Soca News Magazine | July 2016

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SOCANEWS Free

i116/july 2016 ISSN 1464-7087

socanews.com

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JULY/116 contents

features 08 T&T Bids Manning farewell 10 cocoyea teams up with the steve sinnott foundation

regular 05 NEWS 13 MUSIC

DJ Puffy Top Soca Tracks Videos Soca on the Web New soca releases

21 EVENTS 2 SN JULY 2016

When and where to fete


uk soca monarch 15 Groovy & Power finalist

get listed If you are a carnival organiser, promoter, mas band, steelband, soca sound, community group or other participant who’s feeling left out because we didn’t mention your event, or if you’d like to advertise in the magazine or online, the remedy is in your hands. Get in touch! Give us a call on 0333 012 4643

feature 24 crop over more than just a carnival

carnival 28 carnival calendar JULY 2016 SN 3


Editor’s

Letter With just over seven weeks to go until Notting Hill Carnival, we hope you have signed up to a band and ready to play mas. The UK Soca Monarch competition takes place on Sunday 7 August. Do come out and support all the artists; look out for the feature about all the finalists, on page 15.

COVER PHOTO

ABIR

We are also looking for people to write about their experiences over carnival – the preparation, the events, the mas. Please get in touch if you’re interested in contributing. Well, that’s all folks, until the next time. YOURS IN SOCA THE EDITOR

Published By Joseph Charles Publishing, 86 - 90 Paul Street, London EC2A 4NE. Telephone + 44 (0) 333 012 4643 Twitter | twitter.com/socanews Email | info@socanews.com Instagram | instagram.com/socanews Facebook | facebook.com/socanews Website socanews.com This issue of Soca News was brought to you by: Publisher & Editor Joseph Charles. Sub-Editor Katie Segal Consulting-Editor Stephen Spark. Layout & Design Joseph Charles. Contributors Nicole-Rachelle Moore, Natasha Ofosu, Stephen Spark, DJ Puffy. Photographers Stephen Spark, Victor Morris, Shutter In Motion, David Wears. The views expressed in Soca News are not necessarily the views of the editor or the publisher. All material contained within this publication is the copyright of Soca News. No material, written or photographic may be reproduced in any way without the written permission of the publisher. No liability will be accepted for any errors which may occur within the magazine.

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news

Artists lend support to TT Olympic effort WORDS • NATASHA OFOSU

With mere weeks to go before Rio de Janeiro welcomes the world for the 2016 Olympic Games, Trinidad and Tobago’s athletes have been given a musical boost by soca sensation Nesta ‘Sekon Sta’ Boxill. The artist has voiced the second of two theme songs for the T&T Olympic Committee in a bid to drum up public support for the nation’s sportsmen and women and energise the Olympians’ final preparations. Written by Sta and produced by Mikhail ‘Mega Mick’ Corneal, My World is a catchy tune with a heavily synthesised soca beat. Vocals are sparse, with just an echo reverberating throughout to provide some embellishment, whilst the rhythm is pared down to a striking bassline in the verses and ramped up in the chorus. The latter is a feature shared by the first Olympic release, Believe, written and sung by Erphaan Alves, which was unveiled at the beginning of June. Alves’ offering features a powerful choir in the chorus against rich drumming, which stands in contrast to the

barely-there rhythm of the verses. Sta said he approached the TTOC to make a contribution to the Olympic effort, and they jumped at the chance to work with him. He said, “I think it’s one of the missing spokes in my wheel, one of the missing prongs, so I made it my duty to do something that was uplifting not only to the athletes but to the people in a time where the people have a [depressed] mindset because of the recession... It’s to let them know we can continue and we can go for gold.” Meanwhile, TTOC president Brian Lewis, speaking at the launch of Believe, said that his organisation was trying a new strategy in the run-up to Rio, to promote awareness and support of its athletes. “The concept is to form a cultural partnership, to blend culture and sport [and] music is a key part of our culture,” he said. “It is an exciting time.” Both Alves and Sekon Sta have released videos for their songs on YouTube. My World is available to download at www.socasquad.com/ myworld and a ringtone is available for free from the TTOC website: www.ttoc.org.

