The music industry in The Gambia is mourning the sudden demise of one of its stalwarts, Balla Musa Jarra, a top-notch keyboard player with the Dembadu Band.

The late Jarra, a native of Serekunda Hanova, passed away last Sunday at the Royal Victoria Hospital after a brief illness. He was laid to rest the following Tuesday at the Serrekunda cemetery in front of hundreds of mourners.

Speaking to this paper, Amadou Drammeh, the bandleader of Dembadu Band, described the demise of Balla Musa Jarra as a great loss to the country’s music industry, noting that the late Jarra was one of the unsung legends who had contributed tremendously to the glorification of Gambian music and culture.

The Manager of Dembadu band, Mr Musa B Suso noted that the death of Jarra took them by surprise. He added that Jarra’s demise Jarra will leave a big vacuum in the band. “He was a very nice guy and it will not be easy to have someone like him in the band again. May his soul rest in peace,” he said.

It would be recalled that earlier this year, two of The Gambia’s salsa maestros, Labba Sosseh and Boy Njie passed away.