Supa G is Belize's most well known and successful Punta Rocker - and much os his popularity comes from the United States where he plays to adoring crowds of Belizean Americans. But Supa will have to slow it down for at least the next few months. That's after he was turned back by US Immigration earlier this week. Supa arrived in Houston on the 22nd on a visitor's visa. But, while his manager says he was there as an ambassador, performers need what is known as a P3 Visa. We spoke to his manager via telephone from California this evening:
Cyril "Uruwei" Garcia, Supa G's Manager
"On February 22, Supa G was on his way to Houston to represent Belize as a cultural ambassador, not to perform. The Houston tri-country regional black chamber of commerce invited him to join honored guests, the Love Foundation, to the 4th annual conference and award gala. He was denied entry into the US as a result of not holding a P3 visa. He couldn't return on that same day, because there were no flights leaving Houston to Belize after the investigation process. So he had to return the following day which is Thursday 23rd. We are actively working on his P3 visa. One of his supervisors at the US Immigration Department has actually assured us that this is not an end to his musical career in the United States and that there are other artists with offences on their record that have been allowed entry after such experience. So his fans in the US, we can assured them that he will be back in the US in no time."
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"We know that the norm in the industry for a long time has been that you use your visitor's visa and you go and you do your gigs in the States, it has been a long established practice. Are Belizean artists under more scrutiny now for this P3 visa?"
Cyril "Uruwei" Garcia, Supa G's Manager
"Unfortunately, yes."
According to our sources, a number of well-known Belizean performers have been pulled aside recently upon entry into the US and warned that they cannot perform on a visitor's visa. The issue is that their performances are paid, and the holder of a visitor's visa cannot gainfully work in the US.
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