After 12 years of hard work and combat, OSB Crew is now seen as a key music group on the local scene and even on a regional scale.  It brought ‘seggae’ music to a continental audience, by performing in Europe.  We met up with Bruno Raya, the group’s charismatic leader.

“We were there to get the voice of Mauritius and that of the Indian Ocean heard”, says Bruno Raya, from the group Otentikk Street Brothers, otherwise known as OSB Crew.

The souvenirs of their European tour are still fresh in their minds.  “It is one of my best memories of the band”, adds the singer.  From May to July, the group was present at all of the European music festivals.  They travelled around the continent and performed alongside “famous” bands.  They were on the same poster as Sean Paul.  They planned on success.

The critics were positive.  There was no end to the praise, given by newspapers and international revues, concerning the Maurician seggae: a mix of the local “sega” rhythm and “reggae”, known as “seggae”.   Therefore, in order to continue what they’ve started, the band is planning on doing the same thing next year.

“This experience has made us stronger”, says Bruno.  Seen as a prophet in its home country, the music group is extremely popular in Mauritius and fairly popular in the region.  They intend to go even further.  Their albums are well on their way to finding their place on music shelves in Europe and in Japan, thanks to the intervention of an important production and distributions company.

On a local level, their recognition has happened in the form of a trophy.  Bruno Raya and his band won the MASA Awards, for the representation of Mauritian music.

However, nothing was certain at the beginning.  “We have been through difficult times, but we have come through them with a lot of perseverance”.  Bruno knows all about it, as it was he and his brother that formed the group in 1992, before seeing the other members join them.

The spirit of OSB helped them get through the tough times and the tribulations: “have faith in oneself.  As long as there is life, there is hope” and also “not by counting on what the country can do for me but by thinking of what I can do for the country”.

These are the messages that Bruno Raya, alias Master Cool B, Blakkayo, Dagger Killa and Tikkenzo convey through their songs.  Bruno thinks of himself as more than just a singer.  “The most important element is to get the message across”.  It is therefore with a military tone that the band aboard delicate subjects such as AIDS, drugs, poverty and Creole identity.