More power to Ettosi Brooks
Having Cedric “Im” Brooks as a brother and mentor was empowering for Ettosi Brooks. The influential saxophonist, who died in 2013, taught her to respect the power of music.
Brooks has recorded singles and an album as a singer, but for the past 20 years she has focused on producing a musical that expresses the Jamaican immigrant experience. Power Game II: A Reggae Musical — Believe! is her latest production. It is directed by poet Malachi Smith.
The follow-up to Power Game I, which opened in South Florida two years ago, it has a lone show scheduled for Lauderhill Performing Arts Center in South Florida on September 10.
“Power Game II is a vehicle for the preservation of Jamaican music and at the same time provides an opportunity for young artistes to promote their work. It is a foundation to build a creative economy and sustainability based on cooperative economics, so we believe in collaborating with other arts groups and artistes and encourage each other’s growth,” Brooks told the Jamaica Observer.
Constance, played by Shamana Dixon, is again the lead character. Brooks said ‘Power Game II’ tracks her personal development as she relocates from Jamaica to South Florida.
Dixon is the daughter of Paul “Pablove Black” Dixon, a keyboardist who played a vital role in the resurgence of Studio One during the 1970s. He is also a member of the cast, which includes Corlene Fraser and Jessica Joseph, all of whom were in the original student production 16 years ago.
“This explores issues such as domestic violence, psychological issues around the immigrant experience, and exploitation, which were not factors in Power Game I. The musical’s primary focus is on the problems experienced by women in the music industry and how women’s creative drive is negatively impacted in both personal and business relationships,” Brooks explained.
Like her brother, Ettosi Brooks was born in Kingston. She learnt the rudiments of music being around his bands, which included the Afrocentric Light of Saba.
In 1996 she recorded the album Music is Bigger, produced by Karl Pitterson, engineer for Bob Marley’s Kaya album and producer of Steel Pulse’s True Democracy album.
While Power Game II: A Reggae Musical — Believe! bears Ettosi Brooks’s stamp, Cedric “Im” Brooks’s influence is visible.
“My brother’s bands in Jamaica and South Florida were productions in themselves with all these elements — music, dance, drama, poetry — although I didn’t realise it at the time. Since the mid-90s I have worked with youth in communities in South Florida, creating these types of experiences in one form or another,” she said.