AMERICAN SONGBIRD TWEET, who left the island on Monday, was given a tribute by local singers at Weisers on the Bay last Saturday.
To kick off the night, singers Ch’an and Avalon serenaded the American beauty with tunes from her certified Gold debut album Southern Hummingbird while Tweet recorded each performance with her phone as she cheered on the singers.
Tweet then took to the stage, performing four songs, including hit Oops (Oh My) and fan favourite Smoking Cigarettes for which she invited willing audience members on stage to sing with her.
She told the story of how she came to write the song after an ex who she had been with for eight years dropped her off at a bus stop and told her it was over, sending her into a state of depression which had her smoking constantly.
The songbird was genuinely surprised that those present knew her music so well and after her set she graciously took photos and conversed with fans.
Tweet gave advice to aspiring artistes, based on her experiences as one who has seen the good and bad side of the industry, going from working with some of the biggest names, having a top five album and multiple endorsements to falling off the scene due to difficulties with labels which resulted in a string of delayed and unreleased music over the past ten years.
“You have to learn to have thick skin and never give up. I gave up for a moment but I needed to find myself. Don’t lose yourself in the business, continue to be who you are as an artiste and never let anyone discourage you from that path.”
And the inspiration for returning to the music scene after she “gave up”?
“The supporters! The passion, I think I was born to do this cause I could never stop thinking about music once I decided to but also the supporters every time I would go to the grocery store or anywhere I would have someone come and remind me how great my album is and how I touched their lives so I couldn’t stop I said I had to help some more people.”
Her thoughts on the current state of R&B being a product of the golden era of the genre?
“It’s still there. It’s just so sad we’re being overlooked, for a period now. But I think people are starving for real music, I think they are getting tired of the gimmicks and the here today gone tomorrow type . . . . Music heals the soul, it helps people, so people are longing for that, you know? There is a lot going on in the world . . . .When I’m going through something I put on music. I think people want to be able to relate to more music so it’s unfortunate that it’s been overlooked but I think I think it’s still here.”
