BY HOWARD CAMPBELL—
Observer senior writer—

Everyone gets the blues. Even a singer of happy songs like Tinga Stewart.

The veteran artiste has been ill for the last two years and according to his wife Andrea, he has shown little interest in music.

For his birthday today, she has initiated a parade where family and friends can celebrate the occasion by driving by their home (2 Berwyn Avenue) in Patrick City, Kingston, and wish him well.

“I am hoping that this event will remind Tinga of the happy individual that he once was and also will cheer him up. I am so anxious to see what his response will be after seeing the love and support that he gets and trust that he will find that divine feeling of bliss in his heart, which I know will encourage him to get better,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

The Stewarts got married six years ago, but have been together since 2004. Andrea said her husband — a two-time Festival Song Contest winner — “is still not at his best” despite recent positive medical tests.

As his 71st birthday approached, she was anxious to find a unique way to show him he is still appreciated and loved.

“I came up with the concept of a birthday parade after browsing on the Internet where I came across a video of someone who planned a birthday parade for their loved one. I thought that this idea is a splendid one because social distancing does not mean social isolation,” Andrea explained. “I also thought that given the COVID-19 restrictions and with Tinga’s health issues, this event would be more suitable.

Tinga Stewart came to national prominence in 1974 when he won his first ‘Festival’ with Play de Music. He won again in 1981 with Nuh Wey Nuh Better Dan Yard.

Stewart had a massive hit in the late 1980s with Take Time to Know, a collaboration with Ninja Man.

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