“Love developed from a musical connection,” is how the music duo Marie “Bad Gyal Marie” Sano and Rohan “Little Shabba” Henry from Notorious International Sound described their emotional bond.
Japanese-born selector Bad Gyal Marie was smitten with love when her juggling style – and her eyes – met Little Shabba’s.
“It was music at first sight,” said Little Shabba, laughing. “I already know her as a DJ, and at a party I actually met her as a DJ. We still love each other, but we love the same thing, music, it connects us like friends, brothers, partners, like soul mates. When we think of ‘A’ and she thinks of ‘B’, that connects us,” he said.
Bad Gyal Marie said that their “love affair is more of a musical nature.”
“You know, I’m from Japan and he lives in Maxfield, Kingston 13. It’s kind of weird because we just think alike. What we think about music, what we think about our careers, it just fits together,” she said. She admitted that she was scared when she first visited Little Shabba’s hometown.
“When I first came to Maxfield, I couldn’t get out of the car,” she laughed, recalling. “I know it’s a ghetto and I don’t know anyone, so I was just scared to get out of the car. But (then) he introduced me to his friends and families and I love them all. I just feel the vibes (and) love from everyone; especially (his) sisters and his mother and all the other people who live down here.” They have been married for 13 years. However, Bad Gyal Marie had been living in Jamaica long before she met Little Shabba because she fell in love with reggae and dancehall music as a teenager.
“I felt like I need to go to Jamaica one day because this music is coming out of Jamaica and I feel like I need to see it and feel it,” she said. Little Shabba admitted that meeting her family was nerve-racking for him.
“I first met her mother in Jamaica and that was about the second time I got nervous and then I met her whole family in Japan,” he said. Little Shabba said he wondered if the family would accept him because Bad Gyal Marie was from “uptown” and had gone to university while he was “a real ghetto youth.”
“I even tried to learn Japanese once, but I realized I don’t need to do it again because everyone speaks English and shows me their true love and affection,” he said.
Last month, the pair broke barriers by winning the Sumfest Global Sound Clash 2024.
“I feel great, I feel super great. It’s a Sumfest Clash and (this is) different from normal Clash because in normal Clash, 99 percent (of the audience) are men. It’s tougher but in Sumfest Clash, anyone can come and I’ve seen a lot of women there and I love it. I’ve loved the Sound Clash culture for a long time and I want more women to enjoy Sound Clash because it’s culture and it’s fun,” said Bad Gyal Marie, who added that Japanese Sound Mighty Crown is a big inspiration for her clashing styles. Little Shabba said that despite entering the Sumfest event as an “underdog” with his five-year-old sound system, his first thought after the win was “Yeah Marie, we tweeted and hugged her with a kiss.”
However, Bad Gyal Marie hilariously interjected that she remembers Little Shabba’s first thing after the announcement was “running to his friends to hug them.” The couple said it is easy to juggle their personal life and work as 90 percent of their interactions are music related. Little Shabba said he assures his wife of his trust and their musical connection gives them the freedom for privacy and personal space despite being booked together for almost every event.
Little Shabba said his goal is to be one of the top five DJs worldwide and with Marie by his side, he also wants to try his hand at music production. Marie said she is also open to more musical challenges as a strong, competitive woman in a male-dominated industry.
