In a profession where versatility of the highest order is demanded, Ralston Barrett has covered just about every yard in the field of entertainment management. Since entering the industry in the early-1990s, Barrett has acted as artiste manager, producer, booking agent, road manager and show promoter.
Barrett is principal of Entertainment Konnections, previously known as Torishae’s Productions, a Negril-based entity that has handled the affairs of an impressive list of acts including Richie Spice, Andrew Tosh, Protoje, Stevie Face Spanner Banner, Junior X and Cen’C Love. Prior to setting up his company Barrett worked with other artistes such as Mr. Vegas, Merciless, Richie Stevens, Anthony B and Kiprich.
“I bring 21 years of expertise to the table, I’ve basically done it all,” said Barrett, a native of Negril, a seaside town and popular tourist spot in Jamaica’s Westmoreland parish. “I use all my channels to expose my clients.”
Barrett has been involved in the entertainment business since his teens. He got his feet wet after attending Mannings high school in Westmoreland and Ruseas high school in neighbouring Hanover parish.
He learned the ropes from several respected journeymen such as music producer and disc jockey Dennis Howard, singer Ed Robinson, Clyde McKenzie, Delroy Morrison, one of the key figures behind the success of Dynamic Sounds in the 1970s and 1980s.
Although he prepared for the business side of entertainment during a stint at the National Institute of Commerce, Barrett says he mainly cut his teeth just ‘being out there’. That approach, he believes, has benefited his clients.
“I’m somebody who cares about the image of the artiste. Being a publicist is more than just sitting behind a desk and issuing press releases,” Barrett explained. “The important thing is to communicate well.”
That’s an interesting observation, considering Barrett once considered a career in journalism. He hosted shows on the LINKZ FM and VYBZ FM radio stations out of Savanalamar, and also contributed regularly to Hard Copy, a popular weekly tabloid in Kingston, as well as the Swedish website, Sonox.com.
Ironically, Barrett entered the music business at a time when the dancehall genre was gearing up to take off in the United States. Some of the acts he grew up admiring such as Shabba Ranks, Cocoa Tea and Tiger led that breakthrough, but there was also space on Barrett’s playlist for the greats of Jamaican music including Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Jimmy Cliff and Dennis Brown.
Demand for tenacious managers and publicists grew as dancehall breached the Billboard charts with regularity during the 1990s. How well the artiste fared depended as much on management as the product they released.
But while he has worked with some of the biggest names in contemporary dancehall and reggae, Barrett says he gets personal satisfaction nurturing the careers of budding acts like Timmi Burrell, Vengeance and Rexxx.
“Working with an artiste from scratch can be an amazing experience, especially when you see them moving up gradually and eventually making it,” he said.
Negril’s rustic setting and white sandy beaches made it a big attraction with tourists from Europe and North America in the 1960s and 1970s. Tourism interests anticipate the area represents the future of Jamaica’s leisure industry which includes a vibrant reggae scene.
That seems tailor-made for a hometown boy like Ralston Barrett. |
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Welcome to Entertainment Konnections. We are a Public Relations, Artiste Management and Booking Company located in Negril, Jamaica. We represent all the top acts in Jamaican music. |
