With the passing of Joybert “Sky” Skyers, on November 30, the community has lost a cultural icon and entrepreneurial pioneer, who has been credited with heightening the profile of reggae music in and around Montreal.
Skyers, who died after a prolonged illness, was 72 years old.
He moved to Montreal in 1969 from Jamaica where he had a thriving businessman. Here, he returned to school and trained as an auto mechanic but before long was again bitten by the entrepreneurial bug. He opened Sky Reggae, on Clossee Street in downtown Montreal, one of the first record shops in our community in the early 1970s and built it into a cultural refuge for music lovers.
Following its closure, he opened New Age Records on Decarie Boulevard in the early 80s, which also became a musical enclave that was a drop-in spot for musicians, deejays and music aficionados.
New Age Records was recognized for the iconic joint that it became, winning multiple awards of appreciation and awards of merit from various Canadian music industry institutions.
In our upcoming publication, several musicians, deejays and friends will remember Joybert Skyers, the man known as Sky.
He leaves to mourn a daughter, Keisha and son Robert and a legion of relatives and friends.
Funeral services on Saturday, December 21, at Actuel Funeral Home, 4500 rue Verdun, close to the Verdun Metro between 1 PM and 5 PM. A viewing will be conducted before the service.