–local singer Akeem Alexander releases new music, ‘Ready to fete’

FROM a very tender age, 24-year-old Guyanese musician Akeem Alexander knew that he loved music. Be it in church, school, concerts – anywhere he had the opportunity – he’d always be singing.
Perhaps at most, his ‘Sunday’ experiences at church had the deepest impact. “Growing up with my grandmother, you know every Sunday you had to go to church. Listening to the worship and hearing the people singing in church, that sparked the interest in me wanting to sing,” Akeem told Pepperpot Magazine.

One day, he just got the courage to go up on the stage and sing. “From that moment, I just fell in love with it,” he expressed, adding, “Music has always been a part of me or my go-to from a very young age.”
It’s not just listening to music that brings joy to Akeem, but actually being able to perform it on stage. “Music is life; it gives you a sense of relief, especially Soca music at that. You listen to a little bit of Soca music, and it allows you to forget about your problems, forget about your stress, and just live in that moment.”

Into it professionally for four years now, Akeem fondly remembers the year 2020 when he was given the opportunity to take part in the Junior Soca and Calypso competition, capturing 2nd place in Soca and 4th in the Calypso.

In 2021, he re-entered the competition and landed 3rd place in both Soca and Calypso. “I’ve gotten the opportunity to grace many stages so far,” he offered.
In 2023, he was in the senior Soca Monarch, with his biggest song to date titled, “Thank You Soca”, which would have opened many other opportunities for him, and created a wider fan base for the ‘Akeem Alexander brand’.

Akeem said the goal is to become so well-known, that music can become a full-time job. “I want to become a household name in Guyana, and then take it international from there, having more popular songs out there, and people knowing the person behind them. Often times, persons would know a song, but they don’t know who sang it.”

The efforts of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport to ensure that Guyanese music is being recognised are not going unnoticed by him. In fact, with the ministry’s help, Akeem said he has been able to get quite a number of bookings.

For 2024, he has already started the ball rolling with the release of new music titled “Ready to fete.” This was a collaboration between him and Kross Kolor Records led by Burchmore Simon. “They’re [Kross Kolor Records] the ones who found me and trained me and I really want to give a big shout-out to them, especially Vanilla [Melissa Roberts] and Mr. Simon,” he declared.

Explaining what his new song is about, he said: “Ready to fete is a celebration of life, being happy to be alive, and living life like there is no tomorrow,” Akeem shared. Ready to fete can be found on all streaming platforms: YouTube, Spotify, iTunes, ‘anywhere!’”
Social media: Facebook – AkeemAlexander; Instagram- @iamakeem; and Tiktok-Akeem Alexander