Music
Busta Rhymes Island is a real place and it sounds delightful
by Mark Teo
March 14, 2014
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that wealthy musicians—like, for example, Celine Dion or that dude from 311—own private islands. It’s less common, though, for musicians to have islands named after them. Especially when they’re alive. Unless, of course, you’re Busta Rhymes.
Indeed, Busta Rhymes Island is actually a real place—but it isn’t a sun-soaked tropical paradise. Instead, it’s located in a Boston suburb—Shrewsbury, Mass.—in the middle of a pond. And no, we’re not joking. If you don’t believe us, check Google Maps.
Photo: Slate.com
We first heard the story on Roman Mars’ excellent design podcast, 99% Invisible. And they got the scoop behind the island’s existence: It was Mass resident Kevin O’Brien’s favourite place. It’s only a 40 by 40-foot island, but O’Brien’s kept up the patch of land—he added a rope swing and planted blueberry bushes on the island, where he and other locals go to enjoy beers. He cleans it up, too, when others leave trash on the island.
So, why does O’Brien love the little island so much?
“I’d say just the feel of it,” O’Brien, who works in tech support, told the podcast. “If you come out here in the summertime, it’s a nice, relaxing place to be. It’s dead silent, it’s just really low key.”
Which, of course, isn’t exactly befitting the dude who wrote songs like “Gimme Some More.”
But O’Brien, for his part, named the island in tribute.
“I was sitting around with my friend Brandon, and we were talking about how we always come around to the island, and he asked what its name was,” says O’Brien. “And I said, ‘It doesn’t really have a name.’ So he said, ‘How about Busta Rhymes Island? You love Busta Rhymes. Everybody loves Busta Rhymes.'”
And so, Busta Rhymes Island was born.
Of course, there are problems: While O’Brien refers to it as Busta Rhymes Island—and constantly geotags it on Google Maps—the U.S. Board on Geographic Names hasn’t yet approved the name. O’Brien has submitted a proposal to the board, but they maintain that a piece of property can’t be named for a personality until they’ve been dead for at least five years.
Busta, for his part, is alive and well: He was last spotted supporting dancehall artist Vybz Kartel in court, who is being charged with murder.
O’Brien, for his part, remains unfazed—the U.S. Board on Geographic Names recognizes names on a federal level. On a local level, councillors can actually order, and change, location names. So there’s hope for Busta Rhymes Island yet.
Listen to 99% Invisible‘s full story below—and O’Brien, know that you have our full and unconditional support in your quest to have Busta Rhymes Island recognized.
Tags: Music, News, WTF, Busta Rhymes
