Phil Brathwaite

The Voice

If any singer were deserving of breakaway, international success, on sheer talent alone, it would be Phil Brathwaite, known as The Voice.

From Ellerton, St. George, he began singing in school, Washington High and Presentation College, with friends. After school, he started work at Chefette Restaurant and made his first stab at a music career when he entered the Richard Stoute Teen Talent Contest in 1979 at 17. He tied for fourth place.

Phil then auditioned successfully for Barbados’ top band at the time, Wendy Alleyne and the Dynamics, and performed with them for three years as a full-time entertainer. He then formed High Level with some young musicians, including David Burnette and Lloyd Burnett, and performed at hotels. The band later became Crossfire (Krosfyah) after Phil left for New York in 1986. In the Big Apple, he performed at the Apollo, the Supper Club in Manhattan, The Steve Talk House, Long Island and had his own show at Sweet Waters in Manhattan. He won a competition and became the opening act for all the big stars who appeared at Christopher’s, a club. Phil also secured an audition with Motown but, for reasons other than a lack of talent, was not signed. He, however, shared stages with some of the big artistes of the day - Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes, Evelyn Champagne King, Joe, The Platters and Shannon. Phil has recorded five originals, including Is This the Way, Dance with Me, Why did you Go and Shauna Brown. More recently, he performed with the band Majestic in the Tri-State and Boston, Massachusetts. Manager of a Brooklyn store for 32 years, Phil is married to

Jennifer and has four children.