Overseas Territory: Anguilla’s British Dependency Hit the States

Words by Natalie Weiner—

You know Anguilla, right? Small, British territory, ridiculously beautiful? Well if not, you’re about to. The island is already known for its incredible summer festival, but Anguilla natives (from L to R) Jaiden Fleming, Joyah, and Ruel Richardson are trying to bring the island into the musical mainstream with their band, British Dependency. The group’s approachable blend of reggae, funk, and pop still has a little edge — much like their satirical moniker. For a three-piece group, they’ve got a big sound, held down by a seriously badass female bass player—Joyah—who also shares vocal duties with guitarist Ruel.

British Dependency has been together since 2010, but this is the first year they’ve emerged onto the international scene. They spent the spring recording their third album in Kingston, a visit that also featured their Jamaican debut performance. The group is releasing their album Finding Wisdom next week—they’ll be celebrating in New York with a show at Le Poisson Rouge, after which they’ll return to the Caribbean to promote the album there. We invited them to drop by The LargeUp Sessions this Thursday to talk about it, and to tell us more about the Anguillan music scene. Sample some tunes below, and listen Thursday to hear even more!