NEW YORK – Listening to songs by Jamaica-born, Brooklyn based artist TP Elliston, you can’t help but linger as you try to catch his sound …is it Reggae? Is it hip hop?
The singer who lists his musical inspirations as Bob Marley, Rihanna, Bounty Killa, Vybz Kartel, Jay Z, Drake among others, says his recordings range from gospel to reggae, hip hop, R&B and country all wrapped in his own original style.
“My sound is a unique collaboration of different music and sounds in one” he shared.
His new single titled ‘My Sacrifice,’ is a cultural song from the EP ‘Step Into My World.’ He is doing a special re-mix of the song because of the powerful ‘message in the music,’ which aptly describes his life and the long hard road he has travelled to achieve success.
“’My Sacrifice’ is about my life but it is a reflection and a manifestation of what is happening in the world today. To write and produce this song, I had to take a long, deep look within myself and pen what I was personally going through. It gave me internal strength to believe in what I am doing which is called faith…the unseen energy,” he said of his musical effort.
‘My Sacrifice’ is from the EP ‘Step Into My World’ that includes songs like ‘Strawberry Lemonade,’ ‘Who’s Gonna Be?’ and ‘I Got Your Baby.’
Elliston, who has been in the business for over 25 years said what he wants listeners to take away from his songs is that nothing good comes easy in life. He also wants them to fight for what they believe in and want to achieve. He weighed in on the May 25 lynching of George Floyd in Minnesota, whose death by four police officers has sparked worldwide protest and reckoning over racial injustice. He stressed the importance of leadership, stating that the incident has now ushered in a new era and change that is coming. He proudly admits he has been among those who have added their voices to the cry for an end to racism by participating in peaceful protests in his neighbourhood.
“I had to record this history that I am a part of. What is going on is historic and has definitely inspired me to keep pushing on. I take nothing for granted and appreciate how important unity is,” he said.
“God Almighty is not sleeping. He is moving with the people and in mysterious ways. He hears their cry and their everyday struggle. The cup has runneth over. The change is now in this time of uncertainty” he said.
The artist who hails from Kingston and attended Dylan Town Primary, migrated to the USA in the 80s. He got his big break, thanks to singer Gwen Guthrie, known for her world renowned hit song ‘Aint Nothin Goin on But the Rent.’ Guthrie was married to his cousin at the time. With his ultimate goal being to bring a new blueprint to the music industry in the 21st century, he levelled criticism at unprofessional persons who always seem to be hustling the business, rather than working hard to achieve success.
“Those hustlers in the music industry really break my heart. It’s sad observing those who have no regard for the music or the persons they are dealing with. This is why the music cannot reach its full potential as it should,” he stressed.
