Posts tagged T&T

Rosie Awori (LJI) & Egbert Gaye So far carnival loving Trinbagonians are anything but excited about this year’s hastily organized celebration that is supposed to climax on Feb 28 and March 1, with two live events and a televised show. The calendar of events for the 2022 Taste of Carnival that kicked off on February 4, has been showcases of apathy and probably boredom for the few Trinis that even bothered to attend. And with the big Calypso Monarch competition shelved apparently due to a shortage of money, participating calypso tents struggled to draw crowds or secure funds for a …

Winter’s  cold may have dampened our partying spirit at times, but have no fear as Spring is here. And with the assurance that warmer days are ahead, so to are the line-up of Soca-based events. Spring 2019 runs from Wednesday, March 20th to Friday, June 21st and brings new growth, so weed out the bad and make room for something beautiful just as our Soca scene here in Montreal is showing. On MontreaI’s Soca scene, I will be the first to admit that talking about our problems has become our greatest addiction, and this is a habit I have decided …

Contact Staff Visitors to Trinidad and Tobago for the 2019 carnival were gifted with what has been loosely described as “a bumper crop” of Soca and calypsos. Yep, this year, many agreed the music was nice, especially hits like ‘So Long’ and ‘Hookin Me,’ two masterpieces penned by the erstwhile Nadia Batson, which she and her friend Farmer Nappy turned into party anthems for the season. In both songs, which were released very early in the season, Batson was able to capture the nuances of life-situations in T&T and packaged them in some sweet, sweet melodies and people jumping. Among …

Trinidad & Tobago carnival season has ended and this year history was made. This year, Soca artists from Grenada and St Vincent made a massive impact and one or two historical firsts. Now that it’s over life starts returning to normal for some but for many others such as the Soca artistes, foreigners, and Djs like myself, the business of spreading the love of carnival and Soca music has only just begun. The International Soca Monarch title has gone to Grenada as three Grenadian artist, one St Lucian and two Trinidadian emerged at the top of the International Soca Monarch …

When the mass of Montrealers, young and old, gathered on Park Drapeau on Ile St. Helene to participate in the annual Trini Family Day (Montreal in Harmony), they found themselves also celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the founding of Trinidad and Tobago capital city, Port of Spain. Organizers Cecil Alfred and Arnold Paris say it was important to mark the milestone here in Montreal because of the role that Port of Spain has played in the development of steelpan, calypso, chutney and soca, the musical culture of Trinidad, which fuels some of the biggest festivals in cities across North America. …