Jobless Bahamians

Telling the unemployed that they have been denied a job opportunity because they are overqualified is never a pleasant experience, even those who do not have any sort of educational background. Such persons can’t help but feel depressed, rejected and hoodwinked, especially after they were promised jobs by our government. What a conundrum! Preston Wallace Jr. affectionately known as “Puzzle”, a top Bahamian artist portrays his personal experiences on the subject of the unfortunate reality of unemployed Bahamians in his song entitled, “Jobless”. He further analyzes the current state of the Bahamian economy by depicting how Bahamians should make an emotional appeal to the government to create jobs. Additionally, he questions how is it possible for Bahamians who have earned a college degree to be unemployed or have a job with very little income as opposed to those who have top paying jobs in the country without any academic qualifications. Puzzle has his finger on the pulse of Bahamian society, documenting current events and our societal realities. He does this with the use of repetitive sympathetic tone, vivid imagery and figurative language.

Puzzle captures the attention of the audience and thereby pleads to former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham and his government to provide sufficient jobs for our Bahamian citizens. For example with repetitive sympathetic tone, Wallace makes an emotional appeal to the government and emphasizes the hardships of life by chanting:

“Tell Ingraham I need one job, my neighbor dem just got rob, tings aint easy man tings so hard, even rastas say oh my gad, man Ingraham man gimme one job, my neighbor dem just got rob, tings aint easy man tings so hard, I love when jungaliss say oh ya oh ya oh ya oh...

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...ands the troubles and trials Bahamians are faced with and capture his audiences’ attention through catchy lyrics as he explains to the government, a social yet economical issue.

Hence, Puzzle song delivers an informative message, pleading to the government to develop a plan to increase our economical growth. He illustrates his personal experiences that he encountered as an example on the subject of unfortunate reality of unemployed Bahamians, in particular those who have recently graduated college. After listening to the lyrics, listeners view Puzzle as an experienced individual who understands fully how the job market in The Bahamas operates: it does not matter what you are or what you have, it revolves around who you know. Wallace is able to catch the audiences’ attention and thereby advises the government to be more considerate and show sincere for our Bahamians.