The Tribune

By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features Reporter

acadet@tribunemedia.net

THE “Free Ya Mind” Bahamian Star of 100 Jamz has taker her personality and creative flow and infused it into a new business. Renee Davis, or the Natural Empress as she is popularly known, is staging a healthy living takeover with her new venture “Juicin’ For Life”.

Offering “real health in a glass,” Renee’s juice bar serves up fresh juices, smoothies and other liquid food delicacies, 100 percent natural with no artificial flavours or preservatives.

“I would say it is a little new to the Bahamas but not new to the world. In all my travels this is something that has always excited me. I think my first trip to Brazil in 1996 was when I really grasped this whole concept of juicing,” said Renee, in a one on one interview with Tribune Woman.

She said Brazil has juice bars on every street corner just as the Bahamas has churches and bars on every corner.

“They are very big on health; they are health fanatics and that explains why they look so good. I just thought that this was a fabulous idea to bring it here,” said Renee.

“ My time in Jamaica as well, I noticed this is big over there. People are health conscious in those places and I just think this is something that is very needed in the Bahamas,” she said.

This may be a new business venture for her, but Renee said even before her travels she always applied and incorporated natural juicing to her daily life.

“I’ve been doing this for as long as I can remember. This juice bar is definitely to help others. I won’t call names but I have a lot of cancer patients, persons who suffer from diabetes and high blood pressure, that come in here for the services. We have therapeutic drinks as well,” said Renee.

There are several signature drinks, including: the “Man I Weak” kale, spinach, banana, strawberry, apple and guarana smoothie, and the “ Refresh” apple, cucumber and kiwi juice.

With the assistance of nutritional classes, Renee said she learned about supplements and the things that people can add to these juices to give them a boost. One in particular she mentioned was the Guarana supplement from Brazil.

“It does what coffee does, but naturally. It is a natural caffeine, so it gives you four to six hours of energy and it is all natural. It also suppresses your appetite, so a lot of people that are looking for weight loss, this is a wonderful supplement to add to any of those drinks,” said Renee.

The juice bar has been opened for business for just over three weeks, and according to Renee, the word is getting out and business has been good. On Thursday, she and Special K of 100 Jamz will host a live broadcast Juicin’ For Life for its official grand opening at the store location on East & Bay Street.

It is Renee’s vision to see more branches of Juicin’ For Life open across the Bahamas.

“I would like to do another two more here in Nassau and definitely one back home in Freeport,” she said.

Her new stint in business, follows a successful career in radio and performance.

“A lot of people don’t know but back in the day I was a touring musician with the likes of many Reggae giants including Buju Banton, the Wailers, Maxi Priest, Lauren Hill, Roberta Flack and that gig took me around the world for 10 years. I was not only a background vocalists, but depending on gigs, I would also play keyboards,” said Renee.

After giving birth to her son, now 15 years old, Renee said she took him on the road for the first two years and by the third year she decided to hang up her touring boots.

“I landed radio because I just had to be involved in something in the music field. The only difference now is that I am on the other side of it. On one side I was making the music and performing it, and now I am on the side that is pushing it,” said Renee, who has been with 100 Jamz for eight years now, previously working at Cool 96 in Freeport.

Juicin’ For Life has now become an extension of her outreach. Renee said while she entertains jokes on her gossip sharing “Free Ya Mind” radio talk show, off air she provides a listening air to many Bahamians.

“There are a lot of people who are hurting in the Bahamas. They don’t want the air time, they just want to speak to me. I almost want to call it a ministry that happens off the air with me. People seek me out and they just want to talk. Now that Juicin’ For life is synonymous with The Natural Empress, they are finding their way here as well,” said Renee.