Dwayne Mendes is an astute young Saint Lucian businessman, with a knack for precision and timing. His track record proves this—from venturing into entertainment promotions with Stages in the 90s when nothing like it existed, to starting Blazin FM and sister station Rhythm FM, as well as organising several memorable concert events on the island.
So why does it seem like he is ready to put it all on the back burner to focus on what he now reveals is his true passion – songwriting and making music?
In December, Mendes wrote and produced the song ‘90s Dancehall which was quickly added to the iHeartRadio network playlist.
“Actually, I have been writing for some time now and this is not the first song I have attempted since I started writing again,” Mendes revealed to St Lucia Times.
“The song ‘90s Dancehall was inspired by the feedback I would often get after the annual Stages parties. Patrons would reminisce to me about the things they enjoyed and missed about that era. And so I just decided to put pen to paper one day and came up with the song,” he explained.
The timing of the song’s release was important, he said. “With World Sound Clash coming up, I had friends who were international DJs wanting fresh dubplates but I wanted to offer something different. So I decided to put the song out in December ahead of the sound clash with the intention of doing the music video in January.”
The vocalist on the song is a talented singer/songwriter named Saveion who is no stranger to the music industry here.
“I had heard a lot about Saveion before and based on what I knew and had seen, I thought he would be a good fit for the song,” Mendes said.
He also shared that, like the song, the accompanying video will be done in Saint Lucia.
“I have been asked, ‘How can you showcase ‘90s dancehall in Saint Lucia when it was not part of our culture?’ But I disagree and could say the same about soca,” Mendes said.
He pointed to authentic ‘90s dancehall inspirations here, including the dub house in Gros Islet and the once popular “toasting” competitions over sound systems, as proof.
His team is planning a full 360-promotion party around the song. There is also the 90s dancehall challenge on Instagram and TikTok, inspired by the track.
Meanwhile, Mendes already has his eyes set on more projects in 2025 and has dropped another song, I Am Blessed.
Asked about his sudden leap of faith into music at this time, he responded: “It came about after I did the Burna Boy concert in May. I felt I had accomplished a lot as a promoter and started to ask myself, ‘What’s next?’
“At that point, I started dabbling in AI and technology, started experimenting with beats and patterns, and just started writing, and here I am,” he said with a broad smile.
Since then, he has built a catalogue of about 20 new songs, drawing inspiration from his own experiences as well as the stories of others.
“I am in that zone where I believe that when writers get there, they should just write and for the last two months, that is what I have been doing,” he says.
He has taken his initiative further by joining a writers’ academy to sharpen his skills.
“I used to love coming to work, but now work is work and this is what I love to do. I had to stop music before because I had to feed my family, but now that my business is running like a well-oiled machine, I can now refocus on my true passion which is making good music,” Mendes declared.
