Music With a Mission
Prince Forde, a proud Barbadian cultural advocate and co-founder of the Caribbean Music Awards, and Keenan “Special” Bristol, a Guyanese-American artist and activist, are using their platforms to save lives.
Marie Driven, the Haitian-American managing partner of the Brooklyn-based entertainment company, PlaybookMG, told Caribbean Life on Monday, Nov. 4, that Forde and Bristol are doing so through “Music Brings Life,” a nonprofit, “merging music, culture, and advocacy to raise awareness about the urgent need for blood donations across Black, Caribbean, and Latino communities.”
Driven said, “Music Brings Life,” and the Sickle Cell Consortium has partnered with the Boys & Girls Club to launch this fall a three-state film screening tour for the new documentary, “Students Are Heroes: A Sickle Cell Warrior’s Story.”
“The film highlights the courage of students and families living with sickle cell disease and how community action, particularly within the Caribbean Diaspora, can create life-saving change.”
She said the tour launched successfully at the Worley Brown Boys & Girls Club in Norcross, Georgia, will continue through New York City and New Jersey, with a nationwide expansion planned for 2026.
Driven said Prince and Keenan both share deep Caribbean roots.
She said Prince Forde (Barbados/Brooklyn) is the cultural producer, co-founder of Caribbean Elite Magazine and the Caribbean Music Awards, and COO of Music Brings Life.
Keenan “Special” Bristol (Guyana) is the founder of Music Brings Life, who has helped collect over 5,000 units of blood since 2009 through music-driven campaigns and outreach, Driven said.
“Together, they are on a mission to educate and inspire Caribbean and Latino families about the importance of blood donation and awareness for sickle cell disease, which disproportionately affects people of African and Caribbean descent,” Driven said.
“This collaboration represents a powerful cultural moment, one where Caribbean creativity meets community health to drive awareness and action.”