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news

LNHCET and Westway Trust Team Celebrate 50 Years of Notting Hill Carnival WORDS • NICOLE-RACHELLE MOORE This year marks the 50th anniversary of London’s internationally recognised Notting Hill Carnival (“Again?!” we can hear some of you ask). On Friday July 22, London Notting Hill Carnival Enterprises Trust (LNHCET) and Westway Trust collaborated to launch an inclusive community event showcasing the five arenas of the iconic carnival. It was an opportunity for exciting presentations from the Association of British Calypsonians, the British Association of Steelbands, the British Association of Static Sounds, Caribbean Music Association and the Carnival Arts Mas’ Foundation. A stimulating mixed bag of all the ‘ingredients’ that go into the creative pot pourri that is Notting Hill Carnival, the event also featured a bar, food stalls and a merchandise stall. The event takes place at Bay 56, 1 Thorpe Close, London W10 5XL (on the east side of Portobello Road, under the flyover) from 6:30pm to 10:30pm and admission is FREE. See you there! 6 SN JULY 2016

Shop Barbados in the UK Shop Barbados, based here in the UK, retails a cornucopia of diverse Bajan products. They’ve recently added to their impressive supply, and sell over 70 brands from Barbados, including Carmetta’s Breadfruit, Cassava and Sweet Potato Flour, Caribbean Passion Marinades and Frutee Red & Ginger. Made and packaged in Barbados, everything sold through Shop Barbados (www.shopbarbados. co.uk) is air freighted to the UK, ensuring that freshness is maintained. Shop Barbados is currently touring with their Foodies Festival stand. With numerous events happening around the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of Barbados independence, the stand is enjoying a range of new customers sampling and purchasing its Bajan delights. The remaining dates for the tour are August 19 to 21 in Harrogate, Yorkshire. Further details may be found at: www.shopbarbados.co.uk/petermartin@ shopbarbados.co.uk or on 07779 102 973.

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feature

T&T bids Manning farewell WORDS • NATASHA OFOSU PICTURES • DAVID WEARS Trinidad and Tobago bade a moving farewell to its former Prime Minister Patrick Manning on 9 July. Those who knew him hailed him a hero, and a man of honour. Local and regional dignitaries, friends and family packed the Anglican Holy Trinity Cathedral, Port of Spain, for Manning’s state funeral service, while hundreds of members of the public gathered outside to view proceedings on a large screen. St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonzalves, who was one of Manning’s closest political and personal allies, elicited loud cheers during his tribute, saying, “In Patrick the love of honour never grew old. He was not possessed of that unprofitable part of life with which so many are obsessed, that is the gathering of wealth unjustly gained. Patrick died with his honour intact, his character unblemished and his life work meritorious and rightly celebrated.” Gonzalves developed his friendship with Manning in the late 1960s, when they were students together at the University of the West Indies in Mona, Jamaica. 8 SN JULY 2016

He said that his “comrade” and “real bredrin” was a man of forgiveness: “In his day, Patrick suffered at times not only the slings and arrows of misfortune; not only merely too from those who are full of sound and fury and signifying nothing, but very much some of those who even benefitted immensely and personally from his efforts, turned askance from him. I know that Patrick forgave them all. “Because of the absence of malice in him and because he had long realised that too many men and women - not all - are greedy and fickle by nature, and live in a permanent condition of dissatisfaction and ingratitude, there is nothing you or I can do for any such person. We simply leave that matter to Almighty God.” Manning’s former rival for leadership of the People’s National Movement, T&T’s current Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, said that, although Manning was stubborn, he’d led by his example. He recalled how one Sunday afternoon, in 1987, they conducted a political meeting at a house which no one attended. He said, “We were having a drink with the householder and he turned to me and said, ‘Rowley, start.’ And I said, ‘Start what?’ He said, ‘Start the meeting’. So I got up and went to the microphone and spoke for an hour, to no one. Then I thought that was the end of it, because I thought he had played a joke on me.


So I came back into the house and I sat down and he walked to the microphone and he spoke for 45 minutes. And then I knew that was a man who would never ask you to do what he would not do himself.” Brian Manning, the elder of the late Prime Minister’s two sons, told the congregation he had lost his hero. “My mother has lost the love of her life, her rock... and my brother and I have lost our hero and best friend,” he said. He added that his father had not left great material wealth behind, but something “far more valuable”. Brian said, “He left us a legacy that could only come from a life well-lived, a life dedicated to the service of our fellow man, a life of love.” He called for a fund to be set up in his father’s honour, which would support people with low incomes in T&T, and the region, to get affordable housing. Patrick Manning, 69 when he passed, was Trinidad and Tobago’s fourth Prime Minister and longest serving parliamentarian. He was the elected Member of Parliament for San Fernando East, in south Trinidad, from 1971 to 2015, and served as Prime Minister from 1991 to 1995 and from 2001 to 2010. Manning died on 2 July, 2016, in hospital, after a diagnosis of acute myeloid leukaemia, a rare form of blood cancer. His body was interred following the state funeral service. JULY 2016 SN 9


