Yasmine Peru/Senior Gleaner Writer—-
Veteran singer Tinga Stewart, who has been ailing from a debilitating illness that doctors have not been able to diagnose, surprised many at the thanksgiving service for his wife, Andrea, which was held at the New Life Assembly of God Church on Constant Spring Road on Monday. Tinga, though grieving, was able to walk unaided into and out of the church, a feat which would have been next to impossible a few months ago.
“My father is walking. He is eating more now and has actually put on a little weight. And he is able to hold coherent conversations with us for more than an hour,” his relieved daughter, Sandy, told The Gleaner. “He even went to the beach and had a good time. I can’t explain the change, but others are also seeing it, and we are just grateful.”
Tinga, the two-time Festival Song winner, who has been a musical ambassador for Jamaica, was not in the mood to do any interviews, but he was approachable and didn’t shy away from the cameras as he accepted condolences from all who offered. His teenage stepson, Jvaughnie Powell – his late wife’s only child – was seen conversing with him as he sat outside.
Both Jvaughnie and his father, Marlon, Andrea’s ex-husband, flew in for her funeral and were listed as pallbearers.
Also present from overseas was singer Glen Washington and his wife, Jacky, who took part in the service; while members of the local music fraternity included Claudette Kemp, Capleton’s manager; former Jamaica Federation of Musicians president, Desi Young; veteran singer and graphic artist, Bagga Case; Jamaica Reggae Industry Association (JaRIA) board member and widow of Gregory Isaacs, June Isaacs; percussionist, Bongo Herman; DiMario McDowell; Bridgette Anderson, Samory I’s manager; JAVAA Joy and Blackbeard.
Tribute was paid to Andrea Stewart by her mother Sharon Williams, her father Leonard Douglas Sr, her friend Nieka Lewis and sister-in-law Cheryl Stewart. Another sister-in-law, Colleen Stewart, read the eulogy, which was prepared by Sharon Boucher. She was remembered as a devoted mother, wife and sister, who always put her best, fashionable foot forward, no matter the challenge she was facing. Her second marriage to Tinga Stewart was described in fairy-tale terms.
“When Andrea met Tinga Stewart, it was pure magic. They were introduced by Bagga Case at a JAVAA meeting around 2008. Tinga had an edge because she had already liked his song, Inside my Heart. The song they did together, I Don’t Want to Let You Go, encapsulated how they felt about each other. They were both devoted to each other, so marriage was a natural progression. They were married on September 13, 2012,” Stewart told the congregation.
Andrea Stewart died suddenly on May 5 at the University Hospital of the West Indies in St Andrew. Born on October 16, 1980, she would have celebrated her 42nd birthday this year.
A two-time Festival Song contest winner, Tinga Stewart first won the event in 1974 with Play de Music and again in 1981 with Nuh Wey Nuh Betta Dan Yard. He wrote Hooray Festival with Willie Lindo for his brother Roman, which won the 1975 contest.
According to his bio on Wikipedia, Tinga’s festival success hampered his early career because he was regarded as a ‘Festival singer’. He participated in the Reggae Sunsplash world tour in 1989, touring Japan, and continued to record in the 1990s and 2000s, having now released over 200 singles. Among his hit songs are Cover Me, Take Time to Know with Ninjaman, Funny Feeling, Rainy Night in Georgia, and Inside my Heart.
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