Terry Vivekanand Gajraj is a Guyanese

chutney A chutney is a spread in the cuisines of the Indian subcontinent. Chutneys are made in a wide variety of forms, such as a tomato relish, a ground peanut garnish, yogurt or curd, cucumber, spicy coconut, spicy onion or mint dipping sauce. ...

and

chutney-soca In Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and Suriname, chutney soca music is a crossover style of music incorporating soca and calypso elements and English, Hindustani, and Hinglish lyrics, chutney music, with Western instruments such as the guitar ...

artist.

Career

Born in the village of Fyrish, near the

Corentyne River The Courantyne/Corentyne/Corantijn River is a river in northern South America in Suriname and Guyana. It is the longest river in the country and creates the border between Suriname and the East Berbice-Corentyne region of Guyana. Its tributarie ...

, in Guyana, he is the eldest of three children and son of a school teacher. Gajraj is a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

descent. Gajraj began performing at the age of 5 with the Dil Bahar Orchestra.Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , pp. 109–111Gildarie, Leonard (2013)
Singing Ambassador Terry ‘Guyana Baboo’ Gajraj is a ‘Special Person’
, ''Kaieteur News'', 17 March 2013. Retrieved 26 April 2016Post, Jennifer C. (ed.) (2005) ''Ethnomusicology: A Contemporary Reader'', Routledge, , p. 289 He learned to play the

harmonium The pump organ is a type of free-reed organ that generates sound as air flows past a vibrating piece of thin metal in a frame. The piece of metal is called a reed. Specific types of pump organ include the reed organ, harmonium, and melodeon. T ...

and drums, and went on to work with the Star Rhythm Combo, the Original Pioneers, and the Melody Makers, before working as a teacher in his 20s at a high school in Georgetown. In the late 1980s, inspired by

Sundar Popo Sundar Popo HBM, born Sundarlal Popo Bahora (; 4 November 1943 – 2 May 2000) was a Trinidadian and Tobagonian musician. He is credited as being the father of Chutney music, beginning with his 1969 hit ''Nana and Nani''. Early life Popo w ...

and the increasing popularity of chutney, he decided to pursue a career in music, and he relocated to New York. After initially working as part of local bands, he launched a solo career in 1990, releasing the album ''Soca Lambada'', which brought him immediate success. He had a local hit in 1992 with "Tun Tun Dance", and followed it with his third album, ''Guyana Baboo & Pack Up: New York'', split with David Ramoutar, which was also a success, 'Guyana Baboo' being synonymous with Gajraj ever since. His popularity spread to

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

, where he performed at the Trinidad Spektakula festival and appeared on national television. In 1995 he became the first Guyanese artist to perform at the T&T carnival. Between 1990 and 2000 he release a total of 14 albums. In 2009 he collaborated with Dheeraj Gayaram on the stage show ''West Indian Dreams''.Alleyne, Oluatoyin (2009)
Dheeraj eyes Broadway
, ''Stabroek News'', 17 October 2009. Retrieved 26 April 2016 In 2015 he was nominated in the 'Male Soca Chutney Artiste of the Year' category at the International Soca & Chutney Awards.Nominees for International Soca & Chutney Awards announced
, ''

Trinidad and Tobago Guardian The ''Trinidad and Tobago Guardian'' (together with the ''Sunday Guardian'') is the oldest daily newspaper in Trinidad and Tobago. The paper is considered the newspaper of record for Trinidad and Tobago. History Its first edition was published ...

'', 21 August 2015. Retrieved 26 April 2016

Discography

*''Soca Lambada'' (1990), Mohabir *''Caribana '92'' (1992), Mohabir *''Guyana Baboo & Pack Up: New York'' (1993), Mohabir - with David Ramoutar *''Tun Tun Dance/Guyana Baboo 2'' (1994) - with Apache Waria *''Phagwah Songs'' (1994), Mohabir *''Roti & Dall'' (1995), Mohabir *''Baboo Bruk Dem Up'' (1996), Mohabir *''Funky Chatni'' (1996), Mohabir *''Summer Jam'' (1997), Mohabir *''Sweet Love Songs'' (1998), Mohabir *''Boom'' (1998), Mohabir *''Christmas Dancemix'' (1998), RP *''Sweet Love Songs vol. 2'' (1999), Mohabir *''Sweet Love Songs, vol. 3'' (2000), Mohabir *''Voice of Guyana'', Mohabir *''Berbice River'', ;Compilations: *''X'' (2000), Mohabir

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gajraj, Terry Living people 20th-century Guyanese male singers 1971 births Recipients of the Wordsworth McAndrew Award 21st-century Guyanese male singers

Career

Discography

See also

References

External links