Tell us about yourself and what you do.
My name is Island Banks, and I’m an artist from Essex with St Vincent and the Grenadines ancestors. I live in Essex and have always worked in the county.
My musical tastes are eclectic, and I can be creative about the music I make. My specialty is UK Garage, but I’ve also made commercial music in the styles of House/Dance/RnB/HipHop and Pop music.
Tell us your life story and musical journey.
I began singing at the age of 14 but began playing music in a friend’s bedroom at the age of 17. Back in 2008, I made a few demos and it caught the attention of local rap stars, and I finally did features that became songs on TV channels such as channel Aka, playing against songs by artists such as N dubz, Tinchy, and Tinie tempah. After taking a break from music, I returned as island banks and have released two singles since July 2020. One of which is a UK garage track that has been praised by the UK garage master himself, Artful Dodgers’ Mark Hill. Mark gave positive feedback in a video response to my track “just one,” saying that he liked the track and can’t wait to see what I come up with next. Mark is one half of the duo artful dodger, along with Pete Devereux, who produced Craig David’s debut album (born to do it)
What inspires you to make music?
Current affairs and personal situations are really important to me. I don’t like writing about genres that I can’t relate to or haven’t seen myself, because anything I write is real and from the heart. That is how you engage an audience. That is how you gain new followers. Simply be genuine and true to yourself.
What are your Insights / influences?
I am influenced and inspired by a wide range of people.
Growing up, my father raised us and introduced us to artists such as Snoop Dogg, NWA, the Fugees, Eminem, and several others. Growing up, I grew up in a rap/hip hop household.
My brother was into rnb and house music, and my sister was into pop music when she was a little younger, so I grew up with a lot of music, which is why I can listen to a variety of music and it makes me compose my music today. I was mostly into R&B and UK garage, and musicians such as Usher, Craig David, Dru Hill/Sisqo, and many others influenced my taste and style of music writing today.
Where have you appeared? :-
I’ve done live performances on Channel U (pre recorded) and London’s Embassy Club.
Where can we follow you online?
You can follow me through my social media links below:
https://www.instagram.com/island.banks/ and https://www.facebook.com/islandbanksmusic