Byron Otis

Byron grew up in Kingston with a younger brother and elder sister. At the age of eight he began to attend stage shows, watching such greats as Alton Ellis, Desmond Dekker and the aces, Byron Lee and the Dragoneers one of the founders of modern reggae. It was during this time that Byron got the bug for singing and he found more and more people commented on his singing, encouraging him to pursue a career in music as a vocalist.

Byron's father decided to leave and seek work in England and after a few years he sent for his wife and two sons. Byron wasted no time after his arrival and at the tender age of 14 he began to enter every available singing competition. Having taken first prize in many of these he found himself receiving all sorts of promises and approaches from producers. At the same time he would approach various bands asking them if they needed a singer. Eventually after 2 years he joined a band called 'Mystron Five'. The newly formed band would appear regularly at a venue called 'Church Street Pub' where they went down a storm. They would sing mostly soul songs at the time covering tracks made famous by the likes of Micheal Jackson and others. The band eventually split up when the drum and bass players went to Trinidad.

Despite this setback Byron wanted to pursue his dream and joined another band called 'Blackslate', who became the resident band at a club called 'Phoebes' in Dalston. The band would do a warm up session before the talent shows would take place. It was here that Byron met Dennis Brown for the first time. His time with Blackslate was very important as the band would tour England as the warm up act for many succesful reggae artists of the time, Errol Dunkley and Dennis Brown being the 2 most prominent.

In fact Byron's career may have been hampered somewhat by the fact that he could sing like Dennis Brown. This was not a forced style but more a natural occurrence, but people who heard him would still say that he was copying the great DB.

Byron then went on to join the 'Blackstones' who produced a few good albums, but eventually Byron realised that the music business was no paying the way and he found other work.

It was in 2000 that Byron's love of singing was rekindled by his manager Wayne, who invited him to back to Jamaica to sing a couple of shows. Going there and hearing the positive reaction of the highly critical crowds, Byron knew that he had what it takes to perform once again. Look out for future music and shows from this man!

For bookings ring:

Byron on +44 7951 851 840
Danny on +44 7958 299 204

Download Show I the Way.mp3

Download You Could Never.mp3