LAST year March, I had the distinct pleasure and honour of sharing stage with the legendary Patricia “Miss Pat” Chin, co-founder of VP Records, at the 2020 edition of the annual Grounation Symposium staged at the Institute of Jamaica.

We were both part of a panel (which included her two sons, Clive and Chris) moderated by the remarkable Wayne Chen. We were discussing the Chinese contribution to the development of modern Jamaican music. I suspect I was the ‘Black Head Chinaman’ on that panel as I was the only person on that stage who was neither Chin nor Chen. Miss Pat and her family have had an enormous impact on the growth and development of Jamaican popular music and culture.

The little dynamo had the large audience, which packed the auditorium of the Institute of Jamaica, eating out of her hands. Miss Pat is the embodiment of smarts and charisma. Miss Pat did not miss a beat relating the story of how she and husband, Vincent (now deceased), started Randy’s Record Store in downtown Kingston and how they would eventually transform their relatively modest business venture into the powerhouse we have come to know as VP Records.

Vincent had the technical skills which he parlayed into the recording and production of music. However, it was the business acumen of Miss Pat that would ensure that their ventures stayed afloat and eventually find success.

The 83-year-old matriarch of the family, which presides over the largest distribution network of Jamaican music in the world, today shared some secrets of her success in life and business. Miss Pat then promised the packed house that she would be releasing her autobiography.

We eagerly awaited the arrival of the book through the coronavirus pandemic. As those who are familiar with her would know, Miss Pat delivers on her promise. Miss Pat: My Reggae Music Journey, is a collectors item. The design and layout of the book is superb. Miss Pat: My Reggae Music Journey shares the wisdom of a sharp and tenacious woman who was able to take her love for her native land and fashion it into VP Records, an institution that has been at the heart of the international promotion of Jamaican music for over four decades.

Miss Pat is part Indian and part Chinese but a total Jamaican in New York. She chronicles how she took her love for the land of her birth to foreign soil and turned this passion into a business which would not only be to her lasting credit, but which would bring unimaginable exposure to Jamaican music.

My Reggae Music Journey, with a foreword from the indomitable Carolyn Cooper, traces the origins of Patricia Williams, the scion of an Indian father and a mother in the community of Greenwich Farm on the outskirts of Kingston.

Her Chinese grandfather initially disapproved of the union between her mother and father which resulted in Pat having a very humble childhood spent in a one-room dwelling, which she shared with her ambitious parents and her siblings. Her early existence was not much different from the many other residents of the impoverished communities which dotted the landscape of the capital city. Yet, Pat was.

She wanted to study nursing. However, she would soon be nursing a baby thanks to Vincent, the man with whom she would create such a huge impact on Jamaican music and modern popular culture. This greatly disturbed Pat’s parents but did not diminish her drive. She was determined that she and Vincent would do well for themselves and their family.

Miss Pat: My Reggae Music Journey is a story of grit, compassion and imagination. Miss Pat is innovative , a trait which has paid rich dividends. She quickly realised that there was an opportunity for her fledging record store, Randy’s could become a one-stop shop for records from various producers who sought to sell their material exclusively at their own speciality outlets.

My Reggae Music Journey is an essential read for those who are interested in learning about the early stirrings of the Jamaican music industry. It is also a primer on how drive and determination can propel us from modest beginnings to dizzying heights. It is the story of how one small woman, she is less than five feet tall, through a willingness to work hard and make sacrifices for her family has fashioned a legacy for which many will call her blessed.

Despite the fact that VP is in the capable hands of her children with her son, Chris, being the president; Randy, guiding the marketing; and Angela and Clive active in the business, Miss Pat is certainly not ready to go into retirement. She is still the boss lady atop this musical juggernaut.

An important question that could flow from Miss Pat’s book is whether it is a mere coincidence that the two most successful record labels (Island and VP) in the promotion and distribution of reggae and dancehall have been spearheaded by people who have identified as Jamaicans regardless of their ethnicity? Hopefully, this phenomenon might be interrogated in another book. However, let us give thanks for Miss Pat and her book. They have done Jamaica and its culture proud.

clydepmckenzie@yahoo.co.uk