LOCAL musician Andrew Lamaison, known as ‘One Dan,’ cannot help but reflect on the sacrifices made by his mother, Carol Munroe, to raise him and his 11 siblings as a single parent. To show just how much he values her sacrifices, he has dedicated his latest music video exclusively to her.

Titled “First Lady,” it was released earlier this month in honour of his mom’s birthday on March 9.

Andrew always makes it a point to turn his life experiences into stories that are worth telling through his music.

“I grew up in a single parent home; my mom and 12 of us, six girls and six boys. It was my mom alone and she worked to make ends meet,” Andrew shared in an interview with Buzz.

“She grew us up knowing about life and hustling; getting something of our own; going out there and making money on our own and educating ourselves,” he continued.

“Mommy meh love yuh, forever will. Meh know when yuh heart break; when daddy run left you…nobody care about you. Ah just wanna say thank you,” are some of the lyrics of Andrew’s new song.

Meanwhile, Andrew’s music career started in school when, with every chance he got, he would be singing or performing. He can still remember his school days when he would ‘clash’ with students of other schools to see who would put on the better performance, usually during lunch breaks, and on some rare occasions, during school hours when there was no class.

Andrew, 21, has, over the years, developed the ability to write his own music; to be creative and certainly to effectively entertain his fans. He has also developed a good relationship with his producer and those who make an impact on his music.

With singles like Don’t Ever Leave and Gold Digger, Andrew feels that the music industry in Guyana should focus equally on the various genres of music that are available instead of just on a select few. “It should give all genre of music the same kind of support. There are several genres of music over here that hardly get the support from the music industry,” he offered.

He believes that the ‘Dancehall’ genre should especially be promoted on a grandeur scale because it is the type of music that many people love.

“It is a type of music that is used to express feelings. It fosters unity, helps us support each other, and also talks about things that people have been and are going through in life,” he said.

Andrew added that the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport can help push local artistes in general by organising shows and enforcing copyright legislation so that Guyanese can be recognised not only in Guyana, but worldwide.