Meet Martin Merrique | Musician & Visual Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Martin Merrique and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Martin, how do you think about risk?
Risk has been a part of my life ever since I started taking my career seriously. If you’re a dreamer and wanna live your dream—especially a non-traditional dream, expect to take some risks. The rewards are so much more enjoyable when you do take a risk and you get the rewards!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
well, my art is mixture and a coming together of different flavors so primarily I got involved in music through hip-hop and that transitioned into R&B then it went into more island based music and Afrobeat.

My brother and I coined the name of the sub-genre, “Cousou”. Short for Cousoumeh, the French Patois term for when different ingredients in a stew come together and create a robust flavour. I think doing that is what sets my art aside from the rest.

I’m really excited to release the new songs I’ve been working on. It really feels like me this time around.

I got here today through building good relationships, honestly. I always knew someone who knew someone who would help me either sooner or later on life. That’s honestly how I got here. I mean, the talent is God given, I’m passionate about the business side of things but sometimes even that isn’t enough to go places. You need people.

It’s not an easy journey living out your dreams. I don’t think anyone would do it if it was easy, ya know? It wouldn’t be special if it was. But I had lots of challenges and do-overs. The key to bouncing back is to treat everything as a lesson and to focus on solutions rather than stretching out problems.

I want the world to respect the way I wanna bring art and business together and be recognized as a pioneer in the music industry.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Well, I think one of the best times to visit Trinidad and Tobago is for Carnival. It’s usually between February and March and we party for two days nonstop. There’s so much to do and see! We party on the roads, on the beaches and eat tons of food and drink loads of alcohol! Google Trinidad and Tobago Carnival. It’s the greatest show on Earth.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Man, I have so many shout-outs! God, My parents and family, my wife/life partner, my amazing friends like Tyker! My business partners. Everyone! Definitely didn’t get to where I am by myself.

Books! The Alchemist and The Warrior of the Light by Paulo Coelho, Life of Pi by Yann Martel, The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. Those books literally changed my life.

Website: https://linktr.ee/whoismerrique

Instagram: @whoismerrique

Twitter: @whoismerrique

Facebook: @whoismerrique

Image Credits
Teneka Mohammed // Pomegranate Studios