Introduction
Remember that period in the 00’s when a lot of Bajans got record deals overseas? This “Bajan Invasion” saw eight Bajan artists signing to major record labels in the U.S. and the U.K. Last month Amanda Reifer – who was part of the “invasion” as the frontwoman of Cover Drive – signed a deal with Republic Records; a subsidiary of one of the three biggest labels in the world, Universal Music Group (UMG). So why not take this opportunity to look back at some of her fellow Barbadians who have done the same.
This isn’t a definitive list of every single Barbadian who signed a record deal with a major international label, but of some of the most prominent to do so. Here, a major label is one which is owned by one of the “Big Three”: UMG, Sony Music Entertainment (SME), and Warner Music Group (WMG).
One of the labels on this list, Capitol Records, wasn’t owned by one of the Big Three at the time that the artist was signed. It was owned by Electric and Musical Industries (EMI) which, prior to its sale to UMG, made up one of the “Big Four” record labels (which included UMG, SME, and WMG).
This list isn’t ranked; it’s ordered chronologically. It will focus on what each artist did while they were at their respective labels, with a brief overview of what they’ve done since the relationship with their label ended.
Without further ado, here are some Bajan artists who signed with major record labels.