feature

Cocoyea Teams up with the Steve Sinnott Foundation to raise awareness of SDG4 WORDS • NICOLE-RACHELLE MOORE The Steve Sinnott Foundation kick started their ‘Education for All’ Awareness Programme at the end of June. The initiative sees young people in the United Kingdom and around the globe working to raise recognition and understanding within communities and schools of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal for Education (SDG4) - a commitment made by various world leaders in 2015 to ensure inclusive and quality education for all, and to advocate lifelong learning. Blogging, music, radio broadcasts and storytelling are all being used to drive home the SDG4 message - and participation in this year’s Notting Hill Carnival is yet another means to spread the word. The SSF is partnering with the legendary masquerade band Cocoyea, at the latter’s invitation, on the annual Children’s Day (August 28) this year. Children and young people taking part will share learning and understanding of different cultures, and the tradition of carnival through storytelling, with an emphasis on the countries that the SSF works in at present: Haiti, Nepal and Sierra Leone. Participants can immerse themselves in arts and crafts, costume, dancing, 10 SN JULY 2016

design, drumming, food and more. This promises to be a genuinely sensory adventure that reflects the variety of learning experiences of people in the UK and around the world. The creative marriage with Cocoyea sees the SSF augmenting its expansive approach to education in its work with arts practitioners, students and teachers, and its core belief in education being a permanent and powerful investment in ‘dignity, human rights, social inclusion and sustainable development.’ The Chief Executive of the SSF, Anne Beatty, expressed her delight at the organisation’s collaboration with Cocoyea: “We are very excited to take part in Notting Hill Carnival and get the message out there that every child has the right to access quality education wherever they are or whatever their circumstances. We have been really inspired by the enthusiasm shown for the Education for All Awareness Programme, and the innovative ways in which schools and community groups embrace the understanding of Education for All... many of them have taken a lead in supporting a movement responding to one of the most pressing issues of our times”. The SSF wishes to thank its partners and supporters including the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, Cocoyea Masquerade Band, the costume designer Jean Prime, the National Union of Teachers and Richard Harrington, the MP for Watford.


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music

dj puffy 10 top

GOOD MORNING PETER RAM

GYAL DROP SCRILLA

tracks

CALLING IN SICK

TURN ON DE SPEAKER

BANG BIM

(ONE O’CLOCK RIDDIM)

(WAHJANG RIDDIM)

GRYNNER

MARZ VILLE

KNOW THE FACE

DIRTY HABITS

GET THRU

KING BUBBA

MARVAY

FADDA FOX

LIL RICK

TEK OFF SOMETHING

(ONE O’CLOCK RIDDIM)

STIFFY

THEY DON’T WANT US TO FETE

YANNICK HOOPER

JULY 2016 SN 13


music videos

soca on the web

new soca releases

Sunday

swim my way

Ezra D’FunMachine, Jiggy & Scoobay

7-9pm

Soca on the Beat

Smokey Joe & Danny D, The Beat 103.6FM, thebeat1036.com

5-8pm

Mega Mix Show

DJ Cris, vibesfm.com

6-8pm

The Caribbean Affair

Martin Jay, bakahnalradio.com

8-10PM

BAKAHNAL IN D JUNCTION

DJ Toro, bakahnalradio.com

wahalla riddim various artists

monday

in de bay hollywood hp

7-9pm

Soca City

Mz Tiny Winey, bakahnalradio.com

thursday 6-8PM

D BREAK AWAY SHOW

Digga D, bakahnalradio.com

Friday

freaky girls

ricky t & eempey slicker

INCLINE BRANDON

9-11pm

Caribbean Sessions Showcase

DJ CJay, caribbeansessions.co.uk

various artists

Saturday 12-2pm

Caribbean House Party

Feminine Touch, Supreme FM 99.8, supremefmlive.ning.com

If you have or know of a radio programme that you would like to see included in this section, please email admin@socanews. com with all the relevant information.

socanews.com/music 14 SN JULY 2016

tamu tamu riddim

party jab riddim various artists


defending monarch Groovy & power

the finalist Groovy category • Ms Desire (Girls Just Wanna Have Fun) • Soca Kidd (Bring U Container) • Soca Samuel (Rock & Roll) • Sunshine & Nadiva (Unstoppable) • Terrah Dan (Free) • Nat & Tad (Whine) • Triniboi Joocie (Las Wuk)

