Leighton Levy, Gleaner Writer

As Chris Martin prepared to shoot a video for his latest song, For the Girls today, he took time out mid-week to reflect on how much, over the last three years, his life has been changed and continues to change since winning the 2005 Digicel Rising Stars competition.

The video shoot, to be done by Scorpio 21, will take place "in and around" Kingston and Martin is eager to start. This song and video are all about showing more versatility, he said. "People will see a different side of Chris Martin," said the 21-year-old singer who is under the guidance of Robert Livingston of Big Yard Productions. "It's like a dancehall/hip-hop kind of vibe."

Just days after this shoot wraps, Martin will be off to Africa, another perk he has been afforded now that he has found fame and relative fortune. It's kind of a reflection of the other side of Chris Martin that is still a work in progress.

Fortune or fame

It's almost ironic when you consider that Martin entered Rising Stars not seeking fortune or fame, but the cash prize that would pay for his college tuition. "I never expected it to be this big. I was like 'I'm going to win the money and then I can go to school, but it shocked me," he said.

Martin is now a third-year student at the University of Technology majoring in finance. In its own way, studying has presented challenges.

"Balancing school and music is very hard. At times, I feel like I want to stop," he revealed. "But, when I think of it and see that I am already this far, it creates a sense of pride and a sense of joy within me because I will be the first person in my family to get a degree. So, I have to give it an extra effort. Both of them are important to me right now. I put a very high importance on my music, but God forbid I wake up one morning and I can't sing anymore. School is something that I am doing for myself, my family. It is my plan B."

Martin was born into a modest life to Leon and Maxine Martin, who raised him in Back Pasture, St Catherine. He said they sacrificed a lot just so that he could get a good education. His relentless pursuit of his goals is his way of paying them back.

Now that his hard work is paying off, Martin only feels an increased sense of purpose. "The glitz and the glamour, everyone loves it, but that is not where my focus is," he said. "My focus is to help my family, my friends if they need it. I can help people I don't even know just by making my presence available at a charitable event. That I am able to be a breadwinner for my family gives me a sense of pride words cannot describe."

But he is not blind to the opportunities his profession has afforded him. "I'm comfortable. It's a joy to be able to afford certain things. Travelling and seeing new places and bringing your interpretation of music to different people is a wonderful thing."

Those travels have taken him all across the Caribbean, the United States, and now Africa. They have also caused him to miss many classes already this semester and he assumes he is going to miss many more come 2009. He said he is grateful to the 'Royalty Clique' at UTech, whose members help him catch up with school work he misses while he is away. "Big Yard has so many things planned for me next year. We will be on the promotion trail," he stated.

Promotion

A lot of that promotion will be for a new album that is in its final stages of production and should be ready for release early next year. Promotional tours are being planned for the Caribbean and the United Kingdom. According to him, he is laying the foundation now so that he can be a household name in Jamaica and the world within the next decade.

For now, though, it's all about finishing school and building a career as a singer. It's a singing career that he believes will be exemplary.

"There are certain things people will never hear from me, you will never hear me sing about guns, you will never hear me sing anything derogatory about females, but what you will hear is more uplifting songs for the youth, and more love songs for the girls."