Tanya Stephens Kickstarts Acoustic Series

Reggae artist Tanya Stephens offered an intimate, interactive, and conversational set that illustrated her vast musical catalog and exceeded two hours of hit songs, as she marked the genesis of the D5 Acoustic series at the District 5 restaurant at the R Hotel in Kingston on Sunday.

The These Streets singer, who wore a purple and blue blend wig and sunglasses, expressed her delight at being the first performer in the series, especially as settings for acoustic and intimate performances seemed to be dwindling.

“Well being the first of anything good always feels nice, as far as I’m concerned as long as it isn’t first in the line of fire then I’m good, it was really good to be thought of to begin the series, I love these kinds of series so it really feels good, “ she told DancehallMag.

“Well, the performance wasn’t really acoustic as we were doing it on tracks but it was still very personal and intimate and I don’t have to prepare for these because intimacy is something that is organic as far as I’m concerned, it’s a conversation between me and the audience and we usually have those and the kind of setting that we had lent itself to that even more so we had a very close conversation and I felt that I was connected to every person inside, I don’t have to prepare because we are honest with each other and honesty needs no preparation,” she added.

The acoustic series will continue on the last Sunday of each month.

Audience fully interactive as Tanya treats them to hit songs

During her set, she expressed gratitude for platforms like District 5, which aims to contribute to the renaissance of acoustic music in the entertainment space.

“I really appreciate you guys, unno always a do spaces like this and every time dem do it, a me dem call fi come open it up so m I a start fi get the feeling that dem think me a one open up gal…for serious though, I want you guys to keep coming,” Tanya said.

“Unno naw get no more Tanya inno, a one a me, so tek that however, you want tek it , tek it outta my ego, tek it anyweh but a one a me and the next person wah a come next month a one a dem too,” she encouraged.

Post-performance, she explained that she set out to provide an authentic up-close moment with her fans, and she thought she delivered on that.

“The biggest takeaway I always want people to have from my performance is a fun time, I really want to be apart of making somebody’s day better. If I came and saw them having a good day, I want to make it better and I’m hoping they got t hat and it felt like they got that because we were laughing through the entire thing. When you go to a streaming service or you put in a cd and you press play then it stops and that’s like an automatic action but when I turn up . when an artiste turns up live then it becomes a real experience rather than just a synthetic one and so I usually want people to take that, the real conversations, whatever we discuss, because I keep what they say to me and I hope they keep what I say to them,” she said.

The operations manager of the R Hotel, Kimesha James, explained the rationale for the acoustic series.

“What inspired us to create an acoustic series for live performers was the desire to provide a platform for talented musicians to showcase their skills in an intimate setting. Acoustic performances have a unique charm and authenticity that resonates with audiences, and we wanted to create an opportunity for both performers and patrons to experience the magic of live music in a special way,” she said.

“With this series, we hope to achieve a few key objectives. Firstly, we aim to support and promote local musicians by providing them with a platform to showcase their talent. Additionally, we want to create a memorable and enjoyable experience for our guests, offering them high-quality entertainment in a relaxed and welcoming environment. Ultimately, we hope that the acoustic series will become a beloved fixture at R Hotel Kingston, known for its exceptional live performances,” she added.