Record Produced By St. Croix Native Receives Grammy Nomination For Best Reggae Album

ST. CROIX — Mark Curran, a St. Croix native, attended the Grammy Awards on Sunday as a nominee with SOJA for best reggae album, according to a release issued Monday. Mr. Curran, who handles global touring for the band, and is also a producer on the album, promoted this year’s Grammy nomination on tours to three continents, according to the release.

Mr. Curran is a graduate of the second graduating class of the St.Croix Educational Complex and was inspired by then-principal Kurt Vialet to work hard and follow his dreams. He later attended the University of West Florida studying computer science while always keeping music in the background, according to the release.

Mr. Curran has managed and engineered live sound, provided studio and live production, managed and promoted for labels such as Def Jam and Sony. He has managed tours and engineered for Neon Trees, Buju Bantan, Adam Lambert, Billy Ocean, Ras Attitude and dozens of of other major acts in almost every genre, and has toured in over 100 countries, according to the release.

Mr. Curran is also a two-time nominee for best reggae producer in the Virginia Reggae Awards and is the founder of Noise Addiction.

When he is not on the road, Mr. Curran volunteers, teaching his music engineering skills to local children in the Virginia Beach area, where he now lives, according to the release.

This year’s Grammy nomination for SOJA was in the category of Best Reggae Album. It was the band’s second nomination. The album title is SOJA: Live in Virginia.