Magano on the Road to Stardom Part 4

Fourth of a seven-part series.

Magano is cherishing some glorious memories of being a backup singer.

“It was one of my brother’s friends who told me about a man who was in search of a backup singer. I took up the invitation because I was looking for work; that man turned out to be Ivor Wiser.”

“He was a tall, slim Rastafarian with more than waist-length hair. He was also pleasant and made me feel like a star in every show on which we performed.”

“Ivor Wiser could play almost every instrument including guitar, keyboards to drums. He was not only a singer but also a record producer.”

“He wrote a new song and took my friend – a female singer – and I to a studio in Hayes, Clarendon. This studio was Roaring Lion, owned by the veteran artiste, Coco Tea.”

“It was fun because Ivor Wiser was someone who could tell you when your lines were short of melody, and could fix it in a jiffy.”

“We did several shows in Negril, for example, and around May Pen in general. The greatest moment was being at his house in Clarendon. We would cook, talk about music, laugh, and just hold a family vibe.”

The second entertainer Magano came across was Warrior King.

“Now, he was also an interesting character; very humble and cheerful. He was never the one to raise his voice. The job fell into my hands after his backup singer apparently left his team. So, this Clarendon girl had to travel to Kingston. But, again it was rewarding, even though backup singers are not well paid.”

“Warrior King loved the vibes of we two girls. We laughed, in between rehearsals, and had fun. My greatest experience was on a tour in Europe. This was while Tony Rebel was touring Europe at the same time. So, we were both backup singers for Warrior King as well as Tony Rebel.”

“Being in Europe was superb. Tony Rebel has this energy that whenever he comes on stage there was a big roar. And even when people don’t know the language, they could feel the energy, and they reacted wildly. I also loved Elise Kelly who was the emcee on a number of these shows.”

Magano also met Mykal Rose and this led to tours in Jamaica and California. My best time was at a festival in California. We were chilling backstage when a woman came with a painting of all three of us backup singers and Mykal Rose. It was a pleasant surprise.”

Magano was very glad for the opportunity to meet people of different races and cultures, but couldn’t help not noticing the passage from one destination to another.

“To tell you the truth. I preferred 12 long hours on the road than two or three in the air. The roads are much safer to me.”

Keep reading, Magano backup singer for Bunny Wailer, only on the Reggae-Vibes site.

​(Photos by MARCO 151 & Magano)