Power category • • • •

Major Dan (Throw Waist) Jo Money (Stop) Soca Kidd (Bad for Grenada) Triniboi Joocie (Oye)

event details Date: Sunday 7 August 2016 Venue: Scala, 275 Pentonville Road, N1 9NL. Price: £10.00 + Booking Fee Time: 6pm Info: 0333 012 4643 07931 967 213

Triniboi Joocie TRACKS. LAS WUK & OYE

Born in Trinidad, Rodell Sorzano has been singing since childhood, and is also an accomplished steelpan player. He migrated to the UK in 1998, and began his professional soca career in 2010. Joocie’s sobriquet reflects his patriotism, as well as his intention to make music that is ‘juicy’ - as in, irresistible. In his debut year he placed second in the UK Soca Monarch competition, and won the Power Soca Monarch category two years later. He followed that success in 2013 by winning the double, when he clinched both the Power and Groovy Soca Monarch titles. Joocie continued his dominance of the British soca scene by winning consecutive Road March titles at Notting Hill Carnival in 2014 and 2015. The singer, who writes much of his own material, has said that his music reflects a variety of influences found around him in the UK. “My music is an eclectic sound. It’s a blend of different genres,” he explained. “I get a lot of inspiration from grime, which is UK hip-hop/underground music, house [music], as well as soca.” Whilst his status in the UK is beyond doubt, Joocie has had to work hard to build his profile in his birth island of Trinidad. He made some progress in 2014, when he was a semi-finalist in the International Soca Monarch (ISM) competition, and in 2015 returned with a strong media campaign. As crucial as Trinidad is to his career, Joocie has understood the importance of spreading his music beyond familiar audiences. He performed with British jazz saxophonist Courtney Pine at the Love Supreme soul music festival in 2014, revealing soca to many of the 40,000-strong crowd for the first time. In the same year he won the regional final and made it to the national final of Open Mic UK, the UK’s biggest competition for unsigned acts. JULY 2016 SN 15


UK soca m fina Groovy

Groovy

Groovy

Soca Samuel

Sunshine & Nadiva

Nat & Tad

Born and raised in Birmingham, currently living in London, Soca-Samuel The Red Indian (aka Dutty Dawg) is a singer/ songwriter who started writing soca songs in his bedroom at the start of 2005, and would continue to do so until hooking up with Combination Studio in early 2010 and making his first professional soca recordings. Later that year he became a finalist at the soca monarch competition in St Kitts & Nevis, where his father’s side of the family originates. Ever since then he has been releasing music each year, and has performed at soca fetes and venues across London, opening for artists such as grime star Stormzy. He is heavily influenced by soca superstars Machel Montano and Kevin Lyttle, as well as hiphop artists such as KRS-One, Wu-Tang Clan and loves RnB/soul and pop music. Soca-Samuel has what it takes to become the next breakout international soca star, and take the genre to the mainstream masses.

Sunshine & Nadiva (S&N) are artists, dancers, and musicians. Formerly known as Muzik Lil Muzik (MLM), the duo emerged onto the UK scene with the 2010 soca hit For Di Road. In 2011, MLM became the first artists to win both the UK Groovy and Power Soca Monarch competitions, with hits 2Flag and Make A Way, which were featured on D Tee’s soca show on BBC 1Xtra. In 2012, MLM were nominated for an International Soca Award for Best Soca Duo, for their groovy hit Make a Way, and again in 2013 for their single Chance. Also in 2012, MLM were awarded the Calabash Award for best soca group, and the Soca Music Award for best UK soca artist. In 2015, the newly renamed duo, Sunshine & Nadiva, teamed up with Smash Productions, makers of Bunji Garlin’s hit Cosmic Shift to create Keep Wukkin, written by Trinidadian songwriter Mista Vybe. Key influences include lovers rock, gospel, reggae, RnB, garage, calypso, and soca; their music has been played in carnivals around the UK. A ‘Caribbean cocktail’ is one way to describe the sisters’ heritage, stemming from St Vincent, St Lucia and Barbados with roots spreading around the Caribbean, including Trinidad and Tobago.

Nat was born and has lived in the UK all her life, and is of Indian and Jamaican descent. He has a love of baking - he’s been at it for 20 years, and has appeared on Britain’s Best Bakery - and a passion for music. He writes his own lyrics, in collaboration with another artist. He wouldn’t claim to espouse one music genre, as he’s still finding himself as an artist – and he’s always willing to try anything once.

