How's the Music Biz in STT?

Hi Amy...

I am curious of all those thingsalso. I will be on island soon and am a singer looking for various projects. Anyone wanna jam??

--Isaac

Quote Amy's question:

"Are there many tension problems between locals and expats moving to the island? The reason I ask is that I found a few "inexpensive" properties which interest me in Charlotte Amalie. But the realtors I have spoken to have not wanted me to pursue them. In fact, one even said, "You do not want to live there." My husband and I are not particularly concerned about crime--we are longtime urbanites. So maybe this kindly realtor simply has a different standard of living than we do. Maybe the realtor simply would like to "sell us up" to a higher dollar property. Or maybe there is true cause for concern. Is this treading on sensitive ground? I also find a Jamaican friend reluctant to speak about St. Thomas. Is the island a haven for the wealthy, or a place where anyone desiring an alternative life can call home? All thoughts and comments are welcome."

Hello Amy,

Are there tensions - yes and no. If you are an American you are not an expat - we are Americans too - if you said that in itself to a local you would get a little bit of tension because there is an automatic light that goes off saying "hey these outsiders think we aren't Americans". Tensions I think are most easily seen in a situation like the example I just gave - where a misunderstand comment is responded to with a defensiveness. Another place its easily seen is when new residents are automatically stereotyped as being tourist or temp. residents and therefore not given the same amount of "respect" as someone who is seen as a long time resident. In a job environment a new stateside resident may very likely get a lot of harsh looks and cold shoulders from fellow employees, particularly if they are brought in too manage an office or store and so are above the local employees. I worked at one store where my co-workers would say when new managers came in - "ahhh lets see how long this one last" and then be very stand-off-ish to the new guy/girl. Its not necessarily a race issue as I saw it happen to both black and white new residents, although the latter is more common.

(some people consider this sensitive ground, I don't; its a legit question and concern)

As for residential areas no there isn't a tension toward new people moving in however there are some areas that are not very good areas and perhaps that is what your realtor is concerned about. What areas exactly are the properties you are looking at in, I know you said Charlotte Amalie - but Charlotte Amalie encompasses a huge area??

As for wealthy people - yes there are wealthy people here and there are also not so wealthy people too.

--Islander

Thanks again, Islander. I appreciate your candor and these are exactly the answers I was hoping for. My husband is British and produces music from genres spanning the globe (traditional Egyptian, Jamaican dub, techno/gabba/dnb, hip hop, goth/industrial, Northern European folk...). I am an American belly dancer who performs for different ethnic communities (Bosnian, Arab, Greek, etc...). We have both travelled and lived overseas. So we are accustomed to working through the occassional cultural stereotype. It sounds like this move will work out fine. What are the Crown Prince and Queens quarters like? I was told they are not residential areas, yet people do live there. We will be visiting soon, but I am trying to do as much research as possible beforehand.

Hi Isaac,
So far I found out there are 2 recording studios in the USVI (at least 1 appears to be home-based), 2-3 mobile sound service providers, a couple instrument shops, at least one record store, and a few entertainment companies. Live music seems to thrive as far as calypso/dancehall/hip hop/latin/ party vibe. We will learn more in a few weeks when we head down to check it out. Hope this helps you too . What kind of vocals do you do?

-Amy

Hello...

I do a wide variety of styles and like to try new things also. I have done many rock and acoustic projects. I also have produced a few bands discs. I look forward to checking it out personally. Thanks for your info and we will have to stay in touch! Good luck to you and your husband. Take care.

--Isaac