Papa Michigan adds ‘actor’ to his titles

Singjay, songwriter and producer, Papa Michigan, has made his mark on several stages worldwide with his music and now the veteran is adding another title, actor. He is currently participating in eight-hour rehearsals to get all the notes right for his musical-comedy debut in De Obeah Mon, which is written by NAACP Image Award-winner Charles Douglass and directed by Jamaica-born actor Jeffrey Anderson-Gunter, who is known for his roles in Naked Gun 33 1/3 and Marked for Death and as an award-winning stage director.

“I never thought I’d be part of something like this,” Papa Michigan told The Gleaner, adding that, “now more than ever I wish I did some acting or theatre and film workshops earlier in my career. When Jeffrey connected with me and said he had a part for me to play, I didn’t know what I was getting myself into but he said I must not worry and that as long as I’m willing to listen then I will learn because a problem with a lot of actors is that they rely on talent alone and can’t take direction.”

Papa Michigan first earned success as a prolific deejay duo known as Michigan and Smiley with tracks such as Rub A Dub Style, One Love Jamdown, Diseases and Nice Up The Dance and then as a solo artiste. He captured the attention with Barrack Obama, Hustler, These Streets, Whole Lotta Lovin’ and Sunday Funday which was the title song for his 2020 EP of the same name. One of the 10 finalists in the 2020 Jamaica Festival Song Competition, Papa Michigan’s entry, Jamaica Dance, copped the second place.

Papa Michigan has managed to maintain his relevance with an audience which is known to be overcritical. His songs, Whole Lotta Lovin’ and Sunday Funday were recently featured in reality television series The Best Man: The Final Chapters and MTV’s Siesta Keys.

He said, “This opportunity and the role has contributed to my confidence and giving me exposure into other areas of the entertainment field because while I and singing and acting in this amazing production, I’m also part of the closing ensemble, yes man, people will see me dance.”

While many may think the dance ensemble would be the hardest thing for the singer to do, he shared that his greatest challenge was memorising the script – but he did – being the first to rehearse without a script in hand.

“Maybe I should thank music for my memory being so good. I was anxious about having to remember every line, because this was not just songs. In a musical, the cast members have to remember every single line as a cue to know when speak, sing or move and you can’t put in your own it will throw off everybody,” Papa Michigan said.

He continued, “It felt good to be the first person talking without the book. It’s funny, at one point I thought a musical would be simple but there are so many elements and I’ve only been rehearsing since December twice in the week — Tuesdays and Thursdays — and on Saturdays for long hours, but I have truly enjoyed going to these rehearsals, it is priceless.”

The musical-comedy which has won over five NAACP Theatre Awards, returns after 20 years to Los Angeles on Sunday, March 5 with two shows. The story of De Obeah Man is loosely based on the Moliere classic, The Doctor in Spite of Himself and is set on the mythical island of Khakikotonga. Papa Michigan plays the role of Maas Hollis, “who we as Jamaicans would refer to as a quashie”.

The music is co-composed by Jimmy Justice, a musical mastermind known for a potpourri of calypso, reggae, R&B to standard Broadway-style tunes.

stephanie.lyew@gleanerjm.com