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Local music artiste Jeroam Des Vignes wants to do it all, he wants to do it big, and he’s prepared to put in the work to reach his goals.
What began as posting comedic videos on YouTube became the start of his music career and now Des Vignes is expected to release his third single, Replace Me, in February.
He told Sunday Newsday Replace Me is a song everyone can relate to as it’s about letting your significant other know you cannot be replaced because each person is unique.
It is also the first full song he wrote solo.
Des Vignes, 20, started singing in church with his mother around age seven. Outside of church, the melodies of R&B songs grabbed his attention. So much so that in his spare time he would write his own lyrics to the melodies and create new songs.
“I developed a genuine love for music. I get a deeper feeling when I listen to music. I respond to it emotionally. Some people might listen to music and just vibes to it but I feel like it tells stories and takes me places.”
His parents noticed his passion, so his mother paid for vocal training and lessons for different instruments including drums and piano. He performed in church and theatre, and gained a deeper love for music as he acquired new perspectives on it.
As he got older, he shifted his interest from music to comedy. He said people would tell him he was witty or “kicksy” so, when he was 17, he started making videos for YouTube.
At one point he posted a video in which he sang with two friends and it was shared widely on social media and blogs.
“I always had love for music but it was personal. I never used to share it with others. If I’m being real it could also have been fear of people not liking it. But in the back of my mind I knew, at some point in time, I would reach that bridge where I would have to make the decision to do it or not.
“So people didn’t even know I could sing, so they didn’t understand where this side of Jeroam come out from because I never showed it.”
Then, in early 2020, in response to a post on Instagram, he created a meme in which he sang a song he wrote called Maybe, Maybe Not.
“I made the video out of kicks and it went viral. I was getting tagged and my followers increased tremendously. I think one of the reasons people started to blow it up was because I did it on a very well-known dancehall riddim. Even my parents who aren’t often on social media came back and showed me that their colleagues were talking about it at work.”
[caption id="attachment_937123" align="alignnone" width="683"] Jeroam Des Vignes releases his third single Replace Me in February. - SUREASH CHOLAI[/caption]
Because of the response he started doing more memes combining singing and comedy as well as reactions and challenges. They too were well-received, and his followers kept asking him to do more, which he did.
Around that time the country went into its first lockdown. For him, it was a time for introspection.
“I said to myself, ‘Jeroam you really love music.’ So, I took the faith that, even though not everyone would like my music, this is what I have to do and said I would start to make music. People had asked me to make the memes into full songs but I didn’t take them seriously. But now I figured I should really try.”
Soon after making that decision, it seemed as if fate stepped in.
His father, Learie Des Vignes, has a windshield repair business in Trincity which De Vignes recently revamped and introduced to social media.
Learie was chatting with a client who turned out to be Emmanuel Rudder, a writer for several soca stars including Machel Montano, Olatunji, and Nailah Blackman. Learie told Rudder about his son and his videos and Rudder asked to meet Des Vignes.
“We clicked instantly. He felt the same way about music in terms of wanting to do international songs mixed with local flavour. We talked and exchanged numbers even though he didn’t know I was a little well-known on social media.
“But when he went on my Instagram and saw the videos, people’s feedback and the amount of shares, he called. He was shocked at what I did. He liked what I was doing and told me I had a lot of potential, and he offered to manage me.”
It turned out Rudder is a director at Central Records which manages local dancehall artiste Boy Boy.
Now his former manager, Rudder arranged for Des Vignes to have a studio session and introduced him to producer Chryston Floyd.
About two weeks later, they started making music together and he recorded his first song, Ms Perfection, written by Des Vignes and Rudder, and produced by Floyd and Lacaz Productions.
He said he likes that people cannot pin the song down to a particular genre but it could be considered a mix of R&B and dancehall.
“If people love the song even though they can’t put a genre to it, that means they genuinely just love the song itself, it’s the feeling that gets them engaged in the song.”
With all the positive feedback, Des Vignes gained more confidence. He said it made him realise he had something special especially since he was very hand-on in the creative process.
[caption id="attachment_937121" align="alignnone" width="703"] Music artiste and YouTuber Jeroam Des Vignes is also studying for a business degree. - SUREASH CHOLAI[/caption]
“It helped me start to appreciate what God gave me, which is my talent. It reiterated the fact that this is what I need to do because of the way it affected people.”
His second song, Come Thru, was released in 2021. The up-tempo dancehall song was made for the club or parties and it encourages women to be confident, feel good about themselves and “come thru” if they like someone.
Des Vignes is a final year student, and student ambassador at Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business. He started studying for a bachelor’s of international and sustainable business in 2018.
Initially, he said it was difficult juggling school and being a YouTuber which he did not want to give up as he was making money from advertisements and sponsorships, and getting a lot of attention.
“At some point in time I was actually thinking about dropping out of school. I didn’t understand why I needed to focus on school when I had something that was growing and I was making money.
“But thank God for my mother who was persistent about me having a proper education. She made me see I could get my education and do YouTube, and have the best of both worlds.”
He said it was not easy but he now appreciates the experience of working in groups, dealing with different personalities, networking, building relationships, and putting his pride aside to get things done. All, he said, was necessary for life and in the music industry.
Des Vignes believes as he is young it is the time to create a foundation for his life since he does not want to be in his 30s and have regrets about not trying to reach his goals.
He is spending time with older people to learn from them – understanding the things he should appreciate and the things he needs to do or avoid to succeed.
He has plans to be an entertainer, performer, writer, and entrepreneur, as well as to be successful with his music, collaborate with other artistes, contribute to the music industry and be respected.
He gave the examples of Montano, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Beyonce, and Janet Jackson saying while some people may not like their music or their personal lives, those artistes are respected for their work and their impact on the music industry.
“People respect them for what they have done because they genuinely gave towards the music industry. I want to be respected like that where people can’t deny greatness.”
He also hopes to create an entertainment company, expand the family business and generate other businesses to open doors for other artists.
 
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