Christopher Martin - Past Digicel Rising Stars Winner

As we anticipate the start of the 7th season of Digicel Rising Stars on Sunday, June 6, we take a look at the successes of the past winners. Today we feature Christopher Martin.

In 2005, a teenager from a little known rural community in St Catherine called Back Pasture placed his talent on the line in a bid to be discovered. It was season 2 of Digicel Rising Stars and by the end of the competition, Christopher Martin would become a household name.

Since winning Digicel Rising Stars, Christopher Martin says he has been busy in the studio writing lyrics for and completing his first album. Martin says the work has finally paid off and in addition to releasing several more singles this year, he has secured a deal with a distribution company in Japan, that will see his first album hitting the streets this month.

The album is a self-titled venture and the singer is looking forward to it. Martin says fans should expect some newmusic along with some old favourites: "We have a little of everything, songs which have been released already and some exclusives. We have lovers rock, dancehall, you can call it a fusion between dancehall, R&B and HipHop. It's a mixture of everything."

remain in the spotlight

The album is coming five years after he won Digicel Rising Stars but the singer assures fans that it will be worth the wait.

The singer says he has always tried to remain in the spotlight, constantly releasing singles so Jamaicans would not forget him:.

"Some people might have a strategy where they say they want people to miss them and keep their worth, but I'm not one who agrees with that. I always want to be ever present, always a part of something positive. I always want to be in the know so even if I'm not putting out a song every week or every month, I ensure that whenever I put out a song it makes an impact."

The singer who is also a student says in addition to his first album hitting the streets soon, another major goal for him this year is completing his University degree in Finance and graduating from the University of Technology later this year.

The singer says balancing school and a career has been difficult but he's coping: "At times when some people sleeping I have to be on the road, I have recordings, performances and all of that but I try to cope and there are people at school who always try to help me out with notes. It's very hard but as long as you give both of them the same level of importance it will work out. They both go hand in hand because God forbids one day I wake up and can't sing, I will have my education to fall back on."

Martin will be off to Japan in the coming weeks for a promotional tour as the 2005 Digicel Rising Stars winner prepares to drop his first album.