TRACK. ROCK & ROLL

TRACK. UNSTOPPABLE

#uksocamonarch #socamonarchsunday 16 SN JULY 2016

TRACK. WHINE

Groovy

Ms Desire

TRACK. GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN

Emerging onto the international soca music scene back in 2008, Desire has consistently worked to make sure each hit is better than her last. Branded the Soca Songstress, Desire takes pride in producing intriguing fusions of magical melodies with captivating Caribbean rhythms. Desire earned herself the UK Groovy Soca Monarch title back in 2012, and this was just the beginning of her unstoppable journey. Her undeniable talent was noticed by talent scouts from MTV, where she was shortlisted for the MTV’s Brand New competition for 2013, which led to her music being added to the in-flight entertainment on all British Airways flights. Aside from her musical achievements, Desire is a bona fide business woman with multiple entrepreneurial ventures. From her very own carnival section, Infinite Mas, to her PR and artist management company, Desire&Aspire, there seems to be no slowing down for this musical sensation. With her distinctive sound and attention-capturing style, Ms Desire aims to leave soca music in the hearts of people worldwide, as she takes soca music global.


monarch alist Groovy

Terrah Dan TRACK. FREE

Originating from Barbados, UK soca artist Terrah Dan is a singer/ songwriter/DJ who got his break on the soca scene in 2013 with the song Thiefin a Wine, performing as a ‘wild card’ act in the St Andrew Calvacade show, which takes place in the run-up to the Barbados Crop Over carnival season. In 2014, he recorded and released his first official soca track, entitled Get Up & Rock, closely followed by one of his biggest singles to date, Way di Girls At, on the Tropical Fruits Riddim - also produced in the UK by Darren ‘Soca Child 360’ Skerritt and featuring a host of other UK-based Caribbean artists. Since breaking into the soca arena, Terrah Dan has worked very hard to establish himself as one of the frontrunners in the UK soca scene. He has graced the stage alongside a list of international soca artists - the likes of Asa Banton, Lyrikal and HypaSounds - as well as performing at carnivals, fetes and band launches across the UK and in his country of birth. In 2015, Terrah took second place in the UK Soca Road March competition, and in the Leeds Soca Monarch competition. A very energetic young man and a great lyricist, he is definitely one to look out for in the very near future.

Groovy & power

Soca Kidd

TRACK. BRING U CONTAINER TRACK. BAD FOR GRENADA

Brian Richmond, aka Socakidd, was born and grew up on the beautiful island of Grenada. A lover of calypso and soca music, he started singing in 1986 when he took part in the junior calypso semi-finals. Throughout the years, Brian has regularly involved himself with calypso music: singing in tents and ex-tempo, composing songs and performing backup and support for other artists. In 2000, Brian recorded How He Name, and has subsequently produced other soca tracks. Based in London, he has performed several times within the Grenadian community at fundraising events, carnival launches, and heritage day celebrations. He has also brought his soca music to comedy club performances and the South West Fest gala, winning 2011 Pimlico’s Got Talent with soca music. His passion, a hobby, a love; Brian ‘Socakidd’ Richmond is soca for life.

power

power

Major Dan

Jo Money

Born in St Kitts, Major Dan lost both parents when he was nine, which caused him to turned to music for comfort. He began to write poems, and then to translate them into songs. He has spent all his adult life in the UK, joining the British Army in 2008 and serving for four years, during which time he toured Afghanistan. He’s been settled in the UK since then, and looking forward to his first child, due to be born in October.

Jo has been a performer since the early 90’s. She has won awards for performances, in different genres such as RnB and early garage, but stopped making music to have children and finish university. Currently a mas designer (www.tooflycreations. com), she’s now back to make an impact on a scene that she loves - soca.

TRACK. THROW WAIST

TRACK. STOP

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events

SOCANEWS.COM /EVENTS

You are strongly advised to check with the event promoter, as details sometimes change and cancellations may occur; all information was correct at the time of going to print.

16Jul

FLAGZ

24Jul

FEELING FAB PRODUCTIONS

@ Fire Club, 39 Parry Street, SW8 1RT. Hosted by Silk Flagz. Featuring Live Stiffy. DJs DJ Bostman, DJ Limzy, DJ Majikal, DJ CJay, QT 2Hype & Twin T. Time 11pm-6am. Price £10, £15, motd.

CLUB CARIBBEE

The Essence of Crop Over

@ The Cumberland , Great Cumberland Place, W1H 7DL. Time 6pm-1.30am. Price £60, cocktail reception, three course dinner, entertainment & dance.

