HerCampus got the opportunity to interview Brian Royes, one of the new members of the Amherst acapella group, the Zumbyes. This is your chance to learn about one of the gentleman who will be serenading you around campus with his angelic voice. Brian reveals his singing background, the good and bad of having an accent, his home country of Jamaica and more!
HC: Where are you from?
Brian: I’m from Kingston, Jamaica in the West Indies. I’ve lived there all my life, all eighteen years.
HC: How long was your flight here?
Brian: It was two flights. I flew to Florida first and that was about an hour and a half. Then it was another three hours to Connecticut. Then an hour drive to Amherst—my mother and I rented a car.
HC: Have you traveled this far before?
Brian: Yup, my brother lives in Pennsylvania and another brother lives in Montreal. So the distance did not feel that long especially since I have flown even longer distances to places like California and London.
HC: How many siblings do you have?
Brian: I have one sister and two brothers, like I mentioned. They are all older than me. I’m basically the baby of the family.
HC: If I may ask, what is your ethnicity?
Brian: My mom is Chinese, not full Chinese, probably about seven-eighths Chinese if you want to get technical. My dad is pretty much a hybrid too because his mom is Jewish and her ancestors come from Portugal. My grandfather’s ancestors came from Scotland, France, and England. So I am a mix of European and Chinese, and because we have lived in Jamaica for many generations we are also Jamaican. Even though Jamaica doesn’t have a set “race,” everyone there identifies with a race external to Jamaica. The national motto of the country is “Out of many, one people.” This means we draw from many ethnicities, but we come together and we embody what it means to be Jamaican.
HC: Do you speak more than one language?
Brian: Yes…. I say that with some hesitation because I am not a native Spanish speaker but I do speak Spanish. This is based on what I learned in school and talking to friends. I would say I’m quite proficient in Spanish and English. English is my native language. I also speak Patois (Patwa or Patwah). In Jamaica, we have a few trying to establish this as a language but I just consider it a dialect of broken English. Because I don’t consider it a language, I wouldn’t say I speak three languages, I would just say two.
HC: Your accent, how has that played a role in your Amherst experience?
Brian: It’s definitely been an interesting point of discussion. Every time I meet someone new they always say, “I’m trying to place your accent, what is that?” It really opens doors for me to talk about home. I feel like I talk about Jamaica too much but many people say they enjoy hearing about it. To me it’s nothing and it makes me think about the different cultural intersections here… me speaking to you is one of them. The only drawback is that I will say things and it will hit a cultural wall. The other person won’t know what I have said and they will nod and pretend like they do but they don’t. That happens a lot. I sometimes try to down play the accent to open communication.
HC: Have you connected with any other West Indian people?
Brian: Yeah. There’s two other Jamaican kids here and I talk to them a lot. There’s also another person here from Trinidad and Tobago that I speak to from time to time. It’s nice to meet people who share similar culture. Personality and interests definitely drive a friendship more but culture can be a great place to start.
HC: What’s the average temperature in Jamaica?
Brian: It’s about 29 degrees Celsius, which is 88 degrees Fahrenheit. The temperature doesn’t change much back home.
HC: What about the weather? Raining? Sunny?
Brian: It’s basically always sunny. It can be pretty windy and it can rain occasionally. The rain occurs usually during the summer months because it’s really hot and—as you know—the hot air rises and then it rains. There’s also a hurricane season which is the summer periods leading up to the fall.
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HC: Have you seen snow before?
Brian: Yes, I’ve seen snow about three times. Whenever I visit my brother in Montreal, we do certain fun activities like skiing or something in the mountains. My other brother who lives in Philadelphia gets snow as well.
HC: So you have experienced fall as well?
Brian: Actually no! I have never experienced fall. It’s funny the times we visit my brothers are usually the post-Winter months, where it’s just the occasional snowfall. However, I never got to see the leaves changing and all that stuff.
HC: How have you enjoyed it so far?
Brian: I really liked it a lot. We, my dorm, made a leaf pile in the backyard and jumped into the leaves and rolled around in them. It was a lot of fun and it’s so pretty!
HC: What do you enjoy doing?
Brian: In terms of sports, I enjoy playing squash and I enjoy watching football (soccer). I like to sing, I’m apart of an acapella group on campus called the Zumbyes. Back home I started my own singing group and I directed the choir. I did a bunch of solo performances outside of that. I also like movies, and I spend a lot of time watching YouTube videos. I love spending time outside. Seventy-percent of my photos on Facebook you will see me outside at the beach or on the mountains. Outside is definitely my place.
