Interview: 47 Ronzy, Dwayne Bravo Talk New Music, Working Together, And Future Plans
Trinidadian recording artist 47 Ronzy has been working hard to actualize her dream of becoming an international act one day. So far, favor has been on her side, after she officially signed to DJ Bravo’s 47 Productions Music Company in June and released Tonda , her Afrobeats-flavored debut track.
The promising young artist had a sit down with DancehallMag about her aspirations, while former cricketer DJ Bravo himself sat beside her—injecting nods and smiles.
We’re going to be starting with Ronzy. I actually think you have a pretty interesting name. Could you give me some background on that name?
OK, so, my full name is Ronisha and family and friends call me ‘Ronzy’ for short. They made up their own thing, so Ronzy is the one that sticks.
But in terms of the ‘47’…
So 47 came in when I was signed to 47 Productions and my boss’ [jersey] number is 47. Just to represent my label and the team, put 47 Ronzy within my name.
OK, perfect! A little bit more background…where in Trinidad are you from?
I’m from Belmont, Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago—born and raised. I moved to Central after my parents got divorced so I lived with my mom most of my adult life, I guess and you know—little Trini girl; loves music… I grew up in church, as well, so it was not foreign to me. I always knew I could sing and I could play instruments so I decided to make this part of my life a career as something I’m good at naturally.
Yeah, that was going to be my next question…so, how did that connection with Bravo come about?
47 Productions had a competition for artists, deejays, musicians or anybody who wanted a shot at getting a song out or something like that. I entered the competition on the app that they have for collaborations called ‘Collab’ and within that I put up my songs. I was only supposed to put in one song, I put in nine. The rules were that the person with the most likes on your video win, right? I called everybody I know…girls who have friends who coming in to do their nails and whatnot—they had to sign in, download the app and vote for me. I had the most views and that’s how I received my phone call saying, ‘Ronzy, you won the competition.’ He called my phone and I was so surprised… he invited me to come into the studio and the studio in itself speaks to the type of person he is. It’s an exceptional place to record. It’s a home for artists, you know? If you really want to do music, 47 Productions is the place that will nurture that gift inside of you. It’s a natural home for doing music to record.
About your track Tonda , what was the inspiration behind that one?
Tonda came about last year around January before I was signed. He told me that he heard something that I should really try. So, I went home and did my research and celebrities like Burna Boy, Davido really inspired me to making Afrobeat with my type of melody and making the song my own. When he heard my samples, he was really interested in what I was able to do and Tonda was one of them. So he himself picked out the song and to this day—I sent my boss 15 samples and to this day— he knows all my songs. He knows every single one of my song samples. He’s very much interested in my music and what we will put out… Tonda is a blend of Afrobeat and Caribbean; it has a little soca, it has a little R&B, it has a little reggae, so it’s just a nice little mixture.
Let’s segue a little bit. I’m going to assume that you listen to Jamaican music, right?
Yeah
Would you collaborate with any Jamaican artists?
Absolutely! If you ask me if there’s anybody in the Caribbean you would like to collab with, the main place I am looking at is Jamaica and this is no gas, no cap. I don’t know anybody else that has the amount of versatility Jamaica has in terms of versatility. Y’all have R&B people, Hip Hop people…I would love a collaboration with the great Buju and many others.
Is there a specific reason why Buju is your top pick?
From a musician’s point of view, when I sing, I hear people say I have a sexy voice… Buju and me? He has the rough edge. He will give that track that finishing touch… he’s just a legend when it comes to music and he would be able to just finish that track and make it what it’s supposed to be with his experience and stuff like that.
Bravo! Could I drag you into the convo a bit here? What stood out the most to you about Ronzy when you first heard her music?
She has a different sound, and it’s special. She mentioned that when she came into the studio she bring her catalogue of music and a lot of them were R&B kinda style and then she played that one Afro track that really stood out. Afrobeat is trending and you still want to keep that Caribbean flavor. I always want her to remember she’s from Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean.
Hmm, absolutely. In terms of you founding your own record label. Is there a reason why you decided to go that route?
I invested in a state of the art studio. My vision was always if I did my own studio, it must be of a standard and a quality that even the best around the world can come in it from an international point of view. So far we’ve had the likes of Popcaan coming to my studio, and he brought along Burna. So, that moment was a great feeling….to see Burna Boy and Popcaan in my studio, that was like an eye opener for me. Then I had the king Beenie—he saw my studio from scratch…he said it is hands down one of the best studios he ever worked in. Buju was there, Dexta Daps…
What else are you currently working on?
At the moment, everything is on hold. I’m not recording anymore songs… I told Ronzy I’m gonna give it my best shot. Everything is on you.
For this question, I want both of you to take turns answering as we wrap up. Where do you see her career in the next couple of years?
DB: From a regional point of view, even this trip here in Jamaica, we’d like you to go back home and keep the momentum. Gradually, I’d like to see her build up a reputation regionally and my long term goal and plan is to make her international. Following the likes of Shenseea, Spice, Koffee…Rihanna…
And for you, Ronzy, where do you see yourself?
It’s the same thing with me. Building my fanbase and allowing people to be acquainted with me more, and to be able to have features with international artists. To have that recognition so that the work that you put in now with always reflect later on.
Alright, thank you both so much!
Thank you for having me.