22Jul LNHCET

notting hill carnival launch

@ Bay 56, Westway Trust, 1 Thorpe Close, W10 5XL. Time 6.30-10.30pm. Price free.

SHIPWRECKED CARNIVAL LONDON

LAVA

@ Harper’s City Bar, 14 New London Street, EC3R 7NA. DJs DJ Dale, DJ Markee, DRaskal, DJ Remstar & Shep Beats. Time 6.30pm. Price Free entry b4 9pm, £10 thereafter.

Soca Mad House

3rd Annual Lime in D’Park

23Jul

@ Blagdons Cricket Club, Beverley Way, New Malden, Surrey, KT3 4PU. Time 1pm sunset. Price free entry; £5 for parking.Tel 020 8682 1115.

BAJANRUMSHOP

CARIBBEAN MUSIC ASSOCIATION (CMA)

@ Addictive, 28 Park Royal Road, NW10 7JW. DJs Supreme Blessings Sounds & Credable. Time 9pm-3am. Price £10, adv., motd. Tel 07961 706 487

@ Hornimans Pleasance Park, Kensal Road, W10 5EH. Time 1-8pm. Price free

Summer Wear Fete

Baewatch UK Mega Foam Party

@ Fire Club, 39 Parry Street, SW8 1RT. DJs Triple M, Supa Nytro, Vinny Ranks (Soca Mafia) & Mr Mention (Soca Mafia). Time 11pm. Price £8, £10, motd. Tel 07967 044 492.

Park Lime - Family Fun Day and Sports Carnival

28 Jul SOCAHOLIC & UCOM

Summer Ting

@ Opal Bar, Hungerford House Victoria Embankment, London WC2N 6PA. DJs DJ Chris Vee, Mr Hype, DJ Knightz Beatz, DJ JULY 2016 SN 21


events KEY: [18] = OVER 18 & ID WILL BE REQUIRED | BF = BOOKING FEE |

by Giselle. Time 8pm. Price £12, £10 with flyer, £8 students with NUS card, senior citizens, under 16s (with ID). Tel 07712 894 518.

DJs QT 2Hype, DJ D Tee & DJ Frisko. Time 6pm-1am. Price £10 + bfee, motd. Tel 0333 012 4643

SHIPWRECKED CARNIVAL LONDON

06 Aug

@ Harper’s City Bar, 14 New London Street, EC3R 7NA. DJs DJ Dale, DJ Markee, DRaskal, DJ Remstar & Shep Beats. Time 6.30pm. Price free entry b4 9pm, £10 thereafter.

TALK YUH TALK IN ASSOCIATION WITH CARNIVAL VILLAGE TRUST

Kaiso Lime!

2nd Annual Caribbean Summertime Picnic Family Fun Day

@ Carnival Village, Tabernacle Powis Square, W11 2AY. DJs Soca Massive, DJ Fats & Zoomer D. Time 7-10.30pm. Price free entry.

@ Lammas Sports College, Seymour Road, Leyton, E10 7LX. Time midday - 9pm. Price £5 adults, £3 teens, under 13s and senior’s free. Tel 07703 676 238.

ASHTON & FRIENDS CATERING

ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH CALYPSONIANS

D Francis. Time 6pm-late. Price free before 8pm, £5 thereafter.

29 Jul LAVA

CLUB ZOUK

Dress Up Friday

@ The Royal Lounge, 397 High Road, Wembley, HA9 6AA. Time 9pm-5am. Price £10 adv., motd. Tel 07961 753 359

30 Jul Miss TTUK 2016 and TT Talented Teens Launch Party

@ The Yaa Centre, 1 Chippenham Mews, W9 2AN. Hosted by Alafair Celestine. DJs Rebel D. Time Doors open 5pm. Showtime 7pm-late. Price £12 adv., motd. Tel 07958 336 694 or 07879 477 691.

31 Jul PREZZY PRODUCTIONS

Annual Beach Lime @ Bournemouth Beach, Bournemouth, BH5 1BN. DJs DJ Dale & DJ Frisko. Time 8am. Price £35, all inclusive. Tel 07950 699 807.

05 Aug ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH CALYPSONIANS

London Calypso Tent - Grand Opening Night

@ Carnival Village, Tabernacle Powis Square, W11 2AY. Hosted 22 SN JULY 2016

Curry On De Thames 4

@ Westminster Pier, Victoria Embankment, SW1A 2JH. Time 7.30pm. Price £30, inc of curry meal.

