Photos: VP Records\Wikimedia Commons
VP Records proudly supported the Mission of Hope: Humanitarian Flights to Jamaica, an initiative led by Captain Barrington Irving through his nonprofit Experience Aviation, in collaboration with the Buju Banton Foundation, The Best of the Best Foundation, We the Best Foundation, and the Miami-Dade County Commissioner’s Office, among others.
The mission took place on November 10 and 11, with two flights departing Miami International Airport and arriving at Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston. More than 100,000 pounds of critical supplies were delivered aboard a Boeing 737-800 cargo jet and Captain Irving’s own aircraft to communities across Jamaica affected by Hurricane Melissa.
The project united partners from Jamaica’s corporate, cultural, and diaspora communities to deliver coordinated relief and demonstrate the impact of collective action.
“VP Records supported this mission through our longstanding relationship with Buju Banton. His partnership with Captain Barrington Irving and Experience Aviation offered a direct, well-organized way to transport critical supplies to Jamaica after the hurricane,” said Randy Chin, president of VP Records.
Buju Banton added, “We are incorporating and aligning ourselves as the foundations and working together to make a difference. Please remember my beautiful island of Jamaica and what we just went through. Remember Jamaica in your prayers, remember Jamaica in your giving, and to all Jamaicans remember who you are.”
Captain Irving, a Guinness World Record holder as the first Black man and, at the time, the youngest person to fly solo around the world, has led multiple humanitarian missions through Experience Aviation, including efforts following Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas and Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.
About VP Music Group
VP Music Group is an independently-owned global reggae company with direct-to-consumer, retail, wholesale, and digital distribution operations, as well as recording, publishing, merchandise, touring, and event production. With offices in Queens, Miramar, Kingston, London, Rio de Janeiro, and Tokyo, VP works across frontline and catalog releases from Jamaican and Caribbean artists and represents key voices in dancehall and reggae. VP Records was founded by Vincent and Patricia Chin, and together with Greensleeves Records and the 17 North Parade imprint, the company continues the mission of providing a worldwide channel for Caribbean music.
