The Rounds - April 30, 2006

Dr. Jay’s Rounds
Karen Richardson
April 30, 2006
Good Evening Soca lovers! I’m Nurse Karen and these are Dr. Jay’s Rounds.
The month of May begins tomorrow…which means a whole lot of college and university students are finally done exams. Congratulations! The day I wrote my last exam a few years ago, I jumped on a plane straight for the sunny Caribbean. So, if any of you bright kids have same bright idea as I did, I have a few super sandy suggestions.
It’s a great time for a carnival, what do you think? The festivities in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands wrapped up yesterday. But in St. Maarten they’re still fete-ing for 4 more days. St. Maarten’s carnival pulsates to all the rhythms of the Caribbean. So if you want soca and calypso, you’re covered. Same goes for Reggae and Dancehall too. Last week, Destra wowed the crowds in the same show as Alison Hinds, Baby Cham and iWayne (Ah wonder what Bunji woulda tink bout dat)
Don’t forget, Dutch is the mother tongue on that island, so don’t expect to only hear music sung in English. Zouk, Konpa, Salsa and Merengue all come from different ports in the Caribbean Sea…so today all is fair in music and mas’ at St. Maarten’s Grande Parade.
Granted, there’s not much time left to catch that party…so here are a few more you could ask your travel agent about.
Caymen Islands’ Batabano Carnival will be in full bloom from May 11th to 13th. Caymen Carnival was established in 1984 by the Rotary Club. It’s influenced by the many cultures and ethnicities that call the country home. So, if you know anything about the Caymen Islands, then you know that it’s a pretty popular place to live for Caribbean folk who work in the financial sector. So ladies, if you go down to check out the massive carnival vibes, be sure to check for the massive carnival wallets…while you’re at it. Trust me, you could do a lot worse than a Caymanian man.
Speaking of men who ain’t doing so well…I just heard that Vincentian cutie Bomani is in all kinda pain. (I know… I am a heart breaker, but you can’t blame me for this one, babes.) Bomani was performing in Brooklyn, New York two weeks ago where he fell during a show and injured his jaw. No word on how his singing voice is holding up. But his 2006 Vincy Mas releases are well underway…so if you were planning to visit SVG to see if the man who says HE IS SOCA can get back the monarch crown, Bomani hopes to be sounding and looking sweet in time for July.
Last night, a popular night time lime in Antigua launched the local Carnival in divine style. Thousands of young Antiguans packed Da-G-Spot for a party that combined soca performances with high performance motor bikes. Now dat is fete! The crowd got to sample the upcoming releases from Claudette Peters and a host of other Antiguan artistes all backed by Da Bhann. Plenty of time to find a flight down there, since the main event doesn’t hit the road until August.
At any rate…congratulations to everyone who got through the school year in one piece, and if you’re not heading south to the sun and sand…there’s no reason you can’t soak up all the sweet soca right here, every Sunday from 6-9
I’m nurse Karen and those are Doctor Jay’s Rounds. Send your comments to Soca at FLOW 935 DOT COM. Now back to de doctor…