Weh Dem Up To: Garnet Silk Jr working on new project

Two years after being considered for a Grammy nomination for his debut project 'Let Reuben Live', Garnet Silk Jr is working on his sophomore set, 'Oak Tree'.

The last-born child of beloved reggae singer Garnet Silk, the young act says he is not fond of labels, and does not regard the project as an album or an EP.

"I don't like to put a label on things, but Oak Tree will have seven tracks, because that is my favourite number," he told THE WEEKEND STAR. "I want to keep it short and nice. I don't want to overdo it with a lot of tracks."

Like Let Reuben Live, Oak Tree will be produced by the family-run label Reuben Order Records and is slated for release early next year. The track list includes Won't Change, Complaint featuring Kumar Fyah; Reparation, featuring Meleku and Imeru Taffari; and the title track, which features Jesse Royal.

"The album is about knowing your roots and where you come from and doing the necessary research to find yourself, because the root of the tree, to me, is the most important and a lot of people try to seek the fruit before seeing the root," he explained.

"The oak tree itself represents strength, so there is a lot of significance behind the tree. It is important that every black man knows his history. When I say history, I don't just mean my father being an entertainer idolised by many, I mean black history in general."

Silk's father perished in a fire in 1994 in Manchester, months before his birth. Though he stands as his own artiste, Silk said that it is critical to preserve his father's legacy.

"I mainly do that through the music, but we also have Garnet Silk merchandise which we launched recently, which includes T-shirts, cups, hats and phone cases," he said. "We are also looking towards putting together our own show, but these things take a lot of time to plan."

He recently had his debut performance in the United Kingdom, which he said "was a very eye-opening experience. It felt like I've been there before. They were expecting me, which is a good sign that they were looking out for me."

The younger singer now looks forward to being part of the 'Sons of Legends' United States tour, slated to kick off next year. The tour features Kenyatta Hill (son of Joseph Hill) and Marla Brown (daughter of Dennis Brown).