PARTY PEOPLE’Z ENTERTAINMENT

Crop Over Fest 2016

@ Reading University, via Shinfield Road, RG6 6UR. Featuring live Rupee (Barbados), Skinny Fabulous (St Vincent), DJ Outkast & MLM Dancers. Time 9pm-4am. Price £32. Tel 07927 068 386 or 07940 252 222

07 Aug SOCA NEWS

UK Soca Monarch 2016 Final

@ The Scala, 275 Pentonville Road King´s Cross, N1 9NL. Hosted by Giselle. Featuring Live - Groovy finalists: Ms Desire, Soca Kidd, Soca Samuel, Sunshine & Nadiva, Terrah Dan, Nat & Tad & Triniboi Joocie (defending monarch). Power finalists: Major Dan, Jo Money, Soca Kidd & Triniboi Joocie (defending monarch). Backed by a live Band:One The Band.

London Calypso Tent - Calypso Spectacular

@ Carnival Village, Tabernacle Powis Square, W11 2AY. Hosted by Giselle. Time 8pm. Price £12, £10 with flyer, £8 students with NUS card, senior citizens, under 16s (with ID). Tel 07712 894 518.

13 Aug DYNAMIC SOUNDS

Chutney Soca Boat Party

@ Golden Sunrise , Temple Pier Victoria Embankment, WC2R 2PN. DJs DJ Sonic, Dynamic Sounds & DJ CJay. Time 7.30pm1am. Price £25 incl. food. Tel 07888 706 497.

ASHTON & FRIENDS CATERING

De Blaxx Show

@ 229 The Venue, 229 Great Portland Street, W1W 5PN. Live Acts Blaxx, Sunshine & Nadiva & Terrah Dan. Time 8pm-3am. Price £30. Tel 07947 667 501.

SOCANEWS.COM/

EVENTS


JULY 2016 SN 23


feature

24 SN JULY 2016


Crop Over more than a carnival

When pop princess Rihanna began attending Barbados’ Crop Over in 2011, the event got a publicity boost that money could not buy. Her presence at the biggest festival on the island of her birth, then and subsequently in 2013 and 2015, like a kind of celebrity fairy dust got tongues wagging and pictures circulating across the globe and etched it in many people’s minds as, ‘the carnival that Rihanna goes to’. WORDS • NATASHA OFOSU

In its purest form, Crop Over has nothing to do with carnival; it’s a harvest festival dating back to the 18th century (some sources say 17th), which celebrated the successful end of the sugar cane season with feasting, singing and dancing. When the festival was revived in 1974, following its demise in the 1940s, new elements were added - and it gradually began to mirror the pre-Lenten Carnivals of Trinidad and Brazil. Today, the masquerade aspect of Crop Over is its main attraction, with thousands of costumed revellers portraying different themes as they parade through the streets of the capital, Bridgetown, on

the first Monday in August. Fittingly known as Grand Kadooment (a local word for a loud commotion and merriment) the parade marks the culmination of a three-month cultural pot pourri which includes visual arts, spoken word, craft, food, history walks and lectures and, of course, music. The buzz starts in May each year, with numerous costume band launches, a thanksgiving church service and the Mega Cavalcade, which showcases local soca artists. June sees the official opening of Crop Over with the Ceremonial Delivery of the Last Canes and Crop Over City Fest. It is an opportunity to re-live JULY 2016 SN 25


the origins of the festival, and sample Barbadian traditions such as the Landship, a theatrical group which performs naval and maypole dances, and the Tuk Band, an ensemble of musicians who play songs which blend African and British folk music on drums and a pennywhistle. Another highlight is the crowning of the King and Queen of the Sugar Cane Crop Industry for the most productive cane growers; Grantley Hurley and Judy Cumberbatch have held the title for a number of years. The festival moves to the rhythm of calypso and soca music, the latter being the more up-tempo off-spring of the former. Jazz also features at the Pan Fusion concert. Calypsonians perform their latest offerings nightly, in tents (there were seven at last count), and judges begin visiting these forums in late June to decide who is worthy of competing for the Pic-o-de-Crop Monarch title. Bridgetown becomes party central in July, when the pace of activity intensifies. Major music competitions are decided at both junior and adult level, including the Sweet Soca and Party Monarch titles at Soca Royale. In 2016, the Bashment Soca Monarch contest was introduced on ‘Phenomenal Friday’ (the first Friday in the month), and won by Stiffy, singing Tek Off Something. When it comes to fetes (parties), the choices are endless. In the final week of the festival, it is possible to party non-stop from the Friday through to Kadooment Monday. All that’s required are stamina and a penchant for ‘wukking up’, the Bajan term for their high-energy waistline gyrations. Begin with a breakfast jam before dawn, followed by a lunchtime boat cruise. Back on land, why not pack an icebox full of drinks and head to a cooler fete? Then, if you’re still standing, carry on to another themed event or get down and dirty at the Foreday Morning Jam, the first street parade in the wee hours of Kadooment Day. It’s a unique mix of female revellers in fashion forward swimwear and bands of people smeared in multi-coloured paint and mud - a sharp contrast to the spectacle of sequinned and feathered masqueraders who will dominate later in the day and draw the festival to a close. Crop Over 2016 promises to be particularly special, as it falls a few months before Barbados commemorates 50 years of independence on 30 November. Officials are predicting a bumper crop of visitors - and it just remains to be seen whether Rihanna will be amongst them.

