No Place Like Home, encourages people to be proud of their national, cultural and community identities, a message well-received based on the cheers from the live audience at Big Yard Studio in Kingston.
The crowd engagement intensified as the notable quartet took them on a voyage through their diverse catalogue, from Alex’s velvety smooth vocals on tracks like the Diwali-infected Galang Gyal to Bay-C’s distinguishable deep register on classics like Money to Burn. Craigy T was not to be outdone, proving that his rapid-fire flow and breath control on tunes like Shake Your Bam Bam are still A1.
Encores were also welcomed in the 30-minute set from songs like Solid As A Rock, Man Ah Bad Man and No Man, the latter of which they interpolated with Keep It Blazing. Their performance reached its zenith with their 2004 hit Footsteps, for which pull-up requests rained before they even uttered a word.
A standout of their set was the smooth injections of solo performances, and the support they showed for each other’s projects. Alex sang Believe in Love from his January-released Next Levelution album, which saw Bay-C and Craigy-T happily taking background vocals. They rotated on background vocals, vibes and dance moves when Bay-C performed Mula and Zenna, and Craigy T with No Space.
Comments from the virtual audience encouraged the full return of the group while hailing their legacy as songwriters and performers.
“The harmony is ELITE!” one user wrote. “Hope the youth are taking note of this!! These are the vibes the people need!!! Bless up T.O.K.”
“The soundtrack to my life,” a comment read. “Love it. Oh my gosh, I’m in tears.”
Another person wrote, “We missed T.O.K for too many years. Never leave the people again. Please don’t leave us to stray.”
Emerging from the boyband era of the mid-90s, T.O.K. comprised Roshaun ‘Bay C’ Clarke, Craig ‘Craigy T’ Thompson, Alistaire ‘Alex’ McCalla and Xavier ‘Flexx’ Davidson. While dancehall crews like Scare Dem Crew and Innocent Kru experienced stints of popularity, T.O.K. revolutionized the space by outlasting many of those groups while contributing a slew of hits including Chi Chi Man, Eagles Cry and She’s Hot.
They further expanded their brand by being among the first local celebrities to have their own reality show.
Their separation saw them pursuing solo music careers, with Craigy T also venturing into daytime talk, Bay-C expanding his tech enterprise, Alex going into acting, and Double X joining the YouTube community.