Live Wyya Band Releases First Single, "Warrior", From Fourth Album

There was a time in Jamaican music when bands recorded songs, many of them hitting the charts. That changed during the late 1980s when it was no longer cool to play instruments.

The Live Wyya Band, based in Ocho Rios, are working on their fourth album. Warrior, the first single from that set, was released in February, celebrated as Reggae Month in Jamaica. Produced by Chadian Munroe, it is the follow-up to Woman Down The Lane which was released in early 2023. 

Carl Edwards, Live Wyya’s band leader and bass guitarist, spoke to Caribbean Today about the sextet’s approach to music. “On a stage, the rules change, but in the studio you can record and record until you get it right. It’s the same principle but a little different,” he said. Edwards’ bandmates are lead singer Jerome Smickle, drummer/vocalist Arnaldo Bolt, keyboardist Nigel Shaw, guitarists  Stephan Foster and Ian “Beezy” Coleman.

He, Bolt and Smickle have been in Live Wyya since its inception in 1999. Coleman, who toured and recorded for many years with Ziggy Marley and The Melody Makers and Stephen Marley, is the newest member.

Back to The Roots, Live Wyya’s third album, was released in April, 2019.

Jamaican bands like The Skatalites, The Supersonics and The Jets played on some of the biggest hit songs in ska and rock steady during the 1960s. A decade later, came roots-reggae aggregations like Third World, Inner Circle, Now Generation, The Soul Syndicate and Zap Pow.

In the 1980s, Chalice, the Roots Radics and Bloodfire Posse kept the band flag flying. With the rise of computerized beats that decade, there was a major decline in bands.