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Crop Over events guide sun 10 July

wed 13 July

• PAN PUN DE SAND

• WADADAH BACK-TO-SCHOOL

thurs 14 July

fri 15 July

• CROP OVER HERITAGE LECTURE & TOURS

• PIC-O-DE-CROP SEMI- FINALS

sun 17 July

weds 20 July

• SOCA ON DE HILL

• WE DON’T POSE WE PARTY (XHOSA)

• TIPSY BEACH PARTY • WE TING EMANCI-PAINT


r sat 23 July

sun 24 July

tues 26 July

wed 27 July

• JUNIOR KADOOMENT

• UV VIBE / FRAMES - THE ULTIMATE SUNRISE EXPERIENCE

• BARE ICE

• FYAH DE WUK

• CROP OVER EVENING OF FOLK

• ZULU INTERNATIONAL ENCHANTED

• JUNIOR CALYPSO MONARCH FINALS • COOLER VIBES CRUISE

• SOCA ROYALE

• ROAST STUMBLING

• SPLASH POOL PARTY

thurs 28 July

sat 30 July

fri 29 July

sun 31 July

• RUK-A-TUK / PREMIUM BREAKFAST CRUISE

• CAESAR’S ARMY - AMBUSH

• BLACK2BLUE / BREAKFAST PARTY

• ISLAND MAS ALL INCLUSIVE

• MIMOSA / BREAKFAST PARTY

• SCORCH BREAKFAST PARTY

• ROAST CRUISE

• LIMERZ CRUISE

• CANDY COATED CRUISE

• BOOZE CRUISE

• TRINI JUNGLE JUICE / CRANK

• SOCA BRAINWASH

• BUCKETFEST (BRC) • BEACH HOUSE • LUSH COOLER PARTY • JABNIVAL • LIFTED

• SCORCH CRUISE • FRAZZLED SOCA INVASION • BLISS ALL INCLUSIVE • DIS IS RICK • PIC-O-DE-CROP FINALS

• VALE VIBE / COOLER BIM

tues 01 aug

wed 02 aug

• GRAND KADOOMENT

• DAY TWO

• TWISTED RE-WHINE

• RECOVERY CRUISE

• 1LOVE CONCERT

• FOREDAY MORNING JAM • UV VIBE / VOYAGE PREMIUM DRINKS

SOCANEWS.COM/

CARNIVALS JULY 2016 SN 27


CARNIVAL CALENDAR

july 16 2016

derby caribbean carnival DERBY, UK

18-19

st lucia carnival SAINT LUCIA

30

Zomer Carnaval ROTTERDAM, HOLLAND

www.stluciancarnival.com

www.rotterdamunlimited.com

01 - 02

06

01332 371529 info@dwica.co.uk

aug 01

2016

crop over BARBADOS

www.funbarbados.com/Crop_Over

antigua carnival ANTIGUA

http://antiguacarnival.com

leicester caribbean carnival LEICESTER, UK

http://leicestercarnival.com

08-09

spice mas GRENADA

http://www.spicemasgrenada.com

13-14

caribbean carnival of manchester MANCHESTER, UK

http://themanchestercarnival.com

28-29

leeds west indian carnival LEEDS, UK

http://www.leedscarnival.co.uk

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20-21

nottingham carnival NOTTINGHAM, UK

http://emccan.org/nottinghamcaribbean-carnival

28-29

notting hill carnival LONDON, UK

http://www. thelondonnottinghillcarnival.com


JULY 2016 SN 29


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