Beenie Man’s New Management Confident His US Visa Will Be Restored
Beenie Man has new management for his career, and they are confident that U.S. fans of the Dancehall star will get a chance to see him perform again “soon.”
St Croix businessman, event promoter, and founder of Ciga Records, Shawn Baptiste, who now also manages Dark Room artist Shane O, said that Beenie Man only has two limitations on his growth.
“The level of communication with management, that is sorted out, and the fact that he has not been travelling to America,” Baptise told the Star.
“I recognised that he has not been able to travel to the US, which has limited the opportunities,” he said. “Running a business without communication, you end up lose. The communication part was a big downfall because a man with a career like Beenie Man needs a team of persons who not only manage his music, but understand the business, and handle the travel arrangements.”
The Girls Dem Sugar deejay, 50, hasn’t been to the United States for a performance since September 2015, according to checks made by DancehallMag.
The entertainer had been billed for several appearances in the country during 2022, including the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans, the LETSGETFR.EE Carnival in Queens, NY, and the House Of Blues in Boston—but he did not show up, or the events were postponed.
Baptiste (more popularly known as Ciga) says his team is pulling out all the stops—which includes involving attorneys—to have the deejay’s visa restored.
“He’s already out the door and it’s through the roof [at a high level] in getting this sorted soon. I guarantee it, and this is our goal. When I researched everything, it’s really as I said, a no-brainer,” he told the STAR.
“The visa legalities are just a matter of putting the right people, specifically the right attorneys who know what they do … in the right place. US fans will see him soon.”
Beenie is billed for the Afro Nation Music Festival in Miami in May 2023, alongside the Gully Gad Mavado and Nigerian headliners Burna Boy and Wizkid.
When fans on social media raised questions about the legitimacy of his pending performance, Afro Nation reassured that “he’s allowed into the US as of this year.”
Beenie’s travel woes began in 2010 when he was among several Dancehall deejays whose US visas were revoked, the others being Bounty Killer, Sizzla, Aidonia, and Mavado. The US Embassy did not state the reason for the revocation back then but subsequently reissued Aidonia and Mavado with their visas.
In July 2011, the Jamaica Gleaner reported that Beenie’s visa was restored, which saw him returning to the US for performances, including the Groovin In The Park concert in New York, which also featured Jimmy Cliff, Beres Hammond, Konshens, Chronixx, and Sanchez.
He then made an appearance at the BET Awards show in 2013, took the stage with Ashanti in New York in 2014, and performed at several other venues across the country until September 2015, according to online records.
After that, it was back to square one.
In May 2020, there were fresh calls for both Beenie Man and Bounty Killer to be given back their US visas, following the duo’s performance on the VERZUZ show.
Beenie Man and Shane O announced their new management deals with Ciga last Thursday, according to the Gleaner. The agreements cover the overall management of their careers.
The Girls Dem Sugar deejay, however, clarified that his brother Rohan Smith was still involved with his brand.
“I want to make it clear that my brand is my brand, and with my brother [Rohan Smith] who everyone knows as ‘Blue’ we have MD Entertainment. ‘Cigar’, who is my friend from he was called ‘Cigarette’ is the manager of my career, is not new management,” he said.