Antigua-born Soca artiste Ricardo Robert Barriteau Drue died on December 12, 2023.

Fr Athanasius George Williams, Administrator of the Holy Family Cathedral in St John’s, Antigua presided at the January 9 funeral service. His homily has been edited for length.

We are gathered here today to celebrate the life of Ricardo Drue (‘Ricardo’) and his eternal contribution to the world of Soca.

There is a dichotomy the family faces at this time surrounded by a wealth of friends and admirers of Ricardo, enchanted by his class in the Soca world, gifted and endowed only by the Almighty God.

Ricardo was what he was destined to be – a young man who loved life. And those who encountered him could not resist what his personality exuded – a playful and confident performer, exciting and flushed with exuberance. He was an achiever of many heights and successful in the Soca world.

We are not here to focus on this great entertainer’s death, but to celebrate his life and to thank God for his time spent in our existence as well as beyond our sight and touch. In the words of his mom Nicola, “Ricardo stamped his name on every continent leaving a trail of love and goodness, timeless music, and unforgettable memories”.  However, there is no doubt he belongs to the people.

Though it is a celebration of love, of great memories, in the midst of all there is sadness. And amid sadness, we must still be thankful to God for the gift of Ricardo.

“The Lord giveth and has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” This was from Job’s response to his tribulations. We are determined, though, not to give death any more than what we know is eminent.

Rather, we must give up the physical remains, the mortal existence. We do not have to give to death the immortal soul, the eternal self, the marvellous mind, or the gallant character of Ricardo.

We will never have to surrender our memories of this courageous essence, the wonderful performances he had across many stages of the world. We also should not expect the family and friends of Ricardo to do the impossible by denying or suppressing their sorrows and tears or pretend that death is not real. Death is a wicked blow.

God knows, as we do, how difficult it is for us to have the capacity to face death. No matter how it comes, our faith is challenged. Yet, if we drag our lack of faith deemed as far too long, we may run the risk in faith by impeaching the authority of God.

Sometimes, people do forget that celebrities, and particularly Ricardo, were someone’s son, a father, a brother, a fiancé. It will be difficult or very remote for anyone to replace Ricardo.

During this painful moment for the family members, I want to reassure you that you are not alone in pain; all of us are in shock and in disbelief. The crowd here today is testimony of the appeal Ricardo had and will continue to have on the world stage. His music will play on.

Pious people say don’t question God. However, there is no quotation in scripture where it is written, don’t question God. I put to us this afternoon that God is big enough with the highest of intelligence to answer the questions of hurting families and friends.

Even Jesus, the Son of God, substance of God, essence of God, Son of God in human flesh, was honest enough to question God when dying on the cross on Calvary. He said, “my God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?”

The good news this afternoon is that when you question God, when you are agonised about the mystery of death and suffering, God in return will question you like He did to Job, only to assert that He is God.

He is bigger than your question as to why He acted so swiftly in recalling Ricardo back to His fold at such a young age and at the prime of his life.

Let us believe that the wisdom of God is too vast to be squeezed in the tiny space of human understanding. God will answer your pain. He will answer your perplexity. He will answer your grief. He may not tell you everything you need to know, but one thing is certain, He will give you everything you need so you can make it through this painful moment.

Jesus is saying to you this afternoon like He said to St Paul, I will not take away the thorns from your flesh. I will leave it there because I am still God with all power in my hands.

Therefore, Nicola, Patrice, Patricia, family and friends, Jesus will bless you in your pain just as He did to St Paul in scripture. He wants you to understand that His grace is sufficient for you at this moment.

Let me affirm the gifts and talents of our artistes present here. Fr Henry Charles, my former rector and blessed memory, enlightened us with his insight that “in the world of Protestantism, the world is predominantly fallen, tainted by sin. Thus, one must protect oneself from affirmation of culture of things creative, things of love, pleasure, sexuality, food, drinks”.

It therefore follows that  anyone enjoying life, partaking of the creative pleasure and entertainment of the world, such as calypsonians, Reggae artistes, and Soca artistes are placed within that category as agents of the Devil by some of our Christian brethren. That is, you are all considered to be involved in worldly things, things of the Devil.

We must believe and accept in the words of St Irenaeus, that the Glory of God is man fully alive. The negative result of this misconception has given rise to several great artistes, including Reggae, Calypso, etc, no longer performing.

They have resorted to singing only Gospel music and totally abandoned the prior achievements made.

I want to urge and encourage you to continue to perform in the world created by God Himself.

Lest we forget, God is the creator of goodness, beauty, love, fun, leisure. As such, those endowed with gifts and talents must be seen as playing a valuable role in our society.

The gifts endowed to you the artistes, including Ricardo, were not given by the Devil. We do admit that culture is not static but dynamic, and those of us involved in engagement of the various musical genres must recognise that we need to also improve on the artform and use it as a movement for change.

We are not meant to be workaholics. God created us to be at leisure as well.

Eternal rest was granted unto him and let the perpetual light shine on him. May he Rest in Peace and may the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God Rest in Peace.