THE curtains came down on the Red Bull Music Academy Bass Camp held at Geejam, Port Antonio, Portland over the weekend.

The two-day music workshop, held for the first time for the English-speaking Caribbean, drew participation from aspiring musicians representing various musical genres and styles. Music lovers from Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, St Kitts-Nevis and as far as the United States and United Kingdom gathered for an experience on musical knowledge and sharing.

Songwriter and owner of Grafton Studios Mikey Bennett, who lectured at Friday’s sitting, walked the Bass Camp participants through the musical escapades of the region focusing on Caribbean beats and other sounds and the constitution of a good song delving into the art of songwriting. He advised the artistes; especially those who dabble in composing and songwriting on the attributes of a good song which he said must use strong metaphors — which are excellent reflectors of a song’s meaning. “Metaphors are magic, use them,” he recommended.

A question and answer segment revealed the other face of Caribbean music which, as it turned out, is much more than reggae, dancehall, soca and calypso. There is also an alternative component involving rock, hip hop and rap which are progressively becoming the musical norm for present-day Caribbean youths. Dominique Brown, Red Bull Music Academy Bass Camp participant and lead vocalist of rock sensations Random Chaos described her music as a residue of globalisation — a vortex where hybrid music flourishes, making way for all kinds of musical expressions.

“We’ve been taught that our music should sound a particular way. For Jamaica, we have to make a little reggae to make it communicable to Jamaican people. When you’re in an environment where our music isn’t easy to understand, we have to familiarise it. I don’t want us to buss big in Europe. I want to buss big in Jamaica first,” she said.

Where it concerns hip hop and rap, Shellaney “Icecreame” Bryan is emphatically leading the charge, spitting lyrical rhymes and verses with such skill and savvy, it gives rise to goose bumps. Icecreame acquired her talent in New York City where she lived for most of her life, and now resides in the land of her birth where she is adored by many Jamaicans who admire her ability to improvise lyrics at some of the most random and spontaneous moments. “I am Jamaica’s best kept secret, now peep it, the secret is about to be out,” she rapped when asked about her views on rap music in Jamaica.

Red Bull Music Academy Bass Camp Jamaica was also focused on the business side of the industry. Around mid-morning Saturday to around evening March 26, 2011, Jeremy Harding, engineer, producer, musician and who also manages Sean Paul — one of the Caribbean’s current crop of international success in music — took to the lecture seat where he implored the participants to “organise for success”.

Harding advised the roughly 25 participants to ensure that their careers are treated like the businesses that they are. “Enlist the services of an entertainment lawyer, hire a road manager, research the industry, become proficient with the latest technologies, be computer literate and most of all surround yourselves with the right people — people who can help grow your career,” he cautioned participants.

They also talked about the application process to the Red Bull Music Academy slated for Tokyo, Japan, in November for which applications are now open until April 4, 2011. Jamaica has been represented at past Academies by the likes of Sly & Robbie — Spain 2008 and Jeremy Harding — Canada 2007 who went as lecturers and Sawandi Simon — Australia 2006 and the only Jamaican to have gone as a student. Application forms are available at www.redbullmusicacademy.com for interested persons.

By nightfall, the Jolly Boys were ready to rock, groove and mellow the occasion, giving the Red Bull Music Academy Bass Camp Alumini a taste of Jamaican mento and putting the participants in the frame of mind to continue defining the region’s music. The breath-taking views of the Portland landscape were great enough to inspire creativity and innovation and not one participant was left with any doubt that music is what they desire.

Next year’s sitting of the Red Bull Music Academy Bass Camp may inspire another dream and another moment for budding DJs, producers, musicians, songwriters, sound engineers and bedroom MCs to look towards the greater sitting of the Academy to touch down in another City.

The 2011 Academy will be held in Tokyo, Japan, in November.