FOUR nights a week singer Althia Sinclair and her five-member Altitude Band take the stage at Sandals South Coast, a far cry from where her musical journey began in Quick Step, St Elizabeth.
“I grew up surrounded by music; throughout the week my house buzzed with music from the radio,” she said. “That was my introduction to Celine Dion, Anita Baker and Maria Carey… I also had a lot of singers in my family and in church.”
She was introduced to the stage by a teacher while attending Quick Step All-Age.
“Ms (Coreen) Watson was the first person to bring me to JCDC (Jamaica Cultural Development Commission) and oh, what an experience that was,” said the singer.
Sinclair would go on to win various awards on the JCDC stage while dreaming of one day performing on an even bigger one.
“I could feel it in my soul even as I stood there deep in the country with a mop stick as my microphone,” she said.
The fact that she is rostered at Sandals South Coast is a testament that some dreams die hard.
She said a good friend, Rodane Black, thought her skills could flourish in Negril.
“He even knew a lady there — Delrose Bahadure — who could help me find my way. So I took his advice, that one connection, and I went in search of the unknown,” she said. “I got a few gigs singing backup but the pay was mediocre at best.”
Sinclair eventually ended up on the steps of Sandals Negril.
“Sandals Negril took a chance on me and I shone in their entertainment department — modelling and singing. Every time I was called upon to sing however I would fit myself into the mould of soulful songs that had been created for me. Rihanna’s Stay, Dido’s White Flag and Sara McLachlan’s In The Arms of An Angel became my go-to songs and I stayed away from reggae,” she said.
That, however, changed when she met Nicholas Robinson, the man who is now her business and life partner.
“After Sandals Negril I went to a few other resorts, which is when I met Nicholas. He too was a musician playing the resort circuit. He gave me back my dream of being on the big stage. He helped me regain my confidence and find my unique reggae voice. As a matter a fact, the first birthday gift he ever gave me was a microphone.”
Althia went to Sandals South Coast in June 2017 as a supervisor in the entertainment department. “Sandals saw my potential and my passion, and at Sandals South Coast they gave me a stage of my own — and I’ll always appreciate that.”
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