It’s 12:43 a.m. and we are at The Cove in St. Lawrence Gap, Barbados for the hottest weekly Saturday event on the island – “Outdoor”. A warm invitation was extended to us by Bajan social media influencer Tristina Grant to celebrate her birthday, so we had to oblige. We made our way to the VIP section, which was full of some of the most influential entertainment and social leaders on the island. To our left was the incredibly talented DJ Puffy and his crew, and to our right was upcoming singing sensation Krisirie.
As we grooved to the exhilarating mixes of Zen The DJ and admired the Bajan beauties in the party, we spotted a light blue durag cutting through the crowd at lightning pace. It was the man responsible for the creation of Outdoor – Jordan English. He was busy delegating responsibilities to his efficient team of bottle girls, preparing for the next order. Understanding he was pre-occupied with the hectic promotional responsibilities of the night, we gave him a ‘one hail’ and let him go, but he promised to reconnect with CARIB VOXX for a long-overdue talk.
The story of Jordan English is an interesting one, to say the very least. As a creative, Jordan’s first endeavors were in the realm of videography. Barbados is a country blessed with tremendous creative talent, but unfortunately many of them have very poor business ethics and are easily led to complacency. Jordan defied this stereotype at just 21 years old when he began his company, J.E Marketing. Before Jordan became such a popular influencer in Barbados, he was touring the U.K capturing video footage at huge concerts and shooting visuals for popular European artists.
Fast-forward to 2020, and this is the year when Jordan’s calculated, business mindset towards content creation reaps him big rewards. Jordan’s hit quarantine series – Cheeks – made him the most popular influencer in Barbados. Instead of just soaking up the fame and the attention that comes with it, Jordan immediately showed the world the caliber of a man he is and the heart he has to help the less fortunate. Jordan used his newfound fame to set up food drives to help those suffering during Covid-19, known as the Quarantine Food Drive. He also raised awareness and funds to help a family living in a dilapidated home in St. Philip. The home had been labelled a hazard by the Barbados Light and Power Company. Social media influencers are often criticized for being self-absorbed, but here is a man who has taken on a prince–like role in his island by using his status to help the disenfranchised.
When we asked Jordan what aspects of his upbringing fostered the sense of care he has for the less fortunate, he said: “Honestly, I grew up very comfortable. I didn’t grow up super rich or entitled but I always had the basic necessities. I always had a range of friends from both social classes and I would see firsthand how economically challenging things could get for some of my friends.”
He spoke specifically about the origins of the Quarantine Food Drive, saying that: “It just so happened that around Covid-19 times, I knew a few people personally whose incomes were affected and there was suddenly a shortage of food in their households. At the same time I was noticing that, someone reached out to me on Instagram and offered me $1000 to donate to charity using my platform. $1000 was a modest contribution, but I was grateful for it and it gave me the inspiration to kickstart a larger-scale project which became the Quarantine Food Drive. From the $1000 that was donated, we opted to put together $9000 more and put together $10,000 worth of food items to give away.” When we inquired about the funds he used to help a family living in St. Philip with renovating their home, Jordan stated frankly: “While we were doing the work for the food drive, it put us on the frontline. We came face to face with actual poverty . We interacted with people in difficult economic situations and one thing led to another, so we decided we had to help them as well.”
Jordan’s philanthropic efforts should not overshadow his prolific works as videographer. He reminisces fondly on the origins of his journey as a videographer, stating: “I started when I was about…..19…yeah, i think I was 19 and the first camera I owned was a Canon T6. That was the camera I was using and it was definitely a good beginner camera. At that time it cost about $1200 , so it was a good prince range for a beginner as well.” His journey from videography to event planning and promotion makes Jordan one of the most noteworthy creative entrepreneurs in Barbados. In closing, we interrogated Jordan as to what he felt Bajan creatives needed to do more of in order to improve their business ethics and professionalism. He replied thoughtfully, “When talking about Bajan creatives I cant say “them”; I have to say “we” because I am apart of this. We need to do more networking. I respect events like pmSplash and Barbados Connect that allow creatives to network. We also need more business exhibitions. These exhibitions should focus on connecting creatives to enterprises and small businesses that need creative input and art direction.”
Despite being a social media influencer, Jordan’s ironic closing statements were: “Once we have our masks and maintain social distancing, creatives need to try and have more face to face interaction with potential clients and other creatives. We are relying way too much on social media these days to get our work seen. We need to put on more Pop Up Shops , videography showcases and photography exhibitions to highlight the talent of the creatives while connecting them to potential opportunities by getting them in the same room as business owners.”
