The Tribune

By FARAH

Tribune Features Writer

jgibson@tribunemedia.net

Since his “successful” Raw Tour in Los Angeles, Judah The Lion has returned home with a renewed sense of purpose and a desire to take his music to another level.

The Raw Tour ended last week and took the artist to several venues in Los Angeles including Cuban Pete’s in Long Beach, the world famous boardwalk at Venice Beach, the Impact Record Pool, and Carbon in Culver City.

The Raw Tour was spearheaded by Judah’s team at No Hit Wonders. The purpose of the tour was to expand his career in entertainment and promote the release of his debut project Raw Talent. It is expected to drop at this month.

The Los Angeles tour was the first time Judah ever performed outside of the Bahamas. He gave audiences in Los Angeles a taste of the album with performances of “Um Hi”, “Tha Hypnotist” and “Mad”.

“I know a lot of times performers of my generation like to hype the crowd up before they get into their shows, but I knew that my particular brand of music would need a different approach. I decided to tell the audience about myself and a little about where I am from before and during each performance. I knew that me being from a completely different world, basically, that I would have to find mutual ground to bridge that cultural gap. And simply explaining myself and what I am about helped the audience to relate with the human in me. I just let the music and the dose of talent God has given handle the rest,” said Judah, who usually performs as the lead singer in The Truth Band.

“Every audience I performed in front of genuinely loved the music and the live show. The energy they gave back was amazing and they truly appreciated the fact that I came from so far away for the sole purpose of sharing my heart and mind with them. It is a truly spiritual experience when you really think about it. There is no better feeling for a performer than to have the energy you put out given back to you tenfold,” he told Tribune Entertainment.

Being able to perform freely for an international audience was something Judah said he enjoyed most about the experience. The fact that he was not judged by his appearance and was respected because of his pure talent was a plus.

Judah also did a live UStream on one of his nights off, where he hung out with some of his listeners, released the song “Um, Hi” and gave out a Raw Tour 2013 official t-shirt.

“It was just music. I was somewhere thousands of miles away from home and nobody knew who I was before hand but I took advantage of the opportunity and let them know not only who I was, but gave them a little more insight into who we are as a people. And just knowing that this is just the beginning, that even more is to come from this one experience is good. That realisation in itself was one of my favourite experiences on this tour,” he said.

A breakthrough on the international music scene is something Judah has always dreamed about. He believes the recent tour will help to make that transition to the global stage much easier, not only for him but other Bahamian musicians who have their eyes set on the same goal.

“These experiences only solidify my resolve in creating a permanent doorway for us into the international music community. Right now it is time to show and prove our worth. This tour showed me a glimpse of where we can take things. Honestly, with hard work, dedication, and the lord’s will, I see no limits for us. Like I said earlier, this is only the beginning. This tour has been a learning experience for me and my team. I feel confident enough to say that it has been a success in that we have collected a substantial number of building blocks. Now it is time to start construction.

“I know now I have to push even harder and continue to grow not only for myself but for the people around me. I realise how small we are in comparison to the world around us and how important it is to not just be a Bahamian citizen but a world citizen. The most important thing I have come to learn, though, is that team work is everything. I could have done none of this without the help and support of amazing people, both here and abroad,” said Judah.