No Pressure! Jemere & Priel Not Afraid To Carry On The Legacy Of The Morgan Family
The Morgan family is a towering pillar of musical legacy. Having carved out a distinguished name for themselves in the annals of Reggae history, they’ve also woven a deeply intricate tapestry of melodies that continue to resonate with audiences worldwide.
Across generations, the Morgan Heritage family has embraced the essence of reggae music, infusing it with their unique blend of soulful harmonies, poignant lyrics, and infectious rhythms. From the anthemic sounds of “Don’t Haffi Dread” to the soul-stirring ballads of “Down by the River,” their music transcends boundaries, uniting listeners in a shared celebration of love, unity, and resilience.
There’s no denying the impact the Morgan family has had on music globally and from all accounts, the younger generation of Morgans are well poised to carry on the legacy of their forebears.
Your Caribbean Guide had the opportunity to chat with Jemere and Priel Morgan, sons of Gramps Morgan, backstage at the Saint Kitts Music Festival last year.
Jemere Morgan started his career at a young age with him performing alongside his family band, Morgan Heritage. He later pursued a solo career as he worked to establish his own identity as an artiste. His debut album Transition, which was released in 2017 to rave reviews for its smooth blend of Reggae, R&B and soul. International Love and Try Jah Love are just two of the tracks on the album where the talented artiste showcased his impressive versatility as a vocalist and songwriter.
Jemere told YCG he’s not at all burdened but is in fact happy to carry on the legacy of his musical family.
“There’s no pressure coming from where I’ve come from, you know and carrying on the legacy. It’s actually an honour and I’m happy to carry on the legacy of my family. Me and my brother Priel, we are the first of many, there are many of us Morgans coming, we not afraid. We just just come to heal the world with music, that’s our whole mission as a family is to heal the world through Reggae music so no pressure we just take it with a responsibility.”
Responding to questions about the biggest lessons he’s learnt from his father, Jemere said: “There’s so many but one of the biggest lessons I’ve learnt is respect and manners will take you through the world. Respect the bird, respect the poor man on the street. Angels roam through everyone so you must be wise about how you treat people. When you treat people good the same energy will come back to you.”
Priel Morgan is charting his own course as he moves forward in pursuit of a career as an R&B artiste.
He told YCG choosing this genre of music instead of the Reggae that his star-studded family is known for was not a difficult choice.
“I believe that the art comes first and coming from a family that makes Reggae music of course I still have the foundation of Reggae music. To heal people through music, that’s the mission and it’ the foundation so I believe that I will still do a little bit of everything so there’ll still be a day when I’ll do a reggae project…”
We had the opportunity to see both Priel and Jemere perform onstage alongside their father at the 2023 Saint Kitts Music Festival and were suitably impressed. Jemere’s most recent release Keep Blazing is one of our uplifting favs, check out it and you’ll see why.
Anyway, these two are definitely ones to watch, keep them on your radar. YCG says so!