HC: Could you talk more about the Zumbyes?
Brian: The Zumbyes are one of the only two all male acapella groups on the campus. They have been around for years–they are really old. What attracted me to them was a two-fold factor. 1) They are all really talented and musically inclined. They are all great singers individually but they can come together and make a group that can combine and be genuinely good. 2) The personality of the group. They are entertaining, they have personalities, and it’s just a blast! They socialize with a bunch of other groups on campus. They incorporate humor and dance occasionally.
HC: You mentioned you started a singing group back home…could you talk about that?
Brian: For a long time, we had the established high school choir. When I became the director of that, I realized we weren’t that good. People used it to get their non-sports extracurricular hours. They had no interest in actually singing–they just wanted their hours. So I created another group of people who actually wanted to sing and could sing. There was a group of about 10 or 12 people. We had a broad spectrum of people, talents and ages. It was interesting. We did a lot of things the choir couldn’t have done. It was a lot of fun.
HC: You also mentioned singing competitions?
Brian: I was in a couple singing competitions. That was mainly in my younger singing days before the voice changed. There was an organization back home called the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission, that sought to highlight Jamaican talent, not just in singing, but in a bunch of other areas. We went through various stages and performed for larger and larger audiences. Twice out of the three times I participated, I won at the finals. The other time I gained a gold medal, made it to the finals but didn’t actually win. I also participated in competition in Hollywood, California—this was the time I flew to California. It was called World Championships of the Performing Arts in Hollywood, California. I went as apart of the Jamaican team with three songs. I received three gold medals and one silver medal.
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HC: Do you have a YouTube channel?
Brian: I do have a YouTube channel but it’s really dormant right now. I’m going to start it up again eventually, probably with some of the Zumbyes who are also interested in collaborating. (HC Insider: Keep a look out for Brian’s videos in the future!)
HC: Do you intend to stay in the states after you graduate?
Brian: Right now, I’m a little uncertain. If I do get the chance to stay here, I’ll consider it. There is also the pull factor to go back home because that’s where all my family and friends are. It’s also familiar grounds to me. I can see myself raising a family back in Jamaica. So I can’t say yet whether or not I intend to stay in the U.S.
HC: If not the U.S. or Jamaica where else would you like to live?
Brian: Canada or Europe. I think the quality of life is great in Canada. It’s laid back but it’s still a first world country with a social climate that’s similar to that of Jamaica. It’s also gorgeous there. I also have family up there.
HC: Intended major?
Brian: I’m currently undecided. Right now I’m leaning toward Computer Science, Psychology or Economics since I intend to take an Economics class next semester.
HC: What do you hope to get from Amherst?
Brian: I want to establish a network of people, new experiences, new faces, new things. As a part of that I want to be exposed to different perspectives that different people bring and different cultures bring. I also want to go on to post-graduate education or to get a job.
HC: Why did you choose Amherst?
Brian: To be completely honest, they gave the most financial aid. But I accepted their financial aid most willingly because when I visited the school, I fell in love with it. The campus is gorgeous, it’s well renowned for being academically rigorous and it’s reputable. Even though I’ve been here for two months, it has already welcomed me. I don’t regret that I came. It’s also kind of small which I like. I’m not a big city person, I like rural areas. It’s also called the Singing College so why wouldn’t I?
HC: What do you miss about home?
Brian: Food, the climate and, perhaps because I left in the summer, the free time and the liberty. I could see myself waking up and driving to the beach with friends. I can’t do that anymore, but such is life. There’s always next summer.
HC: What food do you miss?
Brian: Jerk chicken, rice and peas, oxtail and roast chicken… because my mom is Chinese she does an amazing stir-fry and I miss it so much. There’s a local Chinese restaurant that makes insanely good food. I don’t know what it is… probably loaded with MSG, but it’s so good.
HC: Anything else you would like to add?
Brian: Being an international student, there is such a nuanced transition to being here. One big difference is that in America people seem to be highly concerned with being politically correct. They always can’t say something that might offend someone else. There can sometimes be unnecessary debates and controversies, in my opinion, over nothing. Certain things that are here deemed socially unacceptable or politically incorrect are the norm in my social circles back home. Being up here I have to tread lightly with the things that may slip out which to me have no negative connotation but someone else may take offense to it. It’s not my intent but may be portrayed that way.
HC: That’s a great point on the international experience to coming to America and to Amherst. Thank you!
Brian: No problem.