When one listens to the music of Grammy-winning reggae artist Roy "Gramps" Morgan, one might assume he was born and raised with nothing but the sun above him, blue water beside him, and sand underneath him. But he was born in Brooklyn.

Yet his island heritage lives within every note he sings and every word he speaks. He radiates sunshine in a world far too riddled with pain. A proud member of the legendary Morgan Heritage family, Gramps carved his own identity as a solo artist with a deeply personal vision.

"Country music is in my DNA," he explains. "Nobody realizes that country music is one of the biggest forms of music in the Caribbean. Kenny Rogers was a huge icon in Jamaica and nobody in Nashville knew that until I started telling that story."

In 2012, while touring with India Arie, they played a show at the Ryman Auditorium. Something ran through Morgan's body. "I threw my arms in the air and said I'm moving to Nashville, and the crowd went nuts!" He did exactly that.

His landmark 2021 album Positive Vibration, produced with Scottish artist Johnny Reid, blends reggae warmth with steel guitar and dobro — 15 tracks featuring Shaggy, India Arie, Denroy Morgan, and his son Jemere Morgan.