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Singer and dancer Jillia Cato’s debut concert, Jillia in Concert, was a fun mix of original songs and covers chosen to show off the songbird’s range of musical ability.

The concert, the second event in the recently concluded Pride Arts Festival 2017, was presented by I Am One T&T.

Cato said she chose the songs in the concert to tell a story of love, loss and strength. Her opening song, Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic, provided a smooth upbeat start to the concert, with Cato channeling a Tina Turner ethos as she danced and sang across the stage. Chained to the Rhythm by Katy Perry continued the story of living your life as you know best. The next piece, an original entitled Excited, was written by Cato when inspiration struck after a dance performance and talks about her excitement at performing and being on stage. It was produced by Kes the Band keyboardist Mario “Im4rio” Callender who sang along with Cato. Im4rio then sang Something So Real, a song he wrote and produced along with Cato.
Cato said the ballad Lost Boy by Ruth B, which introduced the second half of the concert, gave her an opportunity to introduce herself to the audience and talk to them for the first time. She said it told the story of someone who feels lost and has to find a happy place within themselves.
Next, the original song, Ceramic Heart, a mixture of R&B and soft rock, spoke about finding sweet love, while Stay the Night, reminiscent of TLC’s Creep, was the story of a couple spending the night together for the first time. As the relationship story continued, So Hot spoke of the pain of a breakup and the final song, Mystery of Love, was about taking revenge and finding the strength to move on with life.
In addition to Im4rio, Cato was backed by vocalists Anton Berryman and Nnukeisha “Nix” Pierre, lead guitarist Miguel Charles, guitarists Kemi Ible and Hadassah Esther Bovell, SASS bassist Candice Marcus, drummer Kyle Samlalsingh and dancers Jonatha Sutherland and Lucette Regis of 6th Position Dance Company.
The concert was opened by jazz singer Tevin R. Gall, who gave soul stirring performances of Bill Withers’ Ain’t No Sunshine When She’s Gone and Seal’s Kissed by a Rose. He was followed by vocalist Kevin Humphrey, who sang Boyz II Men’s Water Runs Dry; Buju Banton’s Close One Yesterday; a jazz/hip-hop version of Play Some Roots by Chronixx; WizKid’s Ojuelegba and an original song called Drunken Master, a mixture of kaiso, calypso, rap and jazz.
Cato has been singing since age 12, beginning in church and moving on to local open mic forums, with her first small acoustic set performance at Kaiso Blues Cafe in 2015, as part of the Unplugged and Chill series hosted by Yung Rudd and Mark Hardy. She dances with soca bands Machel Montano HD and Kes the Band and has a BFA in Performing Arts.
Cato is planning another full band concert at MovieTowne Fiesta Plaza and to finish an album of songs. For more information on this talented young singer, find her on Facebook @jillia.