Paradise Roots is one of the newest and freshest bands to come out of the local music scene.

Their viral video which was a cover of popular reggae band “Bring me your Cup,” trended on social media and was released late last year. It was a live performance.

Band manager, Setareki Baleirara said that the video was so good that UB40 commented on their video, praising them on doing a good job on the cover.  “The response from social media after our video went viral was encouraging. Even UB40 directly messaged us and it was just amazing,” said Mr Baleirara.

The band is made up of eight members and has a mixture of various ethnic groups which makes it unique.

“Our band’s name is inspired by what our beloved country is known for, which is paradise and the roots that we all Fijians love, which is kava,” he said.

He said the formation of the band is inspired by the works of reggae greats like Bob Marley and Lucky Dube.

“There are artists that we grew up to as we listened to their music.”

Their latest original single titled “Domoni Au” was released this week and featured vocalist Suliasi Uluilakeba.

Mr Baleirara said if you want to start a band you first need to have the passion to do music and pursue it.

The band is still a fresh face in the local music scene and we hope to do more original singles and release more videos even though right now they are mostly jamming from Mr Baleirara’s home in Cunningham.