The music band from Sint Maarten, easily recognizable by its mixed reggae and rock style, is back in the Caribbean for some exclusive concerts. A chance for us to comment on their great journey.
Although they have lived for more than 25 years in the Netherlands, they always come back to St. Martin, their second home. It’s where Michael Maidwell and Jacob Streefkerk have grown up and have met during their high school years. These two childhood friends are the founding members of the Orange Grove music band, who are very famous on the island nowadays, but also in the rest of the world.
At 16 and 17 years old, the two teenagers flew to the Netherlands to study. “Well, pretending to study”, Michael confesses with a smile, acknowledging that Mario Kart games and music were part of their favorite activities. “And at the beginning, we were better Mario Kart players than musicians”, he laughs. But then, their teenagers’ dream of starting a band was real. At that time, Michael was writing songs and “trying” to rap, Jacob was playing the guitar in soca and metal bands. They quickly recorded their first tunes, in their bedroom with a beatbox. It was the beginning of music on the internet, their songs ranked well in the Rock and Reggae American charts. “This is how we started creating a fan base, some of our fans have been following us since the beginning and our first songs”. In 2000, they officially formed their band with three other musicians from Sint Maarten. The band chosen name had to remind people of their native island: the youngsters decided to borough the name of one of the friendly island’s districts that "sounded good". Orange Grove was born.
BACK TO BASICS
Over the years, the band evolved and separated from the backing vocalists. “We dropped the choir because we wanted to travel”, Michael explains. “The smaller the group, the easier. And then, with only men, there is less drama on tour”, the musician jokes about. Since 2011 and the arrival of Tim Kesteloo on guitar and Robert Biesewig on drums, the band has remained the same. Only the bass is played by several substitute musicians who take turns according to their availability. With 6 albums to its credit, Orange Grove regularly performs on tours around the world: Japan, India, the Unites States, the Caribbean…
In 2020, Covid forced the band to cancel its tour in Germany, pushing them to focus on writing. Concerts are gradually resuming but the musicians have now decided to “focus on a shorter period of two to three months tops, to concentrate our energy on these concerts”, Jacob explains. A strategy that also allows them to keep a little bit of rarity and exclusivity for their fans, especially in the Caribbean and more particularly in St. Martin. “When we come to perform here, it’s great to have all our fans gathered on such a small island for the kind of concert and energy we want”. Orange Grove will please their fans on August 4th on the occasion of an exclusive concert at Rusty Rocket.
NEWS
Thursday August 4th at Rusty Rocket (Simpson Bay)
TO FOLLOW THEM
Facebook : Orange Grove
Instagram : @orangegrovemusic
Website : www.enjoyorangegrove.com
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