Like many of its Caribbean neighbours, Antigua’s largest sector is its tourism industry. Prior to the emergence of COVID-19 in early 2020, the island attracted just over one million visitors annually.

Elite Island Resorts, a leading player in Antiguan tourism, recently collaborated with singer Causion to produce Caribbean Vacation, a song released in November.

The patriotic single is being used to drive the company’s campaign to lure visitors to the country of high-end hotels like Sandals, and 365 beaches.

Co-written and co-produced by Causion and Jamaican keyboardist Maurice Gregory (younger brother of Papa San and former Third World member), Caribbean Vacation features veteran Jamaican deejay Red Fox.

“We have so much to talk about, it is just a beautiful place to be, and you know we forever pushing Antigua,” said Causion, who is from the town of St Paul.

Elite Island Resorts has also released a video as part of the promotional thrust. It depicts leading sites in Antigua as well as well-known personalities.

This is the second project involving Causion and Antiguan tourism interests. In June, Antigua Me Come From, a song from his EP Mission in Progress, was officially released to promote the country.

According to statista.com, Antigua’s tourism arrivals took a hit during the global pandemic, especially in 2020 and 2021 when COVID-19 was at its most devastating.

While still below pre-COVID-19 levels, arrivals showed a significant increase in 2022, with over 680,000 tourists visiting Antigua.

Causion, whose given name is Gregory Bailey, was more taken with Jamaican reggae than calypso and soca, which were the sounds of choice in Eastern Caribbean countries such as Antigua.

Over the years, he has recorded a handful of albums and toured North America and Europe with Third World, one of his biggest musical influences.

Howard Campbell