Three years ago when he lost his sight to diabetes, singer Maranto was determined not to let it affect his life. He continued doing music, his first love.

“Losing a sense is a challenge for anyone. Losing a sense as well as your kidney functions, and at a young age, makes it so much more of a challenge and it was very difficult emotionally and physically. It takes a lot of support from friends and family in order to cope with and eventually manage these challenges,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

Maranto, 34, is former lead singer for the band C-Sharp. He is promoting the biographical song, Faith Through The Fire, the first single from his EP of the same name.

“Faith Through The Fire was produced and written by me. It is a reflection of my life experiences during my time of illness and speaks to how I have been able to make it through it. This song is aimed at inspiring persons who are going through difficult situations to persevere and keep going until they make it through it,” Maranto explained.

Born Mark Bradford in Manchester, he moved to Clarendon as a youngster, and later sang on the choir while attending Glenmuir High School in that parish.

Music and religion have always been a part of Maranto’s life.

“My father was a minister and he had me and my older brother taking music lessons and singing during his sermons. So, I pretty much grew up around and being influenced by gospel music,” he said.

Moving to Kingston, he studied music at Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts. It was there that he met fellow students who would form C-Sharp which recorded a number of songs and worked with top acts such as Busy Signal, Tony Rebel and Tarrus Riley.

During his four-year stint with C-Sharp, they recorded the What A Day album. Though he counts his time with the band as a career highlight, Maranto’s biggest musical achievement to date has been co-writer for OMI’s song, Cheerleader, an international hit in 2015.