Duane Stephenson has just returned from the first half of a successful tour of South America. This first leg of the tour came after the release of what has been considered his best album to date: Black Gold.

The tour, which began in Lima, Peru, on November 11, has so far gone through countries such as Argentina, Uruguay and Ecuador.

In Argentina, Duane Stephenson performed in places like Tucuman, San Juan, Mendoza, Neuquén and Comodoro.

In Uruguay, he performed at Montevideo, and in Quito, Ecuador.

According to Stephenson, the tour is a new experience for him as he has never performed in South America before and was overwhelmed by the response of the people.

"It's a wonderful experience, people actually know the songs even though there is a language barrier. I am very happy that I took this opportunity and while it's a challenge to travel the great distances between cities and countries, it's a sacrifice well worth it for reggae music," he said.

For the second leg of the tour in January, Stephenson will journey to Brazil for five shows in cities such as Guaratuba, Florianopolis, Fortaleza, Salvador Da Bahia, and Recife. After Brazil, he will complete his tour of South America with one show in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on January 16.

Duane, who has been busy promoting his album Black Gold, says he is focused on pushing his music to new markets.

"There are a lot of opportunities. Right now I'm focused on promoting Black Gold because it's early days yet. We're looking for new avenues for getting the music out there. The one thing that's going to remain consistent is my release of good music that the family can listen to. I just want to tell the fans thank you for the support that I've been getting. Thanks for the love and support from all over the world."